Music to My Heart
Two
Jordan couldn't remember the last time he was this nervous. Not even before his first game as an Oiler. Danni had been texting him all day, asking where he was taking Eve, what he was wearing, what he was planning to say. He knew she meant well and just wanted everything to go great for him and Eve but it only added to his nerves.
On his way to Eve’s house that evening, he stopped to pick up flowers for her. It was old fashioned but he thought it was a nice way to begin a first date. Plus Danni had nonchalantly texted a picture of Eve’s favorite flower in the middle of the day to him.
Jordan rang the doorbell and stepped back, fidgeting in place until he heard the lock turn on the other side of the door and straightened.
Eve smiled at an obviously nervous Jordan on her front steps. “Hi,” she said.
“Hey. Wow; you look beautiful.”
She blushed as she opened the door. “Thank you. Come in.”
He followed her inside and held the flowers out to her. “These are for you.”
“That's so sweet, Jordan. And they're my favorite.”
“Danni might have told me.”
Eve laughed. “Of course she did. She texted me at least five times today if I knew what I was wearing and she facetimed me twenty minutes ago to approve my choices.”
“Yeah, that's Danni,” Jordan chuckled.
“She means well.”
“She wants me married.” Jordan's eyes widened as soon as the words left his mouth. “I didn't mean that. Danni wants me to be happy. And everyone else is in relationships except me.”
“You're the only single one?”
“Even Taylor found someone and he was a total dog.”
“And you?”
“I, um, I'm not as bad as Taylor?”
“You know you're digging yourself a hole, right?”
Jordan sighed. “Yep.”
“I'm pretty sure Danni wouldn't try so hard to set us up if you were an ass so I'm going to let you off the hook. But you have to tell me why you're still single.”
“That's easy; Danni hasn't approved anyone since Ryan met her. I’ve dated a few girls but no one that lasted more than a couple months. I appreciate Danni’s opinion on my love life but truthfully I haven't met someone that I wanted to introduce to my mom, hence nothing serious in a long time.”
“How long have you known Danni?”
“Four years. Four long years of her and Nuge being adorable and perfect and generally making the rest of us want to vomit.”
“They are ridiculously adorable but when it's right, it just works like that.”
“That's true. Roni and Hallsy aren't sickeningly sweet like Danni and Ryan, but they are definitely in sync with each other.”
“She used to be the art teacher at the school, right?”
Jordan nodded. “Yeah, until Taylor got traded this summer. She’s in New Jersey with him now.”
“Teaching?”
He shook his head. “She’s got this cool studio space where she paints for herself now. She’s being considered for some big deal project here in Edmonton so she’s been hard at work on her proposal for awhile now.”
“That sounds really amazing. Danni speaks of her fondly; I wish I had met her.”
“Danni hated the trade. She was so mad. Ryan had to keep her from stealing his phone because she wanted to send angry texts to our GM.”
“You’re all close?”
“Taylor has been my best friend for six years. We were roommates until he met Roni. We made the Oilers roster together and played our first NHL game together. During the lockout four years ago, me, Hallsy and Ryan were all sent to play in the AHL and that’s where we met Schultzy. He was Ryan’s roommate when he met Danni and after Ryan he was the one she was closest to since she lived with them for a short while.”
“She lived with two hockey players? Oh lord, I can only imagine.”
“You have a dad and a brother who play.”
“I know, and a mom who made them keep all their stuff in the garage.”
Jordan chuckled. “Well, it was towards the end of the season when Danni and Nuge met and she only lived there a few weeks. Partly because Justin invited her but mostly because Nuge had shoulder surgery and needed help because we were on the road. The two of them got a place together at the end of the following season. But they still lived in the same building as Schultzy and his girlfriend. Then he got traded to Pittsburgh at the deadline last year. Danni was pissed. I mean, she knows it’s business but she still took it personal. But the addition of Taylor being traded a few months later really set her off.”
“So your group got cut in half in a matter of months?”
