Reflections on Ice Ch. 03

"Yeah." His voice was husky. He cleared his throat, taking a step towards her. "Yeah, you look incredible."

She smiled and looked down, her fingers falling to the gaudy silver buckle her brother had picked out for her. OK, she needed to get a grip, and possibly remind him that compliments weren't required for their little arrangement.

"It's a little cool outside though. Have you got a jacket?"

"Yeah. One second." She hurried back to her room and picked up her black jacket that matched the ensemble. Returning to the front room, she smiled at Dylan as she pulled it on. "OK, let's go."

Kyle saw them to the door. "Have fun."

Cassia waved and grabbed her keys before leaving, pulling the door closed behind her. When she looked up, Dylan was sliding his hat back on his head and her breath caught. The cowboy look really worked for him. She felt her heartbeat pick up and she swallowed, trying to calm down.

Not a real date, not a real date, not a real date.

With that thought on repeat in her head, she offered Dylan a smile before they started to walk down the hall to the stairs.

"How was work?"

Cassia shrugged. "It was fine, until my brothers decided to try and lecture me on my dating habits."

He held the door at the bottom of the stairs for her. "I bet that went over well."

They walked around the block to where he'd parked his truck and Cassia slid into the passenger side, feeling nervous again.

"Are there going to be a lot of people there?"

"Probably." Dylan started the car and they slipped into traffic on the main road a few minutes later.

"How do you handle these events?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, you can't talk to women. There must be a ton of women at these things."

Dylan smiled as he glanced her way. "Usually. Most of them are spouses of teammates or Stars staff. There's less pressure in those cases."

"But there must be other women, single women or friends of friends, or something."

He shrugged. "I suppose. Most of the time, I hang out with Tristen and the other single guys."

Cassia nodded, turning her face to the windshield. They didn't say much for the rest of the drive to the downtown hotel that was hosting the event. There was a long string of vehicles lined up out front, with valet service. As they pulled up and stopped, Dylan hurried around to open her door for her.

They stood on the sidewalk outside the hotel for a moment, staring up at the building. Then Dylan touched her arm, startling Cassia. She turned to him, her heart flipping at his crooked smile. He was too damn sexy for his own good.

"Ready?"

She took his hand, smiling at the way his eyes widened. "Let's do it."

They walked inside, hand-in-hand, checked her coat near the entrance, and followed the crowd of cowboys, cowgirls, and saloon workers to the big ballroom that had been converted to an Old West saloon and casino.

"Wow." Cassia looked around in amazement.

They'd done the entire room to the western theme, even covering the walls in fake wood paneling. There was an old-timey piano in the corner, and scattered throughout the crowd were dancing girls in big, ruffly, red skirts, men with big cowboy hats and thick mustaches, and just about everyone had a gun strapped to their hip.

"Sams!" Someone yelled and the two of them turned to see Jake Brown hurrying towards them. "Well, hello again."

Cassia smiled. "Hello, Jake."

He grinned and shook her hand. "You look great."

"She's my date, Brown."

Jake chuckled. "I can't believe you actually brought her. Tristen is going to shit a brick."

Cassia grinned. "Well, by all means. Let's go find Tristen."

"Right this way, ma'am."

Dylan and Cassia followed Jake through the crowd to a tall table surrounded by Tristen, John Brown and a couple other people who Cassia didn't recognize.

Conversation halted when Dylan and Cassia arrived. Cassia sidled closer to Dylan's side, unnerved by the way everyone's eyes turned to her.

"Well, shit." John laughed and slapped a hand on the table. "I just lost twenty bucks."

Jake stuck his hand out. "Pay up, bro."

There was a round of laughter.

"They bet each other that you were making her up." Tristen approached and held a hand out, his smile wide as he greeted Cassia. "Hi, I'm Tristen Sturgess."

She shook his hand. "I know who you are."

"A hockey fan?" His eyebrows lifted and he glanced sideways at Dylan. "How did you manage to find her?"

