“Thanks so much for asking us to come to the game, Mr. Snow,” Brooke said. “I love hockey.”

  “Me, too,” Claire said then looked over at Sullivan and Maddy. “Even if you’re both wearing the wrong jerseys.”

  Claire put her arm around Brooke, the two of them looking adorable, even if they were wearing Blues jerseys. Brooke said, “This is true. I don’t know if we can even sit with them.”

  Sullivan laughed. “Deal with it. Go Blackhawks.”

  Claire shook her head and looked at Brooke. “It’s gonna be a long night.”

  Brooke laughed. “Come on, Maddy. Let’s go check out the souvenirs.”

  “Okay. We’ll be back.”

  Sullivan pulled out some cash and handed it to his daughter. “Get all of us some sodas, okay?”

  “Sure,” Maddy said.

  After the girls left, Sullivan leaned over, cupped Claire’s neck, and brushed his lips across hers. She grasped his wrist and smiled. “I liked that.”

  “I figured we wouldn’t have any alone time once the girls got back, and I’ve been dying to kiss you ever since you got in my car.”

  She smoothed her hand over his arm. “I felt the same way. But I just don’t want the girls knowing about us. Not just yet.”

  He didn’t really get that. Were they a couple? They were dating, whatever dating meant when you were over forty. Wasn’t it the same no matter your age? He didn’t know the rules, but he respected Claire, so he’d do it her way. “I understand.”

  “Besides,” she said, “we can always find ways to sneak off together for a minute—or two.”

  “Hey. I’d like more than a minute.”

  “Mmm. I’ve been the recipient of a few of your very long minutes.”

  He leaned over and whispered in her ear, “If you keep talking like that, I’m going to get hard. And then what will you do?”

  She looked at him. “Nothing here. But I could send you some dirty text messages.”

  “You would make me suffer like that?”

  “You wouldn’t be the only one suffering.”

  If only they weren’t in such a public place. He’d show her what he could do in a matter of minutes. Right now he was trying to figure out when the girls would be out together next so he could carve out some alone time with Claire.

  Just then the girls showed up.

  “We almost bought hot dogs but didn’t,” Brooke said, handing the sodas off.

  “Perfect,” Claire said. “Thanks.”

  “Hot dogs sound good, though,” Sullivan said.

  The girls got up. “We’ll go get them,” Brooke said.

  Claire eyed them suspiciously. “You just got back.”

  “Yeah,” Sullivan said. “What’s going on?”

  “We ran into Levar and Andre,” Brooke said. “They’re here with Andre’s parents.”

  Ah. That explained it. But still, he didn’t know.

  “And you want to meet up and visit.”

  Maddy shrugged. “Maybe a little before the game starts.”

  He turned to Claire.

  “I know the boys—and their parents. The boys go to the neighboring school. It’s fine.”

  As long as Claire trusted them, he was good. He dug more money out of his pocket. “Go ahead. Just don’t forget to bring the hot dogs back.”

  Maddy grinned. “Thanks, Dad.”

  After the girls left, he turned to Claire. “I guess that means more alone time for us.”

  She looked up the stairs then back at him, twining her fingers with his. “Yes, it does. Now quick, give me a kiss.”

  He did, only it wasn’t a quick kiss. It was a long one, deeper than he intended it to be considering they were in a public place. It was so easy to get lost in the taste of her, the feel of her lips moving under his. Until someone behind them cleared their throat loudly. He broke the kiss.

  Claire’s lips curved. “That was nice. And I’d like a lot more of that.”

  “Me, too. Whose idea was it to come to some dumb hockey game anyway?”

  “Yours, I believe.”

  “Well, it was a bad idea. We could be out somewhere making out in the car. Or in a hotel room doing a hell of a lot more than just kissing.”

  “Oooh, a clandestine meeting in a hotel room?” She arched a brow. “That’s a thought. A ridiculously expensive thought since we both have bedrooms, but a sweet one nonetheless.”

  He shrugged. “It just popped into my head. Think the girls would notice if we disappeared during the second period?”

  She laughed. “Probably not. They’d just invite the boys to take our seats.”

  “Huh.” He frowned. “Never mind. We’re staying put.”

  “Spoken like a true father of a daughter.”

  “Speaking of our daughters, how long have they been gone?”

  “Not long. The game’s about to start. They’ll show up soon.” She laid her hand on his forearm. “Don’t worry.”

  He would always worry about Maddy. Being the new girl in a big city and not knowing a lot of people, Maddy wanted to fit in, wanted to make friends. But he trusted Claire and Brooke, so he’d try not to worry—too much.

  As soon as the lights dimmed and the announcer came on, the girls showed up—with the hot dogs, so all was well.

  The game was everything Sullivan had expected—Chicago scored first, then St. Louis came back with a score at the end of the first period, tying the game. By the third period, it was tied two all and both teams went at it hard.

  Claire was as invested in the game as he was, and wow, was she ever a hockey fan. She stood and screamed and yelled when calls didn’t go in her team’s favor. He liked this feisty side of her. In the end, though, St. Louis scored with two minutes left and, though Chicago battled for it, couldn’t score.