“Yeah. It was pretty rough for awhile but we’re trying to pick up and move forward.”
Eve nodded. “Still though, to lose the guys you’re the closest with must suck.”
“It does but we’ve still got a great group.” He paused and then smiled. “Enough about that though. It’s your birthday. Let’s go celebrate.”
They had dinner at a nice downtown restaurant and after they walked to an ice cream shop that was nearby. They each picked out a different pint and Jordan carried their bag of ice cream back to his car.
Once they were in the car and buckled, Jordan looked over at Eve. “I know a spot we can go to; it overlooks the city,” he suggested.
“Or we can just go back to my place,” she replied. She reached across the console and laced her fingers with his.
“Right, your place,” he stuttered, dropping his keys. “Shit.”
Eve giggled and squeezed his hand. “You’re really cute.”
“Thanks. Um, you’re really beautiful too. When I saw you on the elevator yesterday I thought about how lucky the guy you must be meeting up with was. I didn’t think it was gonna end up being me.”
“I think Danni was right.”
“About what?”
“About setting us up. I like you, Jordan.”
“That’s good because I like you too. You make me nervous and excited and happy, and I barely know you. Is that weird?”
“No; I feel the same way.”
“I’m glad it’s not just me.”
“I think we’re officially in this together.”
Jordan smiled. “I really like the sound of that.”
Time passed quickly as the first few months of Jordan and Eve’s new relationship weathered the highs and lows that came with a hockey season. Three months in, at the end of March, the Oilers clinched their first playoff berth in eleven years. The team went out to celebrate the achievement and eventually Ryan, Danni, Jordan, and Eve found themselves sharing a table at the bar they had gone to.
Danni was quietly taking in the scene and Jordan finally nudged her in the side to get her attention. “What are you thinking?” He asked. “You’re too quiet.”
She sighed. “I was thinking about Taylor,” she admitted.
“You shouldn’t do that with Nuge right there.”
She rolled her eyes at him. “Haha, very funny,” she deadpanned. “I was thinking that maybe things would’ve been different if you guys had broken through last year. Maybe we’d all be here together still. The Devils aren’t going to make the playoffs and here we are, the first year without Taylor and we’re in. It just kind of sucks a little.”
Ryan squeezed Danni’s shoulders. “I’m sure he’s happy for us.”
“I know he is,” Jordan spoke up. He pulled his phone out and held it out to Danni. “I had a text from him after the game, wishing us luck.”
“It still stinks.”
“Everything happens for a reason, right?” Eve said. “Now you just have to roll with it and see where it goes.”
“I know you’re right,” Danni replied, “but I still wish we were all together. I know that it’s just hockey but you guys are my family here.”
“And we’re always going to be family, no matter where we end up,” Ryan told her. “I won’t be able to shake these guys for as long as I live.”
“Oooo, we can take family vacations in the summer,” Jordan added. “Think about how much fun that will be. Well, at least until you and Nuge start having babies.”
“A hundred bucks says Roni ends up pregnant before me,” Danni replied.
“Hallsy needs to propose first,” Ryan pointed out.
Danni smiled knowingly. “Give him a few more weeks.”
“No way!” Jordan exclaimed. “He’s going to propose?”
“He took me ring shopping on FaceTime. I’m pretty sure the sales girl thought he was insane,” Danni laughed.
“That sounds like something Taylor would do,” Ryan mused. “Guess you really will be the last one standing, Ebs.”
Jordan sat back in his seat and slid an arm around Eve. He smiled and leaned over to kiss her. “For now,” he winked.
The Oilers beat the Sharks in six games in the first round but lost to the Ducks in seven games the next round in early May. Jordan stayed in Edmonton with Eve as the school year wasn’t over until the end of June. They had plans to go to North Dakota the first of July so he could meet her family and then they were going to his home so she could meet his parents.
