Whatever It Takes

Andrew took a look around the living room area to make sure it was clean. He was normally the type of guy to clean last minute and just use Febreze to make the area smell nice, but he cleaned up an hour earlier than he normally would have to make sure that everything was perfect for Emilia’s arrival. He gotten a few calls from his friends while he was cleaning and with each and every phone call all they did was try to distract him. Somehow, three of his other teammates found out about Emilia and had been making fun of him ever since.

While he watched TV to pass the time, his leg shook nervously. He never had a girl over before for an official date and he was nervous about how the night would unfold. A quick knock on the door made Andrew jump out of his seat on the sofa. He quickly checked his appearance, making sure he had no stains or that his shirt was rumpled up before answering the door.

“Hi Andrew,” Emilia greeted as she kissed his cheek.

“Hey, you look great,” he commented, even though half of her attire was still covered up because of her coat. “Did you make it here okay?”

She gave him a nod as she began to unbutton her coat. “I had some trouble reading the directions since I don’t have a GPS but I think I made it here alright. Nice…hotel suite.”

“Yeah, it’s only temporary,” he chuckled nervously. “When work dies down and I have more time I’m going to be looking for a more permanent place to live.”

Andrew took her coat in his hands and hung it on the back of the chair that he had in the kitchen. When he turned back around, he couldn’t help but notice how good she looked. Her dark washed jeans were similar to his, only they were much more form fitting. She wore a white tank top underneath her cozy, charcoal gray sweater.

“What is it that you exactly do if you don’t mind me asking?”

“How about we get comfortable in the living room and we’ll talk?” Andrew placed a hand on Emilia’s back, just like how he did on their first date. Only this time, it felt much better for the both of them with her coat not being in the way. After sitting down, he looked over at her and wanted nothing more than to just kiss her on his couch.

Emilia turned her body so that she was facing him, resting her left arm on the back of the couch. “Why do you look so nervous? Are you a serial killer or something?”

“No,” Andrew chuckled. “I’m a hockey player. I play for the Chicago Blackhawks. There was a lockout and it just ended, so that’s why I’m in a hotel.”

She held the blank stare on her face for a few moments, which worried Andrew. He didn’t know what to do or even what to say until she finally spoke. “How the hell can you see that little black ball when you’re out on the ice?”

“It’s called a puck,” he laughed at her innocence.

“Oh whatever. Isn’t that sport dangerous?”

He gave her a nod as he stretched out his arms on the back of the couch. His hand was only a few inches away from hers, and he wondered if he could get away with touching her. “It can be at times. That’s how I got all these scars,” he bought his other hand up to his face and gave it rub. “Do you like them?”

“I do,” she said, suddenly moving her body closer to his. Her sudden eagerness surprised him. She bought her hand up to his face and touched one of the old scars that he had by his eyebrows. “Did it hurt?”

Andrew gave her a nod as he repositioned himself, turning his body slightly towards hers. “It did for a day or two, but it’s worth it. Especially if you like them.”

“Well, we girls do love scars after all. They’re dangerous and make you boys look tough,” she teased.

When Andrew finally had the guts to touch Emilia’s arm to bring her body closer to his, his two dogs began barking as they ran in from his bedroom. She turned her head and awed when the two dogs approached Andrew, wanting to play with him and his new friend. Too much of his dismay, she broke away from his grasp and went to go and pet the dogs.

“They sure do like you,” he commented as he watched Charlie sniff her foot. “The one in the pink sweater Bailey, and the one in the blue is Charlie.”

“Aw, they’re just precious,” she cooed. Bailey began to lick her hand when Andrew’s stomach growled loudly, making her look up from her position on the floor. “How about we go and make dinner? You seem a tad hungry.”

Emilia stood up and held her hand out, waiting for Andrew to take her hand. His warm hand grabbed onto hers as he stood up. He couldn’t help himself when he pulled her body against his to give her a kiss. Her lips were still as soft as he remembered and tasted like some combination of vanilla and honey.

“Or we could just practice,” he said as his warm wrapped tighter around her body.

“We can do that afterwards. Something tells me you’re much hungrier than you’re leading on,” she said as she pulled him into the kitchen. Andrew let out a groan which only made her laugh. "So, what are we making today?"

"Tacos," Andrew answered as he gathered some of the ingredients from the fridge. She couldn't help but admire how well his backside looked in his jeans. She wondered if the rest of him looked just as good.

Emilia helped Andrew cut up the lettuce and tomatoes as he browned the ground beef. They got to know each other better as they cooked their dinner. Andrew learned more about Nottingham as Emilia learned a few things about Andrew and his life back in Canada. Once their meal was all prepared, they enjoyed each other's company at the kitchen table and began to eat their meal.

"Jeez, would you like a taco with all of that sour cream?!"

