Him and I

“C’mon, Stamkos!” Alex yelled.

It was a week later and Alex and James were out to support Steven at a charity softball game. He had been playing in a summer league with a bunch of his oldest friends for years and since she couldn't convince James to take her to one of those games, she had guilted him over the last week to ensure they didn't miss this game.

Alex whistled, causing a few people to look in her direction. Steven meanwhile put an extra wiggle in his hips as he stepped into the batter’s box.

“Woo baby!” She hollered with another whistle to punctuate it. She could hear Steven’s laughter before he turned and winked over his shoulder at her.

“Dear, is that hunky blond boy your boyfriend?” An older lady on the other side of James asked, leaning across him. “Because my word, you are a lucky girl.”

Alex smiled back at her. “I am lucky, but this is my boyfriend,” she replied as she squeezed James’s hand. “Steven is just my friend who likes attention.”

“Well thank you for getting him to shake his butt like that.”

“You are very welcome, ma'am.”

The older lady smiled again just as Steven cracked the ball into center field. Everyone in the stands stood and yelled, either for Steven to run or for the ball to drop into the opposing teams glove. In the end, the ball fell just behind the outfielders and Steven was on second base before they got the ball, and he made it to third before they tossed the ball in.

He tossed a grin in Alex's direction and again she whistled before James grabbed her hand and tugged her back down beside him.

“You're gonna give him an inflated sense of self worth.”

She snorted. “Too late for that.”

The inning continued and Steven made it home, along with one other of his teammates before the inning was over. Alex continued to cheer loudly for Steven throughout the game and when the game ended, she and James stayed seated as the crowd thinned out.

Alex had her head on James's shoulder when she heard Steven calling her name. She looked at him and waved.

“Come here!” He called out, waving for them to join him.

James groaned. “If he's hiding a Benn brother I swear I'll kill him,” he muttered.

Alex giggled and leaned into kiss James. “If he has a Benn brother I swear I'll still only have eyes for you.”

They made their way down the bleachers and over to the dugout on the first base line. Steven met them and he tugged Alex from James and picked her up in a bear hug. She laughed when Steven twirled her around and let him lead her towards a group of guys when he set her down.

“I want you to meet someone,” he told her. When they reached the others, James trailing behind them, Steven introduced them to some old friends of his before turning with a big grin.

“And this is Tyler. Segs, this is Alex. She's from Dallas.”

Tyler Seguin’s already megawatt smile grew brighter. “Hello,” he said, reaching out to shake Alex’s hand. When James stepped up beside her, he smirked. “What's up, Nealer?”

He grunted in return and Alex elbowed him in the ribs. “Be nice. I told you I was only teasing.”

Tyler looked between them quizzically until Steven spoke up. “Alex has the hots for Tavares and James gets jealous.”

He gave James a look of understanding. “Cam likes Del Zotto,” he shrugged casually.

“Camryn!” Steven yelled out. “Seriously?”

A very pregnant brunette headed towards them. “Seriously what?”

“Del Zotto? I thought you had better taste than that.”

“I married Ty; how much taste did you think I really had?” She teased as Tyler put his arm around her. She turned to James and Alex. “Hi, I'm Camryn. You're friends with Steven?”

“Sadly yes,” Alex answered.

“Hey!” Steven exclaimed.

“They're so needy, right?” Camryn said. “When Avery is busy at work Jamie always ends up at our place now that Jordie and Stella left.”

“Jamie Benn? Baby rookie Jamie Benn has a girlfriend?”

“Fiancé,” Cam replied.

“Oh my god, I can't believe that! He was twenty when I met him.”

“You know Jamie?”

“We met when James played for the Stars. I saw him a couple times after he was traded before I moved to Nashville. We’ve lost touch over the years though.”

“Are you Canadian? Is that how you know Steven?”

“Oh no, I'm American. Born and raised in Dallas.”

“Me too!” Camryn exclaimed. “That's so cool. Well then how did you meet these guys?”

“I rear ended her car during my second season when I played in Dallas and we became friends,” James spoke up. “When I got traded to Nashville years later, Alex was already there.”

“We've only been friends for years,” Alex clarified. “We finally figured it out back in January and we've been us ever since.”

“They've been officially together,” Steven said. “They've had benefits for years. Nealer just finally got smart and realized the best thing that was ever going to happen to him was living in his house.”

“Shut up,” James said, reaching around Alex to cuff Steven in the back of his head.

“If you're ever in Dallas during the season, you should call me; you can sit with me and Avery. It's just the two of us know since Stella and Landon left.”

“Who are they?”

“Stella is married to Jamie’s brother Jordie and she's also Avery’s older sister.”

“Brothers married to sisters? That's so cute!”

“Avery didn't want anything to do with Jamie in the beginning,” Tyler spoke up. “But he won her over eventually.”

“And Landon?” Alex asked.