Jordan was really looking forward to it and being able to spend time with Eve. He had quite simply fallen hard and fast. They hadn’t been together two weeks when he first told her that he loved her. She had taken part in several functions as an official
WAG and came to all the home games with Danni.
A week before the end of school, Jordan was hanging out with Ryan at his and Danni’s house. They had worked out that morning and had lunch and were lying around playing video games when Jordan’s phone rang.
Ryan paused the game as Jordan grabbed his phone. He felt his heart stop at the display and lifted it to his ear.
He croaked out a greeting and then could only listen as his coach gave him the news. He got off the phone feeling dumbfounded and stared into space.
“They traded you, didn’t they?” Ryan finally asked, breaking the silence.
“Yeah.”
He sighed. “I think we both knew it was going to be one or both of us, eh?”
“It’s been what? Two years of non stop rumors?”
“Yep. Man, this sucks. Where are you going?”
“Islanders.”
“Maybe you’ll play on Tavares’s wing. That’s not a bad thing.”
“Assuming he re-signs and it’s for more than one season.”
“True.” They fell silent again for a moment.
“Make sure you hide your phone from Danni, or change your passcode at least. She’s gonna be pissed,” Jordan finally said.
“I won’t be surprised if she tells me that she thinks I should demand a trade next. She loves Edmonton the city but I think she’s probably about had it with the hockey team. Justin, Taylor, now you. God help them if they move Benny.”
Jordan chuckled. “Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, and no one's been scorned more by the Oilers than Danni for the last year.”
“What do you think this will mean for you and Eve? Are you going to ask her to go with you?”
“Of course I’m gonna ask her to come with me. I hope she will. I love her.”
“Danni just knew that you would fall for each other.”
“She told me that first night not to screw it up, that Eve was my one. And she was right. I’m gonna marry her, Nuge.”
His eyes widened with surprise. “You’re thinking marriage? It’s been six months.”
“I was sure after two. She’s it man. But I don’t want to scare her off so I bought her a promise ring. I guess now I need to include an invitation to move in together in a city neither of us will know a thing about.”
“If you don’t Danni will personally kill you, just so you know.”
“Your wife is crazy scary when she’s mad, and I wouldn’t dare cross her ever.”
On his way to Eve’s house that evening, he stopped to pick up flowers for her. It was old fashioned but he thought it was a nice way to begin a first date. Plus Danni had nonchalantly texted a picture of Eve’s favorite flower in the middle of the day to him.
Jordan rang the doorbell and stepped back, fidgeting in place until he heard the lock turn on the other side of the door and straightened.
Eve smiled at an obviously nervous Jordan on her front steps. “Hi,” she said.
“Hey. Wow; you look beautiful.”
She blushed as she opened the door. “Thank you. Come in.”
He followed her inside and held the flowers out to her. “These are for you.”
“That's so sweet, Jordan. And they're my favorite.”
“Danni might have told me.”
Eve laughed. “Of course she did. She texted me at least five times today if I knew what I was wearing and she facetimed me twenty minutes ago to approve my choices.”
“Yeah, that's Danni,” Jordan chuckled.
“She means well.”
“She wants me married.” Jordan's eyes widened as soon as the words left his mouth. “I didn't mean that. Danni wants me to be happy. And everyone else is in relationships except me.”
“You're the only single one?”
“Even Taylor found someone and he was a total dog.”
“And you?”
“I, um, I'm not as bad as Taylor?”
“You know you're digging yourself a hole, right?”
Jordan sighed. “Yep.”
“I'm pretty sure Danni wouldn't try so hard to set us up if you were an ass so I'm going to let you off the hook. But you have to tell me why you're still single.”
“That's easy; Danni hasn't approved anyone since Ryan met her. I’ve dated a few girls but no one that lasted more than a couple months. I appreciate Danni’s opinion on my love life but truthfully I haven't met someone that I wanted to introduce to my mom, hence nothing serious in a long time.”
“How long have you known Danni?”
“Four years. Four long years of her and Nuge being adorable and perfect and generally making the rest of us want to vomit.”