  Claire and Brooke were all smiles as they made their way out to the car. “Wasn’t that a fantastic game?”

  “It was good, for sure,” Sullivan said.

  Madison leaned against him. “But it would have been better if our team had won.”

  He slung his arm around Maddy’s shoulders. “Yeah, it would.”

  “We should stop for pizza,” Brooke said.

  “Now?” He lifted his phone. “It’s eleven o’clock.”

  The girls looked at him as if they were waiting for him to add something else.

  “So?” Maddy asked. “We’re hungry.”

  “Yeah,” Brooke said. “That one hot dog was hours ago.”

  Maddy nodded. “And we only have a half day of school tomorrow. We’ve totally got this.”

  Claire rolled her eyes. “Fine, we’ll grab one on the way home.”

  Brooke grinned then went and slipped her arm into Maddy’s. “Excellent.”

  As the girls walked ahead, Sullivan turned to her. “Hungry?”

  “Maybe a little. How about you?”

  “I could eat a slice. Or two.”

  Her lips lifted. “We’re going to be up so late tonight. Or I will. Probably with indigestion.”

  He laughed. “Same. I guess I’ll work tonight.”

  “Or you could send me dirty texts. From your bedroom.”

  “What?”

  She shrugged. “Think of it as a digestive aid.”

  Claire was a constant surprise. “Woman. You know how to fire me up.”

  She looked ahead at the girls then back at him, slanting Sullivan a sly smile. “I like you hot.”

  She was driving him to the brink. “Prepare yourself for dirty texts later.”

  “Oh, I’m ready.”

  Now he couldn’t wait for this whole pizza extravaganza to be over—so he could go to bed.

  Chapter Nine

  Claire hadn’t expected Sullivan to actually show up to one of her beginner yoga classes, so she was surprised to see him when she walked into the room on Friday afternoon. But there he was, looking incredibly hot and delicious standing on his mat in the back of a very crowded room.

  He’d garnered the attention of several of the other women in the class as well. How could he not, wearing a sleeveless shirt and those tight pants? The man did have a fabulous ass, after all.

  She chose to ignore that since her main objective was to teach the class, so she’d have to pretend he wasn’t there.

  “I’m so happy you’re all here. If this is your first time, welcome. We’re going to relax our minds and bodies. I’ll help you through, and together we’ll gain peace and tranquility. Let’s begin by centering our hearts with a slow, easy breath.”

  Getting herself into the mindset was what she did, what was easy for her. It didn’t take long for her to tune out all outside stimuli, including Sullivan, and focus on what was important. Breathing, movement, and becoming one with the universe. Yoga had been important to her for a long time. It had brought her calm in what had often been her out-of-control world. It had taught her that she had control over her body and her environment, and all she had to do was learn to listen to herself.

  With slow, easy movements, she took the class through each pose, helping individuals when they needed assistance holding a pose, but since this was a beginner class, the movements weren’t difficult. The main objective was to get each person to connect with their inner selves and realize all they had to do was relax—and breathe.

  As they held each pose, she walked around the room, checking for correct posture and breathing. They were all doing so well, including Sullivan, who seemed to be taking the class seriously, much to her surprise. She thought he’d pop in, give it lip service but think of it as a joke. Instead, he bent, stretched, breathed, and didn’t grin at her as if he thought what she did was some kind of bullshit. For that, she was grateful.

  She took them all down and relaxed them, then ended with a namaste and a hope that she’d see them all again, though she had quite a few repeaters in there. She often did with beginners who would take the class several times before they moved on to more challenging classes.

  In fact, Maryellen, one of the beginners who’d taken the class six times, came over to talk about recommendations for other classes she should take now that she felt more comfortable. Claire gave her a few ideas and Maryellen walked out to go look over the schedule at the front desk.

  Which left her in the room alone with Sullivan, who looked even more delicious as he wiped the sweat from his neck with a towel.

  “Thanks for coming,” she said.

  “I told you I would.”

  “What did you think?”

  He inhaled and let it out. “I was surprised.”

  “Really. In what way?”

  “This is hard. Like, way harder than I expected. I work out. I run. I’m in shape. But this was a whole new way to get in touch with my body. Thanks for that.”

  He could have said it wasn’t for him or lied and said it was a piece of cake. He didn’t, and she admired him for it.

  “It’s a good way to stretch your body—and your mind—in new ways. And it eases tension.”

  “I could see how that would work,” he said as he followed her out of the room. “Do a lot of guys take classes?”

  She nodded. “More than you’d think. It was just you in this afternoon’s class, but I have a few in my Monday morning session, and some attend our more advanced classes.”

  “I’ll have to work my way up to those.”

  She laughed. “One step at a time.”

  He stopped at the front desk. “Hey, when are you done for the day?”

  “Right now, actually. Why?”

  “I need to ask you for a favor.”

  “Sure.”

  “The girls have volleyball practice after school today, and then they’re meeting up with a couple of their friends to grab something to eat.”

  “Right. Brooke told me about it. What did you have in mind?”

  “I need some help with Maddy’s Christmas present. She’s looking for this sweater and I don’t know—other girl stuff.”

  She smiled at him. “You want me to go shopping with you.”

