“I don’t want to leave.”

“I don’t want you to leave either.”

Ali and James lay together, half under the crumpled white sheets of their hotel bed. James was on his stomach, his head resting on the soft flesh of Ali’s bare breasts, listening to her voice echo in her chest.

“I should just move here” she said. She drew random circles with her hand along his bare skin, rising and falling over the lines of his deltoids and across the muscles that formed the defined ‘V’ of his back.

“That wouldn’t do any good if I’m still living in Pittsburgh.”

James lifted his eyes up to see her, and they both laughed. He kissed her stomach, then resumed his resting position. Ali thought he looked a little silly. A huge guy like him, long legs and all, balled up so he could use her body as a pillow.

“Okay, well…I still don’t want to leave.” She tugged on the wavy hair near his neckline. “At the very least, I wish I could come to the game tonight.”

“But I know you’ll be watching from home, and that’s enough for me to try and score for you.”

Ali sighed happily, sinking deeper into the lush pillows around her.

“Well that was a happy sigh.”

“That’s because I’m a happy girl.” Their eyes met again, and James leaned up and kissed her. “And that makes me even happier” she said after his lips left hers.

James continued to kiss down her chest, moving a piece of her hair out of the way so he could have a turn at one of her nipples. She giggled when she felt his teeth graze over it, and she thumped him on the head.

“You just got off like 20 minutes ago.”

“Your point?” He smiled up at her. “You just got off, like, 25 minutes ago.” He emphasized ‘like’ to sound like her, putting on his best girly voice.

Ali laughed and pressed his head back onto her stomach. “Rest! Or, at least, let me. Apparently no one can reload as quickly as you.”

“It’s pretty hard not to when this is laying here.” He ran the palm of his hand down along her thigh to her knee, squeezing her inner thigh. Ali felt a little more blood flow south at his touch.

Although it was still dark outside, sheknew they were both on time constraints. The Pens were probably on their plane heading north at that very moment, and soon James would have to leave her. A short time after that, she’d have to return their rental car and hop on a plane herself. After such a great three days, it was bumming her out a little.

James continued to rub along her thighs, avoiding the area she wished he [i]would[/i] rub. Maybe she was reloading a little more quickly now.

“How long do we have until you have to leave?” she asked.

He took a glance at his watch and groaned. “An hour.”

“An hour?” Ali sunk even deeper into the pillows. “Uggghhh.”

“Hey.” James crawled up so they were face to face, his hand steady on her stomach. “We had a great trip, so don’t get sad now. I want to remember you on the ice with that smile of yours, not the pouty face…even if it is adorable.”

This made Ali smile again. “It was a good trip. We should take more when you have the chance.”

“I wish we could.” All that James could see in his future were more and more games, and less and less breaks. Come Playoff season, it would get even worse. “But we will when we can, right?”

“Right.”

He settled into the pillows next to Ali, keeping his hand on her stomach. She was warm and soft and he wanted as much contact with her as he could get before he was thrown back into a world of testosterone. As he watched her, he could tell she was stewing over something.

“Talk to me.”

“Oh, it’s nothing” she said, trying to pass it off.

“You’re a terrible liar.”

Ali glanced at him. “Well…I just feel bad.”

“No pouty face, babe.”

“I know, I know.” She was searching for the right words. “We had such a great trip, but I feel bad about the whole texting thing when we were out the other night. I’m really sorry about that. I didn’t mean for you to think anything of it.”

James shook his head. “Don’t think another second about it. I talked to Sid yesterday, and I think he got the message.”

Ali sat up, her gaze narrowing. “You talked to him?”

“Yeah?” James sat up with her. “What’s wrong with that?”

“What did you say? You didn’t yell at him, did you?”

“No, I didn’t. And all I said was he should mind his own business now and then.”

“Jesus, James.”

“Well he should!” James sat up completely now. He realized he was getting worked up again, so he exhaled to reset himself. “It was nothing, Ali. Really. I had to talk to him about the game time change, and we just mentioned it briefly. No biggie.”

Ali searched his eyes. There had been a flash of anger somewhere in them, but it was gone.

“Kiss me” she said.

“What?”

“Motherfucking kiss me, James.”

He didn’t have time to understand the transition because Ali was on him in a flash. There was urgency in her kiss, and James responded by giving her the strength in him that he knew she loved.

“What happened to needing to rest?” he asked mockingly between kisses.

“We have 45 minutes and I don’t want to spend it arguing with you about stupid shit.” She tilted her head and smiled sweetly. “Now I want you to fuck me again, James Neal, because we’re running out of time.”


* * *


James really had no idea what he was walking into when he arrived at the Air Canada Centre. It wasn’t like he was afraid of seeing Crosby, and it wasn’t like he didn’t [i]want[/i] to see Crosby. But…if he brought anything up again, there would be issues. James had one rule, and that was to focus on the game and nothing else when it was down to the wire. He was pretty sure Sidney Crosby felt exactly the same, if not more.