“They are ridiculously adorable but when it's right, it just works like that.”
“That's true. Roni and Hallsy aren't sickeningly sweet like Danni and Ryan, but they are definitely in sync with each other.”
“She used to be the art teacher at the school, right?”
Jordan nodded. “Yeah, until Taylor got traded this summer. She’s in New Jersey with him now.”
“Teaching?”
He shook his head. “She’s got this cool studio space where she paints for herself now. She’s being considered for some big deal project here in Edmonton so she’s been hard at work on her proposal for awhile now.”
“That sounds really amazing. Danni speaks of her fondly; I wish I had met her.”
“Danni hated the trade. She was so mad. Ryan had to keep her from stealing his phone because she wanted to send angry texts to our GM.”
“You’re all close?”
“Taylor has been my best friend for six years. We were roommates until he met Roni. We made the Oilers roster together and played our first NHL game together. During the lockout four years ago, me, Hallsy and Ryan were all sent to play in the AHL and that’s where we met Schultzy. He was Ryan’s roommate when he met Danni and after Ryan he was the one she was closest to since she lived with them for a short while.”
“She lived with two hockey players? Oh lord, I can only imagine.”
“You have a dad and a brother who play.”
“I know, and a mom who made them keep all their stuff in the garage.”
Jordan chuckled. “Well, it was towards the end of the season when Danni and Nuge met and she only lived there a few weeks. Partly because Justin invited her but mostly because Nuge had shoulder surgery and needed help because we were on the road. The two of them got a place together at the end of the following season. But they still lived in the same building as Schultzy and his girlfriend. Then he got traded to Pittsburgh at the deadline last year. Danni was pissed. I mean, she knows it’s business but she still took it personal. But the addition of Taylor being traded a few months later really set her off.”
“So your group got cut in half in a matter of months?”
“Yeah. It was pretty rough for awhile but we’re trying to pick up and move forward.”
Eve nodded. “Still though, to lose the guys you’re the closest with must suck.”
“It does but we’ve still got a great group.” He paused and then smiled. “Enough about that though. It’s your birthday. Let’s go celebrate.”
They had dinner at a nice downtown restaurant and after they walked to an ice cream shop that was nearby. They each picked out a different pint and Jordan carried their bag of ice cream back to his car.
Once they were in the car and buckled, Jordan looked over at Eve. “I know a spot we can go to; it overlooks the city,” he suggested.
“Or we can just go back to my place,” she replied. She reached across the console and laced her fingers with his.
“Right, your place,” he stuttered, dropping his keys. “Shit.”
Eve giggled and squeezed his hand. “You’re really cute.”
“Thanks. Um, you’re really beautiful too. When I saw you on the elevator yesterday I thought about how lucky the guy you must be meeting up with was. I didn’t think it was gonna end up being me.”
“I think Danni was right.”
“About what?”
“About setting us up. I like you, Jordan.”
“That’s good because I like you too. You make me nervous and excited and happy, and I barely know you. Is that weird?”
“No; I feel the same way.”
“I’m glad it’s not just me.”
“I think we’re officially in this together.”
Jordan smiled. “I really like the sound of that.”
~*~*~
Time passed quickly as the first few months of Jordan and Eve’s new relationship weathered the highs and lows that came with a hockey season. Three months in, at the end of March, the Oilers clinched their first playoff berth in eleven years. The team went out to celebrate the achievement and eventually Ryan, Danni, Jordan, and Eve found themselves sharing a table at the bar they had gone to.
Danni was quietly taking in the scene and Jordan finally nudged her in the side to get her attention. “What are you thinking?” He asked. “You’re too quiet.”
She sighed. “I was thinking about Taylor,” she admitted.
“You shouldn’t do that with Nuge right there.”
She rolled her eyes at him. “Haha, very funny,” she deadpanned. “I was thinking that maybe things would’ve been different if you guys had broken through last year. Maybe we’d all be here together still. The Devils aren’t going to make the playoffs and here we are, the first year without Taylor and we’re in. It just kind of sucks a little.”