“Landon is my best friend and she is dating Jason Demers,” Camryn answered. “They’re kindred spirits. They wander where the wind takes them.”

“Let me give you my number so we can make plans; I promised my parents I’d visit before the end of the year.”

“That’d be great! I’ll give you mine too,” she replied as the two girls started away from the guys.

“And you were worried about bringing her,” Steven chided James. “She didn't even notice Segs.”

“Were you worried your girl might leave ya, Nealer?” Tyler teased him.

“No,” he spat back. “She’s into Jordie anyway.”

Tyler laughed. “Too bad for her Darth is pretty happily married with an eight year old and a toddler.”

“Too bad for her, great for me,” James grinned. The other two laughed.

“Seriously though, she’d never leave you,” Steven said. “You know that, right?”

James glanced over at Alex and then back to Steven. “Yeah, I know. But she has a damn good time teasing me.”

“Cam busts my balls with Mikey during the summer,” Tyler spoke up.

“Alex told him that she gets off to Tavares,” Steven told him.

Tyler’s mouth fell open as James slapped Steven hard across the chest. “Quit telling people that. It was a joke,” he said hotly.

“But Tavares?” Tyler asked.

James rolled his eyes. “He’s a friend of mine and they’ve met. I got worked up over something she said in jest about Steven and she shot back with something about John that I will never be able to live down since I accidentally told it to PK who told Stammer. They all fucking bust my balls over it. But it's okay because she’s going to Vegas with me.”

“When is she going to take my money and open up a new shop anyway?” Steven asked.

“I’m not just taking your money,” Alex said as she and Camryn rejoined the guys. “I need a business plan and proper paperwork for investors.

“What kind of shop?” Camryn asked.

“I own a cake shop in Nashville, For Goodness Cakes.”

“I love that name!”

“Cam cooks,” Tyler spoke up. “She’s really good too and is the head chef for a real fancy catering company in Dallas.”

“If you get traded back to Dallas at the deadline, the girls can go into business together,” Steven said.

“Shut up, Stammer,” James replied with a roll of his eyes.



Just after the first of September, James and Alex flew to Minnesota to support Paul Martin at a benefit he was having for the charity he had founded at the start of summer. They were happy to go and support their friend and his endeavor as summer neared it's end. Before long they would set off for Vegas and training camp would begin, and then the season. There was no way to know what the coming year would hold but at least they knew they were in it together.

From Minnesota they traveled to Nashville to pack a few last things from the house to ship to Vegas and to meet PK to give him the keys. James had one last follow up with his doctor in Nashville about his hand before his care transferred to his new team’s doctors.

They went back to Canada to spend a couple days at the cottage on the lake before finally they set out for Las Vegas. The day after they arrived, James was expected to drop in at rookie camp for his first appearances as a Golden Knight. There was also some promotional photos taken that evening. Alex hadn’t minded hanging out for that; she always did appreciate James in a suit after all.

His hand wasn’t quite healed and James wasn’t cleared for contact yet and now that they were in Nevada he was starting to get antsy about getting back on the ice. He left every morning to work out with the team and spend as much time as he could around his new teammates.

The one perk to being picked in the expansion draft was that Vegas had also taken Marc-Andre Fleury as one of their goaltenders in the draft. His wife, Veronique, had been one of the few women during James’s time in Pittsburgh that had made Alex feel welcomed despite her not being an official WAG at the time. She had also been there for Alex during the playoffs after a game when all she wanted was to see James in person.

Since it was a new city for both of them, Alex had called Vero to invite her out to explore with her while the guys were dealing with press, promo, and marketing as the start of training camp grew nearer.

“Alex!” Vero called out with a wave as Alex stepped off the elevator in their condo building’s lobby. “It’s so good to see you again, and this time we’re on the same side.”

Alex laughed. “It’s good to see you too, V. How is Flower?”

“Same as always. Excited for the season to start. How is James?”

“He’s not cleared for camp yet so he’s anxious and really annoying because he can’t play with the rest of the boys.”

“Sounds just like the James I remember. How was your summer?”

“It was nice. We spent most of it in Whitby. James even let me throw a Canada Day/Fourth of July bash, even though I was very outnumbered by you Canadians.”

“Did you have any American friends there?”

“Craig from Nashville. And Paul. Oh, and Paul’s girlfriend.”

“Paul Martin?” Alex nodded. “He has a girlfriend?”

“A really sweet girl named Lilly. You’d like her, Vero. They’re a good fit.”

“Have you met any of the guys here yet?”

“No, but James mentioned going out with everyone before camp officially starts.”

“Marc mentioned that to me too. Maybe we should go shopping today. I mean, you only get one first impression after all.”

“Very true.”

“And let’s face it; when it comes to a hierarchy of girls here, we’re at the top.”

“You’re at the top; you’re a wife. I’m just a girlfriend. You far out rank me.”