He fell right in line with the guys when he made his way into the locker room. Geno made the biggest spectacle; hugging him and tapping his face as if he hadn’t seen him in years. Dupuis had some chirping to catch up on, and James took it in stride. In fact, they all noticed that he had a bounce in his step when he got there. No one needed to ask why, but they definitely razzed him for it.

As James went to retrieve a set of sticks to tape for practice, he spotted Crosby in the hall, stretching and doing his usual rituals. Sid looked up and nodded at him, and James regarded him in the same manner. When James was a few strides past him, Sid broke the silence.

“Hey Nealer.”

James turned around.

“No hard feelings, man.”

James nodded. “Right. No hard feelings.”

Sid reached behind him and grabbed a foot, stretching his thick quad muscles that were visible even in his warm-up pants. “You calm down any, I hope?”

Why is it me who needs to do the calming? “Yeah, definitely” James answered. “Then again, two rounds of amazing sex in one night will do that to ya.” He flashed Sid as big of a grin as he could, then turned and headed back down the hallway.

Behind him, Sid did his best to let James’ arrogant comment roll off his back. He had a game ahead of him, and an important practice that required his every focus. Every pissed off thought that came into his mind he let go, one…for the game; two…for Ali.


* * *


The only thing that Ali hated about flying was how lonely it was. Airports had to be one of the loneliest places on the planet, despite how many bodies were present at any given time. Airplanes themselves promoted deep and sometimes lonely thoughts as well. Every time Ali boarded a plane, it was the same routine each time: she’d sit quietly, stare out the window at the tiny world below, and think. Sometimes she would listen to music, but most of the time she didn’t. On her flight back to Pittsburgh, Ali allowed her thoughts to be the running soundtrack.

Turbulence also happened to freaked her out, and there was plenty of that on the flight as well. Her palms always turned sweaty and her heart raced when the plane bumped along. In fact, the turbulence was a bit like the thought pattern she was having. When Ali thought of this, she had to laugh. She started to worry about James and Sidney, their relationship on and off the ice, and how she was impacting that. Then she thought about the trip she just took, and how good it turned out to be for her and James. This lead her to think about how close they had come in just the past few weeks to taking a break in their relationship…temporarily or for good, she didn’t want to know.

More turbulence. More sweaty palms.

She wiped her hands on her thighs, trying to focus her mind. Her first thought was the lingering euphoria she still felt from her and James’ night together. Being in a hotel allowed them the freedom to accomplish what they couldn’t in his parents’ house. In her head, she sent an apology to the neighbors who were on the opposite wall for all the noise she caused very late last night, and very early this morning.

When James finally had to leave to join his team and Ali was alone, she discovered she was all sorts of sore. A cramp somewhere in her gut reminded her how James had gone a little crazy with going deep, but really…who was she to complain?

The plane leveled out again, and Ali sighed in relief.

If she had to guess, James was likely finishing his practice and heading back to a different hotel with the team at that very moment. It worried her that James had spoken to Sidney about….

….well, she didn’t really know what they talked about. She let an orgasm distract her this morning, and she was fine with that. Very, very fine with that.

“Ladies and gentlemen, from the Flight Deck, this is your captain again. We are currently about 120 miles north of Pittsburgh, and have begun our initial decent.”

Captain.

Ali rolled her eyes and looked out at the blanket of clouds below, trying not to think about Sid. She felt guilty for being excited to watch the game tonight, of course to see James do what he does best; but she also wanted to see Sid, too. Being friends with him made the games a bit different now, though she couldn’t quite explain it. It was like she was watching her team with new eyes, though nothing really changed.

“From your Calgary-based flight crew, we thank you for choosing Delta, and we hope to serve you again soon. Flight attendants, please prepare for landing.”

The usual shuffling was heard as the rest of the people on board began to ready themselves for landing. Ali didn’t budge. She continued to stare out the window, lost in her thoughts. At the very least, she hoped the landing wouldn’t be as bumpy as the flight had been.

Luck was on her side, as the landing went very smoothly, and she landed back home with no issues. When she stepped outside the airport to grab a cab, it felt as cold in Pittsburgh as it did in Ontario, but without the snow. It made her miss the white coating that Whitby was dressed in.

As she rode in the back of the cab that was taking her home, her phone vibrated. She was happy to see it was James:

J: Land yet? Miss me yet? Excited to watch me yet?

She shook her head and smiled. Quickly, she fired off a response, knowing he likely had little time to talk before he had to put his game face on.

I did, I do, and I am. You?

J: I think my dick might actually hurt from this morning, so yesyesyesyesyesyesyes.

Ali giggled, and the cab driver looked back at her in his mirror. She gave him a smile, typing out a reply back:

You’re making me laugh in the cab and the driver thinks I’m crazy. PS: thanks for making my cervix hate you.

