Page 48 of Heart Taker

She pushed off the wall and stalked towards me, a cloud of her signature scent, Black Orchid, hitting me. I’d never been a fan, and I felt like I was choking.

“I have news I wanted to share. In person.”

“I’m honored,” I snarked.

She put up her left hand, and I was blinded by the huge diamond on her ring finger.

“Rick and I are getting married.”

“I can see that.” I sighed in relief. “Congrats.”

Rick Platt, her boyfriend, now fiancé, played offense for New York. He was a cunning forward with a killer instinct and a wicked slapshot. When Elois left our marriage, she moved out of our house and into Rick’s. In hindsight, I was pretty sure they’d been having an affair long before we split, but I didn’t care to dig into it. My lawyer thought I was nuts, but I didn’t want to go down that route. All I wanted was Eloise out of my life for good.

“This doesn’t mean you’re off the hook when it comes to alimony,” she reminded me. “At least, not until I’m officially married.”

I gritted my teeth. “Of course not.”

“But I wanted you to know before it hits the press.”

“You could’ve called.”

Eloise shrugged and crossed her arms.

“I was in Maine visiting my brother, and since I was headed through Vermont on my way back to New York, I figured it made sense to stop by,” she added. “And I was also curious to see where you’d ended up.”

She glanced around the dimly lit hallway. The forest green paint on the walls was peeling and the usual musty smell of the rink couldn’t be denied. Her eyes told me she was slightly less than horrified at the humble surroundings, even though her face didn’t move an inch.

“This is quite the departure from the league,” she muttered. “But I guess any job’s better than nothing, right?”

“I’ve got to get back to the ice. I’m running a summer training camp.”

“Sounds boring as hell.”

“It’s not. But then again, you never understood the sport, did you? Just the attention that came with it.”

“So?” she snapped. “I’m not the only one who enjoyed the spotlight.”

Did I enjoy the accolades? Hell yes. But it wasn’t the reason I played. And it wasn’t any of her business anymore. I’d had enough of this conversation.

“I hope you and Rick will be happy,” I offered.

“We are. He’s renewing his contract with New York for another two years.”

“Good for him. He deserves it,” I replied.

“Don’t be jealous because your hockey career is over.”

I shook my head, which was now throbbing like a motherfucker.

“I’ve got a new direction in coaching. One that I’m very good at. One that I enjoy. We won the national college championship. I’m very proud of that fact.”

Eloise reached into her pocket and pulled out a huge pair of sunglasses, sliding them onto her nose.

“I’ll send you an invite to the wedding,” she stated. “We’re buying another home upstate and we’ll have the ceremony there.”

“Thanks, but I think I’ll pass.”

She sighed dramatically. “Can’t you at least be happy for me?”

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