Kris was somehow up before his alarm, so he rolled over next to the woman sleeping next to him. He wrapped his arms around her small body, planting a kiss on her neck. “Kris, not now,” she said coldly. “But I’ll be gone for the next two weeks because of training,” he said softly while brushing aside her hair, “Besides, you have no idea how sexy you look right now with bed head.” A groan escaped her mouth as she flipped away from him. “I said not now,” she muttered as she yanked the covers up, “I’ll see you when you get back.” He released his arms from her body claiming defeat, and got out of bed. “Yeah, sure,” he said while getting dressed quietly in a defeated tone of voice. Kris grabbed his packed bag on the floor and said, “Well I’m headed out, Love you.” With a sigh she said, “Bye, now can I go back to sleep?”

He stood there unable to say anything else as a buzzing sound filed the room. Kris woke up for real this time, and quickly dismissed the alert. It was all a dream. He was in Lana’s apartment, not at the home he used to share with Kate. He let out a sigh of relief as his hand ran along the curves of her naked body. The raven-haired woman didn't stir, and continued to sleep soundly. He slowly got off her sofa bed and stretched as the cool air in the apartment hit his body. It was before sunrise, but the city streetlights lit up the loft as he dressed. He found a pen and paper, and scribbled down his number with the words 'call me' before slipping out.

As Kris closed the door behind him, he walked down the stairs quietly, trying not to wake up her neighbors. The city was covered in fog from the heavy rain the night before, and there was a cool crisp breeze coming down Carson Street. While he walked Kris tried to focus on the beginning of training camp; Hockey was not only his job, but also his escape. By focusing on training, skating, and his puck handling skills he could push aside everything else in his personal life. That was how he attempted to deal with the past few months without her. But no matter how many reps he did, or how many beers he drank he still couldn't shake her from his mind.

He still remembered the first night that they had met. Kate had literally danced into him at the club, and Kris thought she was the one. They dated for over two years and she seemed like the perfect girl; She said she loved him, clung to him all the time, and was there whether he won or lost the games. Even his teammates were jealous of her beauty and sex appeal. But when she left him, his whole world went black in one instant. He was played a fool, used, and left to pick up the pieces as she moved onto someone new. What would it take for him to finally move on? There were so many reminders of her everywhere he turned, and she was still invading his dreams. As he crossed the Smithfield Street Bridge, the words Lana had said months ago echoed in his mind.

"I'll make you forget about her. That's what you want isn't it, A distraction. You said it yourself."

That first night with Lana was a lifesaver. He never had a chance to tell her, or show her how much she did for him that night. Sure she had run off by the time morning came, but that one night he could see a small flicker of light on the horizon. Neither of them wanted or craved love, they both just needed a release form the pain. While he still had no idea what she had gone through, he still was able to connect with her. It wasn't hard to see that behind those cold emerald green eyes was a woman who had been burned by love, just like him.

As he parked his car in the garage his mind finally cleared. Kris may have been going through withdrawal from Kate, but there was a remedy. The first step would be to focus on Hockey now that the season was approaching. In his free time he would continue to spend time with his friends to heal. But when he felt himself slipping and thinking of Kate, he would call up the Ice queen to remind him what pleasure feels like. The cruelty of that four letter word had brought them together, and formed their agreement. Just sex, no strings attached. A temporary escape from reality, without the harsh side effects of a relationship. That was exactly what the doctor ordered, and what the patient needed.

--

Lana woke up to find herself alone, which was a relief. She walked into the bathroom and turned on the hot water, stepping into the old seafoam blue shower. As she ran the soap and water over her body, her mind went back to the night before. She was angry that he couldn't take "no" and "leave me alone" as an answer. She couldn't believe that he had talked her into taking him home, let alone to agree to continue to sleep with him. What was happening to her? She was usually so cold and calm, and now all she could think about was his powerful body and that long thick weapon he kept hidden in his jeans.

Her current situation it reminded her of a bad movie; two complete opposites hooking up. He was from a completely different world, living a life full of fame and fortune as professional hockey player. Then there was her, the worthless college dropout living off tips and gig money. There was only one common thread between them; they were both victims of the emotion called love. She was cold and content with loneliness, and he had his heart shattered. It was that perfect combination of misery that drove them to the evenings of passionate sex. The intoxicating, temporary bliss made them both forget their problems in life for just a moment in time. But Lana was no fool, she knew that reality is cruel. This was just a temporary distraction in time, nothing more than that. Before long he would find another woman and that would be the end, and she would be fine with that. This was a no strings, purely sexual agreement. There wouldn’t be any falling in love...or heartbreak.

Alana stepped out of the shower and threw on some clothes just as she heard a knock at her door. She wondered who it was this time. Bill collectors? Her landlord? Well, whoever it was had begun to annoy her as they continued to knock and ring her doorbell. After a minute she walked over, flinging open the door saying, "Who the hell is it and what do you want?" Her face went from angry to stone cold as she saw who was sanding in front of her. "That's no way to greet your dad." Lana leaned against the door frame and said, "What do you want?" He smiled and tried to play nice, but she could see straight through him. "What I'm not allowed to come visit my daughter?"

"Dad, you only come here when you need something, so just cut the crap," she said coldly, "What do you want?" His fake smile faded as he adjusted the hat that covered his grey hair. "It's about Timmy," he said, "We need to bail him out again." Tim was her older brother, who was more of a fuck up than she was. He was a heavy user of drugs, and even sold some on the side. He was out on probation, but got caught driving under the influence of ecstasy. "I think we should let him rot this time, teach him a lesson," she replied coarsely, "maybe he can kick his habit in there."

"Lana he's your brother," her dad responded in an angered tone, "All I need is five hundred to bail him out." Lana stood her ground saying, "No. Now leave." He pushed on the door and said, "Dammit Alana, you have to take care of your family." Family, she didn't even know what that word meant anymore. To her it meant a broken home, shattered dreams, and abuse. "Family? Don't you dare use that on me," she said raising her voice, "All you both do is take my money, just like you did when I was in college. So why should I help you now?"

"Because your mother would be disappointed in you." And that was the final knife twist. "Don't bring mom into this," said Alana, "She would be disappointed in both of you!" He stood in front of her stone faced and said, "OK so we've all made mistakes, but we will get through this. Let's start by helping your bother." He was attempting to guilt trip her into this, and it wasn't going to work this time. She shook her head and said, "I won't help either of you until you stop drinking and doing drugs. Then we can talk about family. Got it?"

His false smile quickly faded and he looked angry and frustrated that she woulnd't budge. "You are a selfish bitch Alana" he snarled. "Selfish? No I'd call you that for stealing my tuition money." He stood there and pointed his finger at her and went into his rant about how he didn't take her money, he cashed the check to pay for sustaining our family, which was total bullshit. She rolled her eyes and said, "I think we are done here." After slamming the door in his face, she locked the deadbolt so he couldn't get in. As he started to scream and curse at her, she turned on her CD player loudly to drown him out.

"Yup, back to reality," she muttered to herself as she tried to ignore the profanities on the other side of the door. She knew they were the only family she had left, but It was time for some tough love. She wasn't going to let either of them continue to walk all over her, take her money, and use her to get what they wanted. Lana would rather continue to be alone.