“You are James Neal’s girlfriend; that gives you clout. Furthermore, you’ve known him for seven years. So you might not have the ring officially but it’s a given. You’re practically a wife. Welcome to the life. James is one of the faces of the franchise now; it’s going to be different than Nashville. But you have me so you’ll be fine.”

“Thank god,” she laughs.



Two nights later, James was all smiles as he walked into a bar with Alex on his arm where they were meeting his teammates and their significant others.

“You're the most beautiful woman here,” he whispered, leaning in close to her.

“You don’t have to lay it on me, you know; you’ve already got me and John is across the country.”

He chuckled. “You haven’t met Nate yet.”

“Who's Nate?”

“Nate Schmidt; he’s the younger, better version of Paulie.”

“I’m gonna tell him you said that.”

“Go ahead. They’re both defensemen, they're both from Minnesota, and they went to the same college. He’s Paul 2.0 but he smiles more and I’m pretty sure he’s a walking emoji.”

She giggled and James pulled her closer to hug her at his side. “Come on,” she said, spotting Flower and Vero. They made a beeline for them and the two girls hugged before beginning to whisper to one another.

James walked off to grab drinks for them and when he returned, he found Alex laughing with some of his new teammates. He recognized them as he walked over but they had never been introduced. He passed a drink to Alex who smiled her thanks as he slipped an arm around her waist.

“Hey, man, I'm Cody,” the red headed one said, holding his hand out. “Everyone calls me Eaks though.”

“I'm Pierre-Edouard,” the other man added and James could see Alex swoon out of the corner of his eye.

“He's french, babe. Actual french and not Flower french,” Alex told him excitedly. “And he already promised to teach me all the swear words!”

“So you can curse at Steven without him knowing?”

“Yes!” She laughed. “Oh my god, Steven will totally think I'm saying sweet things to him when I fact I'm telling him he's a big ugly baby.”

“You and I both know that you aren't going to tell Steven that he's ugly.”

“You're right. Maybe I'll tell him he smells. Can you teach me how to tell Steven he smells, Pierre?”

He chuckled. “Of course. But who is Steven?”

“Oh, you know, Steven Stamkos.”

“How many hockey players do you know?” Cody asked.

Alex glances at James. “I've met James’s teammates everywhere he's played but actual ones I count as friends that I talk to regularly besides James? I guess five?”

James counted them off in his head. Paul, Steven, John, PK, and Craig. “Yeah, five. Unless you're still talking to Brad.”

“We lost touch after he went to Detroit but I would still call him a friend.”

“How long have you two known each other?” Pierre asked.

“Seven years,” James replied. “We met when I played in Dallas. She was already living in Nashville when I got traded there.”

“Seven years and no ring?” Cody said with a shake of his head and a tsk, tsk noise.

Alex laughed. “We've only been dating since January. We became friends in Dallas, I visited Pittsburgh, and then he followed me to Nashville.”

“Yeah, let's go with that. It sounds better than being traded,” James said.

“Are you from Dallas?” Cody asked Alex.

She nodded. “I am. My parents still live there.”

“That's where I played.”

“You know Jamie! He was just a baby when I met him. I can't believe he's captain now. It's still so weird to me.”

“Did you know Jordie?”

“No, I never met him. I left in 2011.”

“I got traded there in 2012.”

“I met Tyler over the summer. Steven introduced us actually.”

“Did you meet Cam?”

Alex's face lit up. “I did! She is so sweet. And soooo pregnant. She must've been miserable in that heat but she never let on if she was. I'm going to try and go home sometime over the holiday and we’re going to meet up.”

“What did you do in Nashville, Alex?” Pierre asked.

“Oh, I owned a bakery. It started out just doing cakes but we expanded our interests over the years.”

“Did you close it?”

“No, my good friend Kathryn became my business partner and she's going to run it day to day. I'll still be involved, and I'm planning to fly there whenever you guys are on the road.”

“Did you have a house in Nashville?” Pierre asked James.

“I do. I'm not planning to sell it. Not since Alex has a business there. We're renting it to PK this year.”

“You’ll bake for us?” Cody asked Alex.

“Of course. It doesn’t even have to be your birthday.”

“Awesome.”

“Hey,” a new voice greeted them and they all turned.

“You’re Nate,” James greeted him with a warm smile. “Paulie has told me all about you.”

They shook hands and Alex held hers out to him. “Hi, I’m Alex, James’s girlfriend.”

“Paul has told me about you.”

“Of course he has,” James groaned.

Alex laughed. “You know that Paul probably told him to tell me that because he knew it’d get a rise out of you.”

“Actually,” Nate spoke up, “Paulie said if I wanted to get a rise out of him, I should tell you that I know Tavares.”

“God damn it, Paul,” James muttered as he pulled out his phone and walked away. Alex laughed and gave Nate a side hug.

“We’re going to be great friends, Nate, I can tell. Have you met Cody and Pierre?”