When Dylan didn't respond right away, Cassia looked over to see his smile was tense, his jaw clenched. She squeezed his fingers before turning back to Tristen. "I'm pretty sure he's already told you. And anyway, it doesn't matter how we met. We just did." When she looked up again, Dylan was looking down at her and his smile relaxed when their eyes met. "So where are the blackjack tables?"

Laughing, Tristen pointed them out and Cassia pulled Dylan in that direction. Once they were out of earshot of his teammates, Cassia stopped and faced him.

"Are you all right?"

"I'm fine."

She squinted at him.

He sighed and rubbed his chin. "I guess I'm just really tired of the jokes. More than I thought I was."

"Sure." Cassia looked around. "Do you want to get a drink? Or play one of the games? I see a half-empty poker table over there."

"Yeah. Let's get a drink."

She nodded and they made their way through the crowd to one of the bars. Drinks in hand, they moved around the room, checking out the games and occasionally running into more of Dylan's teammates. The more he introduced her, the more Dylan seemed to relax. Not everyone made a joke or comment about him bringing a woman, and Cassia spent most of the time gushing over meeting these players she'd watched for years.

After another circuit of the room, they paused at an empty table.

"I can't believe I just met Paul Scott." Cassia looked over her shoulder where Paul Scott had disappeared with his wife. "I've been a fan since he was with the Blackhawks. He's such a classy guy."

Dylan smiled as he finished his drink and set the glass on the table. "Yeah, Paul's great."

Cassia turned back to him and leaned her elbows on the table. "This is all a bit surreal to me."

"You didn't seem this starstruck when you met me."

She laughed at his mock-wounded expression. "I was in a mood when I met you. If I'd met you under different circumstances, I might have reacted the same."

"Would you have?"

Cassia paused, considering. Dylan wasn't the biggest or most well-known name on the Stars, but he was a solid, consistent player. He didn't put up a ton of points, but he had a great plus-minus rating and he was a regular part of setting up plays for everyone else. More than anything though, she'd thought he was more attractive than anyone else on the team, even if he wasn't a stereotypical pin-up, like Tristen Sturgess. Had that been the difference in how she viewed him? She didn't know. She did know she liked him, more than she should, at this point.

At the look on his face, she knew she had to respond. He looked so uncertain and self-conscious again. She moved around the table, getting closer, and enjoyed the way his eyes widened at her approach. "Should I pretend like I'm starstruck?"

"Wh-what?"

She touched his arm and opened her eyes wide, fluttering her lashes a little. "Dylan Samuels? I'm a huge fan."

He laughed, but Cassia could see the tips of his ears turning pink. She grinned, leaning more, and lifted her face closer so she could speak softer.

"You're so much more handsome in person than on TV." Lowering her lashes, she pressed against his side. "And you're so tall and... big."

She raised a hand and fiddled with the top button on his shirt until it popped loose.

Oops.

Biting her lip, she tried to fix it, but Dylan's hand came up to close around her wrist. When she lifted her eyes again, his had darkened. Her breath caught as he leaned down, bringing their faces so close together that she could feel his exhalation on her lips. His next breath was warm, and his lips brushed hers once, before he jerked back.

A moment later, someone called his name and they both looked over to see Tristen approaching. He took in their positions and his grin turned teasing. "Sorry to interrupt."

Dylan shook his head, and let go of her hand, but neither he or Cassia moved apart. She counted to ten in her head, trying to slow her breathing. She hadn't meant to do... whatever that was.

"What's up?"

"Coach wants us all on stage. They're doing the speeches and all that."

"Right." Dylan met Cassia's eyes. "Be right back."

She nodded, incapable of speech, not entirely sure what had just happened. Dylan gave her that crooked smile before walking away with Tristen.

She listened with only half an ear to the general manager and the team owners talking about the charity this event was being held for. She clapped her hands when other people did and couldn't tear her eyes away from Dylan.

He had a relaxed smile on his face as he stood on stage with his teammates, listening to the speeches and acknowledgments. He had his thumbs hooked in his belt, behind the gold and silver buckle that drew her attention far too close to certain parts of him. Every once in a while, his eyes turned towards her and Cassia's temperature spiked.

Damn, she was in big trouble.