Hooking Nash

Hockey Players

I sighed and picked up the martini and took a long, slow sip. It was not the time nor the place to be gloomy about the past. I was here to celebrate my bright future. The one I had worked so hard for.

I placed the drink back on the counter and caught Sammy's eye. "Nash is back there," I said and gestured towards the rear of the bar.

She nodded her head. She had probably already spotted him. I felt her gaze on my face as I turned my attention to the players in the back. I had never told her straight up about my feelings for him, but we had lived together for four years in college so she probably knew anyway, or at least expected that what I felt for him was more than friendship.

"You let me know if you want to leave, okay?"

I nodded. Her comment just confirmed that she knew what he meant to me. I didn't want to go, though. I wanted to have a fun night out with Sammy. I turned my eyes away from Nash and the blonde and focused on Sammy's concerned face.

"I'm fine," I told her. "I want to stay."

"Okay." The edges of her mouth went up into a small smile. "Let's continue our celebration of becoming roommates again."

"Excellent idea!"

"We need another drink."

Sammy gulped the rest of hers down and slammed the empty glass down onto the counter. "Baxter," she yelled, "two more."

After three and a half martinis, I was more than tipsy and in desperate need of the ladies' room. "Where's the bathroom?" I asked Baxter.

Sammy was busy talking to a man that had sat down on the seat next to her. He looked very proper with his short dark hair brushed to the side and a blue and white shirt that was buttoned all the way up.

"Down there, past the booths." Baxter pointed straight past the entrance.

"I'll be right back," I told Sammy as I got off the chair. I was nowhere near as steady on my feet as I would have liked to be. It had been years since I drank like this. The last time was in college at some party I went to with Sammy.

I giggled to myself as I made my way over to the bathroom. There was a line, of course. And a slow-moving one to boot. I had to cross my legs and recite the alphabet to myself in an effort to avoid thinking about just how desperately I needed to pee. Despite my efforts, I was in a near panic mood when the door to the last stall finally opened and I hurried inside. The relief was instant and I almost thanked god for the bathroom, but the peace only lasted for a minute. A couple of women began to talk to each other in the stalls next to mine and it was not the kind of conversation I wanted to hear.

"What are you gonna do about Nash? He has his arm around some blonde tonight."

"I know," the other woman snapped.

"I thought the two of you were becoming a thing?"

"I'm not sure Nash does things. He is more like the 'wham bam thank you ma'am' kind of guy," she noted sarcastically.

I tried to avoid making a sound and bit down on my lip to avoid a snort. She was right, though. For all the time I had known Nash, he had never had a relationship that lasted longer than a few weeks. I held my breath, unsure what to do. I was finished and there was a line waiting to get in, but I wanted to hear what else they were going to say. I wanted to know who this girl was that might or might not have 'a thing' with Nash.

"Ah, that's too bad. He's so hot."

"Yeah, even more so without his clothes."

The women started to giggle and I cringed. It wasn't like I hadn't heard that before. I had seen him in bathing suits too or working out in just shorts so I knew his body was absolutely incredible, but I didn't want to hear about it from someone who had actually experienced touching him and more. I shook my head to clear it.