You Always Go And Rescue Me

CH. 3

I didn’t have to be up early the next morning so I slept in a little later than usual. When I woke up the events of the night before replayed through my brain. I wasn’t sure I believed they happened until I looked at my arm and saw the huge bruise from Sean’s insanely hard grip.

I crawled out of bed around eleven and made my way into the kitchen to make some breakfast and put of a cup of coffee. I was still in my sweatpants and tank top when the doorbell rang. I wasn’t expecting company so needless to say I was surprised.

I made my way over to the door and looked through the peephole, I could see a guy in a hat so I opened the door for him, confused.

“Hi, I have a delivery.” As he said this I realized he was holding a vase filled with a bouquet of beautiful white roses and a teddy bear wearing a little hockey jersey.

He handed me a slip to sign, gave me my presents and left. I admired the breath taking display of roses that were for me and reached for the card.

Sarah,

Beautiful roses, on a beautiful morning, for an extremely beautiful girl.

The bear is to protect you in case you have any more run-ins and I’m not there.

I’m looking forward to seeing you again. Please do me the honor of having dinner with me tomorrow night.

-Zach

My face lit up as my mouth muscles began to hurt from smiling so much. I could feel my cheeks heat due to my racing blood as I stared at my incredibly thoughtful gift.

I completely forgotten that I wanted to eat breakfast and instead set up my roses in the center of my window, the one I loved to sit and stare out of where I knew the sun would shine on them. I sat down on my couch, with my feet up. I was holding the bear and as I made eye contact with him I simply smiled- it was the most romantic gesture I’d ever experienced in my life. I sat there for a little and just took it all in.

The day was flying by me when I realized it was already after twelve noon. I jumped in the shower so that I could be ready for work at night, I had to cover an event in a few hours and meet up with some colleagues. I was in the mist of towel drying my hair and trying to get excess water out when I heard my phone ring.

I ran over and didn’t recognize the number that was calling.

“Hello?”

“Good afternoon,” the voice said with a pleasant smile.

“Zach?”

“Yes ma’am. At your service.”

I smiled as I said, “funny you should call because an extremely embarrassing display of roses and a new, furry little friend were delivered to my apartment this morning. I was thinking you might know something about it?”

“I might know a little something.” I could tell he was laughing to himself. “Did you get the card?”

“Yes, it was so sweet. Thank you so much, you didn’t have to do that.”

“I know. I wanted to. So, what do you say?”

“About what?”

“Dinner!”

“Oh! Yes, that! Well, I don’t have to cover any games or anything, so yeah, I’d love to have dinner with you.”

“Good, well then I’ll be at your apartment to pick you up at seven. Wear something nice, we’re going out, and hopefully I won’t have to worry about you getting attacked by any crazy hockey players until then.”

“Not unless you count yourself,” I teased.

He laughed. “I’ll try to contain myself, see you tomorrow night.”

“Looking forward to it.” And I really was. For the first time in a long time I had accepted a date and was honestly really excited about it, which terrified me.

_______________________

It was 7:05 and I was putting the finishing touches of my makeup on when my doorbell rang.

“Coming!” I yelled from the bathroom.

I ran to the door and opened it. Zach was standing on the other side, looking handsome as ever. He was wearing dark grey dress pants with a white and light blue striped button down shirt.

Our eyes met and I saw him look me up and down to examine my outfit. I was wearing a strapless black dress that was cut above my knee with a pair of silver heels to go with it. I had my long blonde hair in loose curls and I could see he appreciated my efforts.

“Wow,” Zach gasped. “You look stunning.”

I blushed. “Thank you. You clean up well.”

“So, are you ready?”

“Yeah, let me just grab my purse.”

He took me to an amazing restaurant. The ambiance was amazing, it was intimate and beautiful and very expensive. There was a mixture or jazz and blues music from past decades playing just soft enough to add a little something, but loud enough to keep your conversation private.

“So,” I started. “I’ve got to ask. Do you always ask girls out this way? Save them then seduce them?”

He laughed. “No. I can honestly say I’ve never done anything like that before.”

“Oh, so you aren’t an Allstar hockey player by day and some vigilante by night?”

“You know, I do believe you figured out my secret.” He flirted back. “Actually, I don’t know how to explain it.” He was almost stumbling over his words, nervous at how honest he was being. ”I saw you in the locker room and you looked so pure. When I was leaving I saw Sean was following you but I figured you must have known him until I saw how violent he was being with you. I could see the fear in your eyes and I knew I had to do something. I just….I couldn’t let him hurt you.”

I swallowed. No one had ever been so sincere or so protective with me, it almost made me uncomfortable, but before I could muster up the words to say something back to him he added, “I hope the flowers and the bear weren’t too much.”

“Are you kidding? An amazingly sweet, gorgeous hockey player saves me from God only knows, drives me home, and sends me roses and a teddy bear. Yes, it’s too much. I’m terrified of you.” I was clearly being sarcastic and his shoulders relaxed as he realized how appreciative I was of his thoughtfulness.

