It was a warm spring day and you were making some appetizers and snacks for your boyfriend's teammates. When the Flyers had a weekend off, some of the players would get together at one of their houses for food and a card game. This weekend, they chose to have their get together at Claude's house. You had been dating Claude for about two months now, and you met a handful of his teammates, but you hadn't met everyone. You were a little bit nervous because most of the people who were coming over today, you hadn't met yet. Claude insisted that everything was going to be fine, but something in your gut told you that there was going to be trouble.
You finished putting the food out on the table and put your hands on your hips, letting out a breath.
Two arms wrapped around your waist from behind and you felt a kiss on your cheek. "All finished, babe?" Claude asked.
"I think so." You said looking at the table to make sure you had everything. "Did you set up the card tables downstairs?" you asked him.
"Yes ma'am." He smiled. "Everything is all set up." He said. "The guys should be here any minute." He said and kissed your head.
You nodded and sighed some. "I'm worried that they won't like me." You said.
"Babe, they'll love you." he said. "I love you." he smiled.
"You have to love me." You joked.
"No, I want to love you." he winked.
Your conversation was cut short when the doorbell rang. Claude kissed you gently before walking over to answer the door. Teammates started showing up until there were at least ten of them, including Claude. You were talking with everyone, and the guys were all very polite to you. After the first card game, everyone took a food break, heading into the kitchen. When everyone got their food, they all moved to the living room to sit and eat. While everyone ate, some of the guys asked about you.
"So what do you do for work, Y/N?" Claude's teammate Steve Mason asked.
You felt your stomach drop as the question came up. "Well it's kind of different actually." You started, feeling Claude's hand on your lower back.
"Are you a spy or something?" Brayden Schenn asked with a smirk.
You smiled and shook your head. "No, I'm not a spy." You said. "I actually buy houses and then flip them." You said.
The teammates sort of went quiet for a moment before Steve spoke again. "What does that entail?" he asked.
"Well I buy run-down houses for low prices, and then I will redo them and do what I need to do to fix them up. Then when that's all done, I'll relist it on the market for a higher price." You explained.
Brayden nodded. "So it's like those HGTV shows, right?" he asked.
Claude nodded. "She has done some amazing things to places that no one wanted." He said. "It's impressive." He smiled over at you.
You smiled at Claude and nodded. "Thank you." you said.
The guys took turns asking you questions about the work you do. Steve waited his turn and then spoke. "So is there a lot of money that comes out of this?" he asked.
"It all depends on the house, really." You said.
"House flipping seems to be more of a hobby than an actual job. Luckily you've got a professional athlete for a boyfriend." He smirked.
Claude looked at him and then sighed. "Steve, that was uncalled for." He said. "Sure, her job isn't considered conventional, but a lot of people think hockey isn't a real job either. She does great work and earns as much as she possibly can. For you to assume that she's just using me to be able to do a hobby is bullshit." Claude spoke.
You bit your lip and stood up to clean up the leftover food. This must have been why your stomach was nervous.
"Well I think it's really cool." Brayden said. "Maybe you can give me some tips on a house to buy." He said smiling.
You looked over and smiled, nodding. "I'd love to help." You said.
After everyone ate and played a few games of cards, everyone began to head back home. You and Claude said goodbye to everyone and when it was just the two of you again, you both flopped back onto the couch.
"What a night." You smiled. The card games had made you forget about the job incident.
Claude nodded and wrapped an arm around you. "I'm sorry about Steve. He had no right to say that."
You looked up at him and kissed him gently. "Don't be sorry. Thank you for standing up for me today."
He kissed you back and smiled. "I'll always stick up for my girl." He said. "Even when she flirts with Brayden." He joked.
You smiled and shook your head. "Oh I was totally flirting, right in front of my boyfriend. Yeah, that's me." You giggled.
Claude smiled and kissed your head. "I'm glad you got along with them. Well, most of them."
"Me too." You smiled. "Let's get to bed. I'm beat."
"Your wish is my command." He smiled.
The two of you walked upstairs and got pajamas on for bed. You both curled up under the blanket and were asleep within minutes. Sure there was a hiccup in the night, but it was still a great time.