Her phone lights up again with another call.
“Tess, your phone—”
“Leave it,” she snaps at me.
“It’s fine,” Shelby says. “Most women tend not to like the WAGs. They usually have a lot of ideas about us. We’re all silly bimbos looking for a sugar daddy or we trapped our men with babies and now they’re stuck with us. Trust me, I’ve heard it all.”
“I don’t have any ideas about you, Shelby,” Tess says. “I’m just having a bad day.”
Shelby glances at the clock over the stove. “It’s barely 8:00 a.m.”
Tess slips her fresh cup of coffee out from under the drip spout and transfers it to a travel mug. “Yeah, and I’m already this level of done. So, trust me when I say that it’s not you, it’s me.”
Damn, where is the fun flirty Tess from last night? The Tess that teased me and laughed as she held my hand? What’s wrong with her? Why is she so on edge this morning? There’s something she’s not saying.
“Tess, your phone,” I say for a third time.
“Fuck’s sake, Ryan,” she cries, snatching it off the table. “If I wanted to answer it, don’t you think I would?”
A chill seeps down my spine as I take in the haunted look on Tess’s face. Her sudden appearance here in Jax is making more sense by the minute. “Who’s calling you so many times?” I need her to say it. I need her to confirm my suspicions.
“Mars is almost here,” she says. “I gotta go.” She slips the phone in her pocket unanswered and tucks her laptop and legal pad into the leather backpack. “You two have a good day.” Not waiting for either of us to say another word, she ducks around me. I hear the front door shut with a snap.
It only takes a few seconds before Shelby lets out a whistle. “Jeez, she’s kind of a capital B bitch, huh?”
My gaze lingers on the window as I watch Tess climb into the passenger seat of Ilmari’s big silver truck. “No,” I hear myself say. “She’s just going through some tough shit right now—and no, I won’t elaborate,” I add, giving her a glare.
The corner of Shelby’s mouth twitches with a smile. “You like her.”
“I don’t know her,” I admit, and fuck if that’s not the truth. Tess hasn’t told me a damn thing about what’s happening to her and why.
“Be careful with that one, Ryan” Shelby warns.
“Why?” I hear myself say.
“Because she’s not a bunny,” Shelby replies.
“You think I don’t know that? Women like Tess don’t end up with guys like me.”
Shelby tips her head to the side, appraising me. “Why do you say that?”
I go still, not realizing I said that out loud. “Come on,” I say, forcing a laugh. “Tess Owens is a total ten. She’s gorgeous and so fucking smart. She’s a high-powered corporate lawyer, Shelbs. She runs nonprofits and saves endangered animals, and I’m…me,” I finish with a shrug.
Now Shelby is laughing. “Yeah, and you’re just an NHL superstar. You’re smart and funny and handsome as heck. Oh, and in your free time, don’t you volunteer to coach youth hockey?”
“Sometimes.” I feel my cheeks heat at her praise. “I mean, when I can, I do.”
“Tess may be a ten,” Shelby goes on. “But I’m not convinced she’s WAG material.”
I glance sharply her way. “Well, if she’s not a bunny and she’s not a WAG, what is she?”
Shelby just gives me a knowing look. “She’s a cataclysm.”
I blink. “A catawhat?”
“Chaos walking,” she replies. “I have a feeling your Tess is a runner. She’s the kind of woman who loves you and leaves you in the same breath.”
“How do you know that?”
“I see the signs,” she replies. “You want my advice?”
I just shrug, knowing she’ll give it either way.
“Stay away from her, Ryan…unless you’re ready to suffer an epically broken heart.”
20
It’s all I can do to jerk the door open and climb inside the cab of the truck. My heart is racing, and I feel like I’m choking on air. Wow, this is all hitting me all at once. My body is a swirling vortex of thoughts and emotions.
“Good morning,” comes a deep voice.
Ilmari sits behind the wheel, his blond hair tied up in a knot. He wears a T-shirt and shorts like it’s not January and 55 degrees outside. Apparently, Finnish hockey players can’t feel the cold. Meanwhile, my tits are freezing. I should have added another layer.