“Good. The last thing I needed was to be another creepy hockey player in your life,” he joked.

“Ha, don’t worry, you’ve been nothing but respectful.” I smiled at him. “I still can’t believe you aren’t like this with all the other girls that probably throw themselves at you.”

“Nah. I’m not like that. It’s nice to have fans, don’t get me wrong. But most of the girls I meet are easy choices, gross. I’d prefer to meet someone worth spending more than one night with…” He trailed off.

I knew he was being honest, but in the back of my mind I couldn’t help but suspect he was just baiting me.

We spent the rest of the dinner talking about our pasts. I told him about my growing up in Jersey, school, and how I ended up working for MSG. He told me what it was like growing up in Minnesota, what it was like the day he got drafted and how he likes this part of the country. It was so relaxed, there was no pressure, it just felt right. It felt so right it terrified me.

When we got back to my apartment I invited him up for a cup of tea. I took off my heels and was walking around barefoot in my dress. When the water was finished boiling on the stove I put on an oven mitten and poured it into the waiting mugs. As I was doing this I glanced over at Zach who was already staring at me with a content slight grin on his face.

“What?” I asked in with a smiling head nod.

“Oh, nothing. So, I was wondering…what happens if Sean comes after you again?”

“You know, I haven’t really thought about that. I figured he would leave me alone after the beat down you gave him the other night.”

“I don’t know about that one. I’ve played against him for a few years now and it’s no secret we don’t like each other. I don’t know much about him but I know that he doesn’t quit easily-especially when he’s been embarrassed. I’m not sure what he is capable of but I’m just saying I don’t trust it.”

I sat his tea down in front of him. “Hmmmm. It’s impossible to know. But do you really think there’s a possibility he would risk his career over me? It’s just nonsensical.”

“True. But then again, look at his history.”

I shuttered at the thought. I took a sip of my tea and realized that opposed to what I thought, things with Sean could actually escalate.

“Well I guess I’ll just have to be more careful.”

“There’s nothing wrong with you. He’s an animal. I just want you to know that if anything ever happens I want you to call me.”

I nodded at him and took a deep breath in. “Hopefully it’ll never get to that.”

About thirty minutes later Zach and I had finished our tea. I was escorting him to my door and my stomach was in knots with anticipation. I expected him to kiss me goodnight, and to be honest I hadn’t had a first kiss in a long time. I leaned against the frame of my open door and he put his hand on my waist, which felt as if a lightening bolt went through my body. I couldn’t deny the chemistry, it was definitely there.

“Thank you for a lovely evening,” I said to him, sincerely as I looked up at him.

“You’re welcome. But the pleasure was all mine. I had a really great time with you tonight.”

“Oh yeah?” I flirted back. He leaned in closer to me.

“Yeah, I got to have dinner with a beautiful girl who can actually carry a conversation,” he said through a smile that had my blood racing. He wasn’t far from my lips and before I could even think about resisting, he kissed me. It wasn’t aggressive, it was soft and sweet and sent rivers of electricity flowing through my veins. It was so perfect that it scared me and I pulled away.

“What? What’s wrong?” He was concerned.

“Nothing,” I couldn’t find the right way to say what I wanted to say. “I just… you’re incredible, and I know we just met but I really feel like there is something between us. But you’re you, and I’m just me. You have girls throwing themselves at you, girls who can offer you things and satisfy you…” This time it was me who trailed off.

“I don’t understand.” He wasn’t taken aback; he just didn’t know where I was getting at.

“What I’m trying to tell you is that I’m…well I’ve never…I don’t sleep around, I’ve never had sex. I just, I’m waiting, and if that’s too much for you and you can’t-”

I didn’t get to finish my babbling sentence. Zach’s lips silenced me and when he pulled away he was slightly laughing.

“Let me put it this way…I don’t buy used cars, cars that have been passed around to different people,” he said playfully and seductively. “I like brand new ones.” He grinned a perfect smile at me and looked into my eyes. He was accepting me, and I realized by his silly metaphor that it wasn’t just about sex for him; he wasn’t some sex driven hockey player waiting to find his next lay.

“So you want to see me again? Even after me telling you that?”

“It makes me want to see you more,” he said with a slight surprised tone. “You’re not like the other girls I’ve met. You intrigue me.”

I smiled in relief and pulled him closer to me. “You may just be the most incredible person I’ve ever met,” I said as I tugged on his shirt and reached up to him. He had one arm wrapped around my waist and the other on my hip as our mouths met in a mutual want. Our kiss was more passionate but this time I wasn’t afraid. We pulled apart and said our good nights. As he left and I closed my door my behind me, I knew I was already in way over my head. When I was in bed Zach text me telling me he had got home safe, per my request, and that he couldn’t wait until our next date. I didn’t know it was possible to fall asleep smiling, but that night I did.