  “I’d love for you to go shopping with me. Not just for the shopping, but so we could spend some time together.”

  She liked that he added that part.

  “I’d like that, too.”

  He leaned against the counter. “We could have dinner together after. Just the two of us.”

  He had reached out to slide his fingers over her hand, and just that subtle touch made her tingle all over. And the way he looked at her, the way they seemed to connect over the subtlest of glances seemed so…intimate.

  So much for the relaxation of the yoga class. She was fired up now.

  “Yes. Definitely dinner.”

  “Good.”

  It took her a full minute to realize they were just looking at each other, neither of them saying a word. Until one of the other yoga teachers came up to the counter and cleared her throat.

  Claire straightened and they moved away from the counter. “Okay, right. I’m going to go home and take a quick shower, and then we can shop.”

  “I need to do the same since you made me sweat.”

  Her lips curved. She’d like to make him sweat in a different way, but unfortunately this wasn’t the right time or place, so she bookmarked that thought for later. “I’ll text you when I’m ready?”

  “Sounds good.”

  He walked out the door, and she couldn’t help but watch him, then she walked back to the counter, where Marie stood watching her.

  “Who was that piece of hotness?” Marie asked.

  “My next-door neighbor. He came in to take a class.”

  “Uh-huh. Seems like more than just neighborly looks and touching.”

  “Okay, we might be going out. Real casual thing.”

  Marie shot her a look of disbelief then a smile. “Sure, honey. If you say so.”

  She hadn’t meant for their interactions together to be so…noticeable. And now she’d blurted out that she and Sullivan were dating. It wouldn’t take long for everyone in the studio to know.

  How did she feel about that? She thought about it for a few minutes as she wrapped things up at the studio, realizing she kind of liked it. Then again, she liked Sullivan. A lot. Maybe more than a lot.

  So maybe things were more than just casual between them. But now wasn’t the time to dissect that any further.

  She drove home, took a shower, and stared at her closet, trying to decide what to wear. It was cold outside, but the wind wasn’t blowing. Since they were going shopping, she didn’t think she needed to look fancy. She opted for jeans and a dark-blue Henley, deciding to keep it casual. But she did put on her dangly earrings because a woman needed a little sparkle, right? She added her ankle boots, put on a light touch of makeup, and brushed through her hair, then gave herself the once-over in the mirror.

  Yes, she looked hot.

  She went downstairs and spent some time going through the mail. Her phone buzzed and it was a text from Brooke, checking in with her location. Practice was over and they were headed to Farrah’s house. Farrah’s mom was making pasta, so they decided to eat there for dinner.

  Claire smiled. The one thing she’d always appreciated about her daughter was how honest she was. She gave her a little more rope than some parents would because Brooke never hid things from her. Sure, she could be surly sometimes, and on occasion, they’d argue. But her daughter was sixteen. It was allowed. Brooke also knew that she could come to her with any problem and Claire would never judge her.

  She sent a thanks and have fun and a heart emoji to Brooke.

  Then Sullivan texted saying he was ready when she was. She texted him back letting him know she was set to go, so he told her he’d swing by her driveway to pick her up.

  She grabbed her keys and her coat, turned off the lights and headed outside, still irritated to see those Christmas lights dangling from her outside gutters. She’d have left them off for the entire season except that Sullivan had rigged an on/off timer on them. Plus, Brooke loved them, so she grudgingly went along with it.

  Sullivan had pulled into the driveway. She climbed down the steps and he got out of the car and came around to open her door.

  “You didn’t need to do that,” she said.

  He frowned. “Yes. I did.”

  Admittedly, she appreciated the gesture. While they were driving, she filled him in on Brooke’s text.

  “Maddy texted me, too. It sounds like they’re having fun.” He paused for a few seconds then asked, “Do you know Farrah?”

  “I do. They’ve been friends a long time. I know her parents and they’re very nice people, so nothing to worry about there.”

  “Okay, thanks. Not that I was worried or anything.”

  Her lips curved. “Of course you were. You’re new in this city and your daughter is hanging out at a bunch of strangers’ houses. You have a right to be concerned. I would be.”

  He gave her a quick glance. “You do that incredibly well.”

  “What’s that?”

  “Make me feel like I’m not being an overprotective parent.”

  “Because you’re not. It’s normal to be concerned when you have a teenage daughter who’s hanging out with people you don’t know, especially when you’ve just moved to a new city. Anytime you’re concerned about someone she’s with, all you have to do is ask me. I know all of Brooke’s friends, and since Maddy’s been hanging out with her, chances are they know all the same people.”

  He exhaled. “Thanks. That helps. And since she’s usually always with Brooke anyway, I doubt I’ll have anything to be concerned about.”

  She liked that he thought highly of Brooke. “Let’s hope not, for both our sakes. Though when I was passing by Brooke’s room the other night, I heard her on the phone with Maddy discussing the upcoming winter ball at school and the mention of boys’ names came up.”

  “Really. When’s the winter ball?”

  “Next Friday night.”

  “Do they typically have dates for that?”

  “Yes. Sort of. They join in with the boys from the neighboring school. Though it’s very well supervised.”