She placed her taco down on her plate as she stood up to grab a few more napkins on the counter. Before sitting back down, she bumped her hips against his arm, making him wrap an arm around her waist to pull her down into his lap. A very bold move on his behalf, but she didn’t push him away or try to get up from his lap.

"What did I tell you about making fun of girls?" She asked, looking down at him as his other hand found its way to her thigh.

Andrew let out a chuckle as he looked down at their hands. “I guess we’ll have to go out on another date then so I could make it up to you.”

“You won’t get another date if you keep your hand on my bum,” Emilia teased, putting her hand on Andrew’s shoulder to help herself up to take her own seat.

“You didn’t say anything last week,” he mumbled before taking a bit bite of his taco. Her eyes widened as she smacked his arm playfully, not believing he bought up their goodnight kiss. He laughed at her lame attempt to hurt him and watched as she ate. “Why do you put so much sour cream on? Do you not like tacos or something? Wait…have you ever had a taco before?"

His question made her laugh. "Yes I've had a taco before! I'm from England, Andrew. I'm not from another planet."

"Could've fooled me," he teased back.

The rest if their mean was spent by Andrew making fun of Emilia's eating habits. They didn't bother him but he found it hilarious at how insecure she got when it came to how she ate. It felt nice to make dinner with another person instead of making dinner for one. He could see himself cooking more dinners with her in the future.

After cleaning up and putting all the dishes away, Andrew browsed through his Netflix account while Emilia was in the bathroom. He bought out an extra blanket from his room just in case she got cold. From his experience with past girlfriends, he knew that their body temperate always seemed to drop a few degrees once they were trying to get comfortable.

"What movie do you want to watch?" Andrew asked as Emilia sat down next to him. She sat much closer to him than she did earlier, which put a smile on his face.

"It doesn’t really matter, honestly. Maybe a comedy?”

Andrew just nodded and decided to put on Hangover III. It had been a while since Emilia had seen a grown up movie, so she was just excited to see just about anything. He watched as she unfolded the blanket he had bought out and draped it over their bodies. He wasn’t all that cold, but he didn’t mind once she had moved even closer to his body.

During the first half hour of the movie, Andrew could see that she kept glancing at him from the corner of his eye. He found himself feeling self-conscious about his looks all of a sudden. He was surprised that he had even gotten a second date from this girl. She was beautiful and didn’t have a single flaw on her face while he was covered in scars that would never fade away. He wasn’t entirely sure he believed her when she had said she liked his scars.

If his looks didn’t scare her away, he was sure his personality would. He wasn’t shy and was very talkative and if she didn’t think he was, she would soon find out on her own. His bold personality could only be embraced by a few people and he wasn’t sure if she was one of them.

“Why do you keep staring at me?” He asked nervously, “Am I that funny looking?”

She laughed quietly as she shook her head. “You’re just nice to look at, that’s all.”

Andrew followed his instincts and leaned over to kiss her on the lips. Her body froze from the unexpected kiss but she found herself easing into the kiss as he gently pulled her into his lap. Emilia felt like she was a teenager again as they made out on the couch. It was a nice change of pace and Andrew was one off of a kisser. They were too busy kissing each other to notice that Bailey trotted into the room, jumping onto the couch and laying where Emilia was just sitting.

She let out a quiet moan in satisfaction as Andrew lifted her up by her hips to lay her on the couch. Emilia’s back gently touched Bailey before the dog let out a loud yelp.

“Sorry girl!” Andrew called out as Bailey ran away from the couch. “Didn’t see ya there!”

“I can’t believe you just did that to her,” Emilia sighed as Andrew’s left hand went back to her side. She was lying flat on her back as he leaned on his right elbow. “You’re horrible, you know that?”

“I didn’t do it on purpose,” he blushed lightly. “I don’t abuse my dogs.”

She gave him a soft smile as his head rested on her shoulder. “I know that, you’re too much of a sweetheart,” she said, running her fingers through his scalp. Her chest rose slightly as she could feel his warm breath hit her skin.

He let out a low groan. “This feels so good.” He nuzzled his face into her neck, which seemed to encourage her to continue to run her fingers through his hair. “I wish you could be here all the time to do this for me,” he said as his deep voice sent chills down her spine.

“I do too,” she said quietly.

At that moment, she found herself thinking about Ellie. She loved her bundle of joy so much and didn’t regret having her at such a young age, she just wish that her daughter wasn’t the deal breaker when it came to relationship. She understood that a child was a big responsibility, she just wished that the men she had dated didn’t turn into such a coward after finding out about the three year old. She was afraid that if she and Andrew got serious, he’d leave once finding out about her.

They quietly enjoyed each other’s company as they watched the rest of the movie together. Throughout the movie, he would steal a couple of kisses from her here and there as her hand never left his head. When the movie was over, she grabbed his wrist check the time on his watch.

“I should get home,” she sighed, seeing that it was almost midnight.

Andrew frowned, “do I get to see you soon?”

