I'm Just a Man

Riley’s POV

Riley looked up at Tyler and tried to keep her face neutral, like Switzerland. Her head screamed at her this was a bad idea while her heart beat uncontrollably and told her to give him a change. Each day that passed that Tyler was still at the house she found her attraction to him building. Some days she even felt like Marshall was in on his owner’s plans and knew just the look to get Riley to give him a treat or play in the backyard. Like right now, where he laid just far enough away to watch her ever moment but not close enough to get in trouble for begging. When Tyler realized she wasn’t going to say anything back or do anything he left her standing there to go back upstairs. As soon as she heard him reach the second floor Riley felt like she could breathe again.

Hearing the garage door open Riley felt like she jumped a foot in the air only to turn and see Jamie holding the door for Claire carrying Hawkins Romo. Grabbing the carrier away from her friend she quickly gave it to Jamie and dragged Claire into the basement slamming the door.

“Woah… Riley what is going on?” Claire looked at her friend worried

“Tyler. Tyler is what is going on. He walks around like he owns the place and can just do whatever he wants, touch whatever he wants. ….”

She ranted and paced the length of the floor while Claire just sat on the arm of the couch down in what was dubbed the man cave. Riley stopped and gave her friend a glare.

“Are you just going to sit there and stare at me or say something?”

“I’ll say something but you aint going to like it”

Riley’s look said it all, go on.

“You like Tyler Sweetie. Despite everything the internet says about him and his bad boy antics you are falling for him and he has found just the right button to push. Would it kill you to give him a chance? You might just find out he isn’t what you think. He’s a good man who was maybe hanging out with the wrong influences in Boston.” Claire took a breath “The Tyler that is living here now is not the Tyler I meet almost two years ago in Ottawa.

“What are you trying to say Claire?”

“Give him a chance now or one day you might wake up and regret it Riley”

Riley walked upstairs a few minutes later and was greeted to the site of Claire with a baby on her hip making plans with Tyler for that night to take Riley out. Both their faces said there was no way out of this while Jamie just shook his head laughing in the background.

She was getting frustrated with Claire, it was like Claire expected her to run away and hide at some point. Around six o’clock there was a knock on the door and she ran for expecting to find Tony on the other side coming to get his son and giving her a few moments stress free. Riley only found Tyler on the other side.

“Did you lose your key Tyler?”

“That would be rude of me. I’m here to pick up my date for the evening, Are you ready Riley?”
Riley froze in her tracks of walking away from him and took a deep breath to calm down.

“If this was a real date you would be waiting and Jamie would be harassing you about your intentions not in the living room laughing while he pretends to play with Hawkins.”

Walking into the kitchen she grabbed her bag and cell phone before stalking back to the door and slipping back into her boots. It was still warm enough at night to get away with cut off shorts and a tank top. Riley gave her head a little tilt with a slightly forced smile.

“I’m ready when you are sweetie.”

Tyler’s POV

He led Riley to the car and opened the door making sure she was in before closing the door and getting in himself. The whole way it killed him to not reach out and grab her hand or rest his hand on her lower back. Turning on his new pickup truck the radio was turned on low to the local country station playing Kip Moore's Hey Pretty Girl. Everything about this song made him think of her but how he could show it and Riley know he means it.

Life’s a long and winding ride, better have the right one by your side, and happiness don’t drag its feet, time moves faster than you think.

Tyler looked over at Riley only to see her looking out the window, her reflection in the side mirror let him see her face trying to figure out what was going on but not the internal battle in her eyes. He moved his eyes back onto the old farm road and kept going looking for the next dirt road that would take him the large field he found earlier that day. Tyler had thought ahead and filled an ice chest with sweet tea, two of her favorite cupcake and cleared out the closets of all blankets to lie down in the bed with and be comfortable. Parking the truck he looked at Riley and gave her a pleading look.

“Please stay here a minute”

He quickly got out and went about laying all the blankets out, jumping down from the bed he saw Riley standing there watching him, he shook his head; what made him think she was going to listen in the first place. Tyler walked over holding his hand out to her, hoping she would let him help her up.
“I’m not sleeping with you so you can stop thinking about it right now.”

Riley took his hand pretending to need the help and sat down resting her arms back on the wheel well. He climbed up behind her and laid down on the other side with his hands behind his head.

“I wasn’t thinking about it at all, I just hoped we would talk and you not bite my head off. Prove to you I’m not the asshole you think I am. Did I let winning the cup in my rookie season mess with my head, probably. Did I make choices that now I am not proud of, hell yes.” Tyler let out a sigh “I’m not the asshole you think I am”

He watched as riley tilted her head back and take a breath. He had noticed her doing this a lot lately and it just made him want to know what was going through her mind.

“If you were an asshole Claire wouldn’t let you live with them, she wouldn’t give me shit about being a bitch to you either.”

Riley moved to lay down next to him, they had driven far enough long enough and gotten far enough out of town that you could see the stars no problem.

“Don’t tell me about Seguin the Boston Bruin, tell me about Tyler. The man you mother raised you to be” Riley turned her head to look at him a moment.

“Right now, being out here make me miss home. I honestly think my sisters would love you and the three of you would gang up on me.”

“Sisters?” Riley raised an eyebrow at him.

“Two, Candice and Cassidy. They are both younger and both play hockey.”

Tyler ended up lying with riley and talking for a few hours. He was grateful to get to the side of her everyone else seemed to know. They talked about everything, from music to movies, places they have traveled to all the way to family and friends. When they got back to the house Tyler walked Riley to her car. He wanted so bad to kiss her but he was afraid it would run her off. Riley played with her keys for a few minutes and he grabbed her hand giving it a squeeze before she finally got in and left for home. Tyler grabbed all the blankets from his truck and took them inside. Tomorrow he would wash them and put them away.

Tyler sat down at the kitchen counter just spinning his phone for a few minutes before picking it up and texting a former teammate, Mark Recchi, asking him if they could meet for lunch tomorrow.