Big Girl Panties

If there was one thing Trixie loved more than a fresh manicure and pedicure, it was definitely being on a flight back to Chicago. She and Clint had worked double time to get the locker room in Nashville stripped and all equipment packed for the next round of home games. Okay, there was actually one more thing Trixie loved more than a fresh mani/pedi, and that was a long series of home games strung together. The next seven games would take place on home ice which would surely make life and job a little less stressful.

It was nearly one in the morning when their plane had landed at O’Hare airport and with time unloading all the bag and the drive back to the United Center, Trixie would be lucky to see the inside of her condo by 3 AM. Putting her feet up on the dashboard of the truck, Trixie rubbed her hands together in an attempt to warm them up. She had forgotten Arizona and Tennessee didn’t see the type of winters Chicago did and had conveniently left her gloves sitting on her kitchen table. Their work was easily planned out for them for when they arrive at the United Center. With no practice scheduled for the following morning and only a light morning skate on the agenda for game day, setting up the locker room could be put off.

Sure enough, just as she had predicted, equipment bags had been tossed in front of their respectable cubby’s in less than thirty minutes. It come as a rather shock when Trixie saw a few cars she recognized still parked in the parking lot. There was no need for them to be hanging around. Tossing her duffle into the backseat of her car, Trixie pulled her hair back in a bun as Kane, Jonathan, Shaw and Dan approached her car.

“Shouldn’t you guys be at home asleep?” She looked at the time on her iPhone. “It’s 2:30.”

“Well…” Patrick started.

Shaw finished for him. “We figured after a long road trip, we’d get a couple drinks. Dave and Bic’s are already at Scout.”

Trixie could do Scout. It was only four miles or so from the United Center. She pointed to Dan. “Don’t let me have any more than two. I have a ton of errands to do in the morning.”

Dan nodded his head to show he understood. “You’re gonna follow me?”

Clint passed on the offer as he was eager to get back to his family. It would be the usual group there: Trixie, Pat, Jon, Dave, Bryan, Andrew and Dan. Trixie knew Dave’s time was limited as his wife was expecting their first child. They had lost Sharp to fatherhood as well, although after a big victory he would join them for drinks.

The first thing Trixie did when she started the engine of her car was blast the heat. She wanted to warm her hands before daring to grasp the ice cold steering wheel. As she pulled out of her parking space, she followed Shaw out of the lot noting the headlights shining in her rearview mirror belonged to the Hummer Dan drove. One of the many things Dan admired about Trixie was that no matter how padded her bank account was, she still drove the same black Honda Civic she had purchased herself nearly six years ago after her nineteenth birthday. A year after starting work with the Blackhawks.

While it was almost closing time by the time they reached the bar, there was no need to worry about that. There were times she and Patrick and Big Buff would close the place down at six in the morning after drinking nearly every bottle on the self. Not to mention the owner wasn’t too concerned about pushing them out the door considering he knew all too well it was Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews who paid most of his employees paychecks and brought good street credit to his business. It had been the same place Trixie brought Andrew Shaw to celebrate his twenty-first birthday.
“I wish it was summer.” Trixie complained as she locked her car doors and skipped to the bars entrance.

“Yeah, but then you’d be bitching about how much you wished it was winter.” Patrick stated the truth.

Dan pulled the door open for them as Trixie removed Shaw’s arm from around her shoulders. Neither she nor he was even buzzed and he was already testing his luck at bedding Trixie. The poor boy was infatuated with the female and pined for only another kiss. He held on to the memory of Trixie giving him one of the best French kisses of his life after the both them had gotten way beyond the point of drunk during one of the celebrations of his big two-one birthday.

They were greeted by Dave and Bryan who were sitting on bar stools already deep in their first round of drinks. Bryan let Trixie take off her navel pea coat before handing her a short cranberry and vodka. She had only planned on one beer but clearly this was not going to be one of those nights. She wasn’t one to object to cracking a bottle at nearly three in the morning and if she wasn’t going to be the only one, why say no?

“Do a shot with me.” Dave handed her a glass and she guess what it was the second she caught a whiff of the copper liquid inside. Whiskey.

Her head was telling her it was bad idea, but she clinked glasses with Bolland and tossed it back. Her chest burned as she shook off the sudden chill that ripped her body. As Dave reached for the bottle to pour another round, Dan could tell it was going to be a very long next hour.

An hour, six shots and two cranberry and vodka’s later, a clearly intoxicated Trixie attempted to regain her balance as she got off the bar stool and headed down the bar where Dan, Patrick and Shaw had congregated around the jukebox. Dave and Bryan had called it quits and left twenty minutes ago which was probably around the same time Trixie should have done the same.

“What are you ladies talking about?” Trixie placed the black cocktail straw between her lips and sipped her drink.

Patrick was just as intoxicated as she was and so was Shaw. Dan was soberest of them all having decided against shots.

“Trixie,” Patrick hiccupped. “Trixie, how long have we been friends?”

The drunken conversations between Patrick and Trixie had become one of Dan’s favorite parts of the night when they went out as a group. Some of the things they talked about, Dan concluded, were worth being recorded for future listening to.

“A long fucking time.”

“Do me a favor…and show the poor kid your tits!” Patrick pointed to Andrew, who threw his arms up in victory that he had convinced Patrick to put in a good word for him.

Noting it was probably time to head home, Dan, set his beer on a table and tossed a few bills from his wallet beside it. He would never admit it, but Patrick’s statement and Andrew’s reaction had sparked a small pang of jealously within.

“Let’s get you guys home.”

Realizing there was no way either of the three were in any shape to drive, Dan decided to drive Trixie home and hailed a cab for Patrick and Shaw. Knowing the incident that had happened last time Patrick had been in a cab drunk, Dan handed the cabbie a fifty which would more than cover the drive to Patrick and Andrew’s respected houses.

Dan helped Trixie into the passenger seat of his car once he had gotten in she grabbed him by the tie before he could put the key in the ignition. She closed the space between their lips and without warning caught him in a kiss. Trixie kept a grip on his tie with one hand and ran her free right hand through his brown hair. Tongues tangled, lips were nibbled and bit and when they pulled apart they were both breathless.

“Take me home.” Trixie demanded. “To your place.”

Dan could feel the fire begin to rage inside his belly. He wanted her with the same amount of lust as she wanted him, but there was one difference. While Dan was sure Trixie’s feelings didn’t reciprocate, he wanted to roll over in the morning and find her sleeping soundly beside him. He was right. Trixie didn’t have those same feelings. After a good fuck, the adrenaline would burn off most of the alcohol in her body and a good solid hour and a half sleep was all Trixie would need to be ready for her jump ship by 7 AM. At least she was nice enough to start a fresh pot of coffee before she left and return the travel coffee mug she stole from his cabinet washed.

It was a surprise Dan and Trixie had made it up to his condo before they were both undressed. When Dan swung the door open, he didn’t notice his neighbor who was out in the hall coming back from a run as he pushed her against the door and attacked her lips. They separated for only a second as he removed her and tossed it on the hallway floor. Her jacket was long forgotten in the backseat of his car. Giggles escaped her lips as Trixie wrapped her legs around his waist. Dan’s own laughter followed suit as he brought her into his messy and disorganized condo, slamming the door shut with the foot.