“I hope so,” she smiled weakly.

Andrew removed his arm from her waist so she could get up to go and use the rest room. He turned off his TV and turned the living room lights off as he waited for Emilia in the kitchen. When she returned from the bathroom, she wrapped her arms around his waist and pulled him into a hug.

“Did you have fun tonight?” He asked as she pressed a kiss to his cheek.

“I did,” she said as he grabbed her wrists to drape them over his shoulders instead. “I’m look forward to seeing you again.”

He gave her a sweet smile. “I won’t take four days to call this time.”

She laughed at his joke before he leaned down to kiss her on the lips again. “You better not, because I might not answer this time.”

“Is that a threat?” He mumbled against her lips, “I think I can handle a threat from you.”

“Hush,” she giggled, giving him another peck before letting go of his body. She grabbed her coat and slipped it on to get ready for the cold weather outside. “Thank you for a lovely evening.”

“You’re welcome. Text me when you get home so I know you made it safe.”

Emilia gave him a nod as he grabbed the front of her coat and pulled her into a kiss. He gently backed her up against the wall as her hands got a hold of his biceps. Her hands squeezed his big arm muscles as he slipped his hands underneath her coat.

“I really need to go,” she said, pushing his body away from hers. “It’s really late.”

“Fine,” he groaned. “Don’t forget to text me.”


Andrew and a few of his teammates were out at a pancake house to have some breakfast before they had a strategy meeting and practice to attend to. It had only been two days since his date with Emilia and he called her the day after their date. He asked to see her during the week because he had an away game in Canada to play in. Of course she had to decline because of Ellie, but lied and said she couldn’t because she was swamped with work. He asked to at least see her for an early dinner Friday night, and she said she would have to get back to him.

“Is she hot?” Brandon Bolling asked after Andrew told the group about his date. “British chicks are hot, right?”

Andrew laughed, “Yeah, she’s pretty hot.”

“Then stop bitching. At least she’s still interested. Isn’t it a good thing that she’s not so clingy?” Brandon questioned, earning a glance from Nick Leddy.

“There’s nothing wrong with wanting to see her more than on the weekends,” Bryan cut in, sticking up for Andrew. “Why don’t you talk to her about it?”

He gave Bryan a shrug as he bit a piece of his bacon. “I don’t wanna seem clingy either. We’ve only been on two dates so I don’t think it’s any of my business.”

“When can we meet her?” Nick asked, earning a quick glare from Andrew. “She sounds like fun.”

“Amanda and I were talking about going to this place where we can go rock climbing. I told Crow about it, so maybe you can invite her,” Bryan suggested, “Amanda and Sylvie will be there so she won’t feel too awkward.”

Nick gave Bryan a disapproving look. “Hey, meeting her was my idea.”

“Stop whining, grownups are talking,” Corey joked. “Rock climbing sounds fun though.”

“Better pray that she wears something tight, Shawzer,” Brandon laughed.

Andrew rolled his eyes and continued to eat his breakfast in silence. After they were done eating, they made their way to the United Center. He was barely able to focus during their strategy meeting but was able to pull through for practice or else coach would’ve had his head. They had a game later that day against the Rangers and he wondered if Emilia would be watching the game or not.

After practice, he showered and took his pregame nap. He ate some of the left over pasta he made for last night’s dinner as he sat alone on his couch. Around 3 o’clock, he called Emilia and hoped she would be able to at least talk five minutes or so.

“Well if it isn’t my favorite Canadian.”

Andrew smiled as he pet Charlie’s head, who was resting on his stomach. “Emilia, my favorite British girl. What are you up to tonight?”

“Well I’m joining a few friends of mine and we’re watching some hockey game that’s on.” She said, putting a big grin on his face. “I think they’re called the Chicago Blackhawks, have you heard of them?”

“I heard they’re pretty good. Especially that Andrew Shaw guy,” he played along. “I heard he’s a great player.”

“Hmm,” Emilia said, pretending to think for a moment. “Sorry, I don’t quite know who you’re talking about. He must not be that important.”

“Ouch, that hurt,” he laughed, placing his hand over his chest. “You got me right in the heart.”

She laughed along before awing at him. “Aw, Andrew, you know I’m only teasing. You’re always going to be my favorite hockey player.”

He was sure the tips of his ears turned red from embarrassment. Granted he was the only player that she knew, he still loved the compliment. He confessed to her that he had called her because he had missed her voice. He thought she would make fun of him for being so sappy, but she told him that she had missed him as well. He was able to talk to her for a good half hour before they both had to go on with their day.

Emilia wished him luck on his game and promised that she’d cheer him on. After they hung up, Andrew went to go and change before making his way to the United Center. Whatever was happening between the two, was happening fast and it scared him. He didn’t want to rush anything because he found himself liking her a lot more than he ever intended to. He knew that he made it obvious to his friends on how much he liked this girl, he just wondered if she felt the same way.