Rushing the Goal (Assassins #8)(10)

Miss? What in the ever-loving f*ck? Turning toward the very deep and very male voice, Lucy had to look up to meet a pair of gray eyes. Lucy was a tall woman, almost six feet, and still this guy towered over her. He was huge, big shoulders, and for a second, she was a little taken aback. He must have noticed that because he held his palms up, his eyes boring into hers.

Taking a step back, she eyed him. But then, he tried to smile and, God, it was so awkward, she found herself fighting her own smile. What the hell? Who was this guy? But soon, she was lost in his eyes. They were soft, his lips puffy, his face chiseled in all the right spots. His hair was shaved up the side but thicker at the top, while dark hair dusted his jaw and upper lip. He looked like a damn underwear model, yet something about his face didn’t stun her the way, say, Shea’s did. He was good-looking, hot even, but he was kind of awkward and she found that…adorable?

Hm.

As she eyed him, he did the same to her, his eyes drinking her in as silence stretched between them. She wasn’t sure why she felt all girlie under his gaze, but she sure as hell didn’t like it one bit. So finally, she asked, “Are you talking to me?”

Clearing his throat, he nodded. “Yeah, um, are you Lucy? Sinclair’s sister?”

Tilting her head, she took in the familiar purple and black Assassins warm-ups and the hockey stick in his hands, along with a pair of skates. “Who’s asking?” she asked, her eyes narrowing.

He smiled, his lips curving and his eyes lighting up a bit. “Okay. Hi, I’m Benji Paxton. I play with Jayden on the Assassins, and he asked me to come and help you with your daughter…Angie?”

Her gaze deepened into a scowl. So Jayden knew he wasn’t going to be here and sent someone as a replacement. “That * sent you and didn’t even tell me?”

He shrugged. “Um, I think so.”

“And you think I’m gonna trust you with my kid?”

He looked unsure about it himself, yet the grin remained on his lips. He was really cute. “Yes?”

She glared. “How about no. I’m good.”

His brows rose. “What?” he croaked out.

“I got it. I can do it.”

“Momma!” Angie stressed, her eyes pleading.

Lucy tore her gaze from Benji Paxton’s and looked at her daughter. “Baby, I Googled how to do it. We can do this,” she said reassuringly, holding out her phone with a YouTube video on deck. “How hard could it be?

But Angie was not convinced.

“You Googled it?” she cried out, and when Benji laughed, Lucy glared. She knew it wasn’t his fault, but he wasn’t needed. So he needed to go.

“You can leave.”

That didn’t seem to bother him any as he said, “Google can’t help you, I can.”

Angie looked hopeful, but Lucy wouldn’t admit to needing help. Cutting a look to him, she held his gaze. “Do you doubt Google?”

His eyes were dancing with laughter as his lips curved. This time, it didn’t seem forced, and hell, he was cute. Like a little bulldog puppy or something. “No, but I’m sure it doesn’t have the experience I do. I’ve been playing hockey since I was three. I’ve won two Stanley Cups, and I play on the same line as your brother. So, I mean, word is I’m good, and I’m sure I know more about it than Google.”

Glaring, she held his gaze, unfazed by his resume. “Was that supposed to impress me?”

His lips curved in a playful way that may or may not have had Lucy gasping for breath. Not that she’d ever tell him that. “Maybe. Did it work?”

“Nope, not even kinda,” she said simply, turning back to Angie. “I trust Google. Not your uncle’s replacement. We don’t even know this guy.”

“Yes, but he knows hockey, Mom. He won two Cups!”

“True, but I have Google and YouTube. I’m sure I’ve got this.”

“Or we can just let him do it since Uncle Jayden trusted him to help us.”

“Without telling me,” Lucy added and Angie glared.

“Because he’s scared of you!”

Lucy feigned hurt. “That’s not true.”

Angie just gave her a look, and Lucy shrugged as Benji said, “No, really, that’s the rumor I heard. Heard you might try to hit me. Jayden apologized in advance.”

Letting out a long breath, she closed her eyes. God, Jayden was overdramatic. She wasn’t that bad. Glaring back up at Benji, which made her realize maybe she was that bad, she demanded, “Shh, you. And don’t believe everything you hear.”

He scoffed at that, and her glare deepened. The guy may be hot, but she decided she didn’t care for him much. Fed up with all of this, she looked back to her daughter. “If you want the replacement to help you, I understand. But I think I got this.”

She felt Benji looking at her, but she didn’t meet his gaze as Angie shrugged. “I guess he can do it. He knows what he’s doing.”

Lucy wouldn’t let that bother her. He was experienced, and all she had was Google. Plus, she was so angry at Jayden, there was no telling what Angie would go out there looking like. So she smiled sweetly and said, “Okay. Go get ready, and let’s play hockey!”

Turning to Benji, she watched as Angie looked at him expectantly. But he was staring at Lucy. With a quirk in his lip, he said, “It was really nice meeting you. And don’t worry, I’ll take good care of her.”