Ryan squeezed Danni’s shoulders. “I’m sure he’s happy for us.”
“I know he is,” Jordan spoke up. He pulled his phone out and held it out to Danni. “I had a text from him after the game, wishing us luck.”
“It still stinks.”
“Everything happens for a reason, right?” Eve said. “Now you just have to roll with it and see where it goes.”
“I know you’re right,” Danni replied, “but I still wish we were all together. I know that it’s just hockey but you guys are my family here.”
“And we’re always going to be family, no matter where we end up,” Ryan told her. “I won’t be able to shake these guys for as long as I live.”
“Oooo, we can take family vacations in the summer,” Jordan added. “Think about how much fun that will be. Well, at least until you and Nuge start having babies.”
“A hundred bucks says Roni ends up pregnant before me,” Danni replied.
“Hallsy needs to propose first,” Ryan pointed out.
Danni smiled knowingly. “Give him a few more weeks.”
“No way!” Jordan exclaimed. “He’s going to propose?”
“He took me ring shopping on FaceTime. I’m pretty sure the sales girl thought he was insane,” Danni laughed.
“That sounds like something Taylor would do,” Ryan mused. “Guess you really will be the last one standing, Ebs.”
Jordan sat back in his seat and slid an arm around Eve. He smiled and leaned over to kiss her. “For now,” he winked.
~*~*~
The Oilers beat the Sharks in six games in the first round but lost to the Ducks in seven games the next round in early May. Jordan stayed in Edmonton with Eve as the school year wasn’t over until the end of June. They had plans to go to North Dakota the first of July so he could meet her family and then they were going to his home so she could meet his parents.
Jordan was really looking forward to it and being able to spend time with Eve. He had quite simply fallen hard and fast. They hadn’t been together two weeks when he first told her that he loved her. She had taken part in several functions as an official
WAG and came to all the home games with Danni.
A week before the end of school, Jordan was hanging out with Ryan at his and Danni’s house. They had worked out that morning and had lunch and were lying around playing video games when Jordan’s phone rang.
Ryan paused the game as Jordan grabbed his phone. He felt his heart stop at the display and lifted it to his ear.
He croaked out a greeting and then could only listen as his coach gave him the news. He got off the phone feeling dumbfounded and stared into space.
“They traded you, didn’t they?” Ryan finally asked, breaking the silence.
“Yeah.”
He sighed. “I think we both knew it was going to be one or both of us, eh?”
“It’s been what? Two years of non stop rumors?”
“Yep. Man, this sucks. Where are you going?”
“Islanders.”
“Maybe you’ll play on Tavares’s wing. That’s not a bad thing.”
“Assuming he re-signs and it’s for more than one season.”
“True.” They fell silent again for a moment.
“Make sure you hide your phone from Danni, or change your passcode at least. She’s gonna be pissed,” Jordan finally said.
“I won’t be surprised if she tells me that she thinks I should demand a trade next. She loves Edmonton the city but I think she’s probably about had it with the hockey team. Justin, Taylor, now you. God help them if they move Benny.”
Jordan chuckled. “Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, and no one's been scorned more by the Oilers than Danni for the last year.”
“What do you think this will mean for you and Eve? Are you going to ask her to go with you?”
“Of course I’m gonna ask her to come with me. I hope she will. I love her.”
“Danni just knew that you would fall for each other.”
“She told me that first night not to screw it up, that Eve was my one. And she was right. I’m gonna marry her, Nuge.”
His eyes widened with surprise. “You’re thinking marriage? It’s been six months.”
“I was sure after two. She’s it man. But I don’t want to scare her off so I bought her a promise ring. I guess now I need to include an invitation to move in together in a city neither of us will know a thing about.”
“If you don’t Danni will personally kill you, just so you know.”
“Your wife is crazy scary when she’s mad, and I wouldn’t dare cross her ever.”