As they rode in Shea’s Range Rover, the first thing Elli noticed was how clean it was. When she saw that he had a picture of him with his niece and nephew in the dash, her heart melted a little. It was nice to find a man that loved children as much as she did.

They arrived at Maggiano’s, a delicious Italian place on West End Avenue. It was one of her favorite places to eat and when they entered the back way, they were personally greeted by the concierge. She figured that Shea came here a lot.

“This is my favorite place. I live about ten minutes from here,” Shea told her.

“My studio always orders from here.”

“It’s good food,” he said as the concierge lead them to a table in the back.

Elli scooted into the booth, making sure her dress stayed down, as he scooted in beside her. Beautiful music was playing as the concierge went over the wine list.

“Do you want your regular bottle, Mr. Adler?”

“Please,” he said as he turned to her, “You like wine, right?”

“I do.”

“Is Moscato okay?”

“Sure, do they have a good one here?”

“Wicked good. I love wine. Grace says I’m a sissy boy for drinking it, but coming here all the time converted me.” Elli giggled as he smiled bashfully at her.

“I like wine, but a nice cold beer is how I end my night.”

Shea’s jaw fell open a little as he looked at her, “Marry me, now.”

That had them both laughing, as she turned deep red. Elli was pretty sure if Shea Adler ever asked her to marry him, she would die of a heart attack.

“No, I love beer, too. My classier side is a wino, though.”

A waiter showed up with a bottle of their best Moscato and poured both of them nice sized glasses. Elli knew that it was a dessert wine and that you were only supposed to get half a glass, so she was surprised to see that she had a full glass. Elli brought it to her lips and took a sip. Both the waiter and Shea watched as her eyes opened in surprise and a little moan escaped her lips.

“My God, that’s good.”

“Told ya,” Shea said with a wink, and the waiter walked off with a grin on his face. Elli took another sip and smiled when she saw that Shea was still watching her.

“So, what are you going to get?” she asked, hoping he would look away.

He didn’t.

“Chicken parmesan, that’s what I always get.”

“I get the tilapia.”

“Good choice.”

“Usually with the fried zucchini.”

“Sounds awesome.”

Elli smiled as the waiter came back. They ordered their food and the waiter hurried off to fill the order. They sat for a few minutes, drinking and taking in the scenery. She looked over at Shea and noticed that his hat was low, covering his glasses, so she couldn’t see his eyes.

“I can’t see your eyes.”

He looked up at her with a sheepish look.

“I’m sorry, babe. I’m trying to make sure we aren’t bothered or I would take my hat off.”

Elli wanted to squeal. He called her “babe”! She had to keep her composure, though, so she took a deep breath before saying, “Oh right, fans.”

“Yeah, they know I like this place. I don’t mind them when I’m by myself, but I don’t want any interruptions today.”

She smiled sweetly before reaching over and pulling his hat off. He looked at her surprised, as he ran his hands through his hair. She loved how it stuck up in all different ways.

“I’ll take the interruptions if I get to look into your eyes,” she practically whispered. He smiled, scooting a little closer to her, so that their legs were touching. She gazed into his sky blue eyes as she took a drink of her wine.

“How was practice?”

“Good. I feel good about this season.”

“Another cup?”

“Hoping so.”

“I believe in y’all.” He smiled.

“Then we’ll win.” She laughed as the zucchini was brought out. As they munched, they talked about the guys on the team: who was looking good, and about the new goaltender. Apparently, he was someone that Shea had played with in the AHL. So he was excited to be on the same team with him again.

“He’s bad ass, so I’m really excited.”

“Awesome. He played for Washington, didn’t he?”

“Yeah.”

“Will he take Ryan’s place?”

“No, he’ll be back up.”

“Okay, good. I love Ryan.” He smiled.

“Is he your favorite player?”

“Nope.”

“Oh, really, whose jersey do you wear?”

Elli was beet red. Luckily the food was bought out so she didn’t have to answer. Shea watched her as the waiter laid the food down and wished them happy eating before walking away. Elli had a feeling he wanted his answer.

“I’m waiting, Ms. Fisher.”

“How do you know I wear a jersey?” she asked, trying to deflect the question as she ate.

“Because you are a fan. I’m sure you have a number. Whose is it?”

“I’m not telling. I don’t want to make you jealous.” He let out a booming laugh, causing Elli to grin as she ate some of her fish. “I’m serious, male egos are so fragile.” He kept laughing as she continued to eat.

“Whatever. I bet you like Alex Welch, all the girls like him.”