J: Ouch. Sorry, babe.

“Must be the boyfriend” the cab driver said. His chubby face appeared amiable as he smiled back at her.

“Yeeeah, sorry about that” Ali said, half-pretending to feel guilty.

“Ohhh, I know everyone’s always on their phones all day long....It’s nice when someone isn’t scowling at the damn thing, for once. I pick too many people up who always look so pissed off.”

Ali pressed her lips together to try not to laugh at the bluntness of the driver. Her phone vibrated in her lap again.

J: Did I lose ya?

No, sorry…cabbie’s making fun of me. He caught me smiling at your texts.

J: Good girl. Glad that I can have that effect on you from here.

“So is he a hometown boy?” the driver asked.

“Ahhh….well we both live here now, yeah. But he’s originally from Ontario.” This prompted the driver to continue talking, so she sent James another text, trying not to look down so it wouldn't be obvious.

You always do. Make me proud tonight and skate hard. Anytime you skate backwards, think of me. ;-)

“You know what I'm saying, kid?”

Ali looked up. “I’m sorry?”

The cab driver laughed rather boisterously. “Ahh, it’s okay sweetie. Just asked you what part of Ontario your man was from.”

“Oh…sorry! He’s from Whitby. Not sure how familiar you are, but it’s near Toronto. That’s actually where I just flew in from” Ali replied.

“Yeah? So where is he?”

Ali’s phone vibrated. “Well, to tell you the truth, he’s still back there.” She glanced down and saw two texts from James:

J: I will, I definitely will. I’ve looked at our picture a dozen times already today.

J: I gotta run now. I’ll call you after the game if you’re still up.

“Does he work up there?”

Ali quickly sent a final response back to James. “Part time, I guess you could say.”

The driver seemed genuinely interested in her, and was all smiles and laughs, so she didn't mind engaging in conversation with him. She actually kind of liked him; it was better than some silent weirdo that normally drove the cabs around Pittsburgh.

“So you came back, and he stayed there…no wonder your nose is in your phone so much.” One of his happy eyes winked at her in the rearview mirror. “I’mmmmmm just messing with ya, kid.”

Ali laughed. “It’s okay! I’m enjoying it.” She smiled at him when he looked back.

“So what’s in Ontario that’s kept him away from you? Sweet girl like you, I’d quit my job and fly home to you anyways!” He let out another rolling blast of laughter, which made Ali smile.

“Uh…well, I suppose if I told you, you wouldn’t believe me anyway—“

“—Hit me, kid. I’ve heard a lot in my day.”

Ali debated actually telling him, but figured what the hell. “He plays hockey, and he’s got a game there tonight. Since I work tomorrow, I had to come back.”

The cab driver glanced back again with curiosity. “Hockey! No shit.” He turned the wheel and the cab rounded the bend that lead up her street. “Is he pro?”

“Yep.”

“No shit! Don’t tell me….” He slowed the cab and looked at her. “You say he lives here now?”

Ali nodded, watching the driver as he pieced it all together. He slapped his knee and laughed so hard he coughed.

“I’ll be damned! He’s a Penguin?”

“Bingo!” Even Ali had to laugh at how animated this driver was. He was adorable, in a jolly sort of way. She watched him shaking his head and talking to himself as he rolled up to her driveway. When he put the cab in park, he turned as best he could in his seat and looked at her.

“Would you mind just telling me which one he is? I’ve been a fan since I don’t know when...I’d even venture a guess it was before Lemieux came on the scene.”

Ali unlocked her cell phone so her screen was visible and held it out to the cabbie. The driver let out a loud cry of astonishment when he saw the picture of James and her.

“You have GOT to be shitting me” he said, slapping his leg again. “I just drove James Neal’s girl home from the airport. Good God, Marie is never gonna believe this when I tell her tonight. No way in hell.”

Ali was still laughing as she grabbed her bag and hopped out of the cab. She handed the driver a fifty dollar bill with a massive smile. “Keep the change…and thanks for the fun ride back.”

The driver looked at her somewhat dumbfounded. “Oh noowww, I can’t take this—“

“Take it!” Ali insisted. “You’re awesome, and I’ll tell James I met one of his coolest fans.”

Taking the money, the driver looked down humbly. “Well that’s real nice of you. It was a pleasure.” He held out his hand, and Ali shook it.

“My name’s Allison.”

“Todd.” His smile seemed to change to one that was warmer. “You be sure to tell Neal I’ll be watching him tonight, and good luck to him and the boys.”

Their hands parted and Ali gave Todd a wave, then headed to her front door. She looked back once and watched the yellow taxi drive away, and she got a warm fuzzy feeling inside. It felt good to be home after all.


* * *

Notes

Your wishes are my command...so here's another chapter :-) More on the way, of course!