Page 40

“Tell me something about you, Maya. Something that isn’t first date stuff.”

She smiles thoughtfully. “I’m working on what I’m calling a passion project. I already have too much on my plate professionally, but this is something that makes me happy.”

“What is it?”

“A line of clothing that has nothing to do with movies or Broadway. It’s a line of sleepwear meant to make women of all shapes and sizes feel both comfortable and sexy. I have about thirty pieces designed but I’m not happy with them yet, and until I am, I’m not moving forward.”

“Why is it a secret?”

“I guess it’s not a secret so much as a project I’m not sure I can get interest in. That’s why I won’t call in favors or spend money on production until I feel like I’m a thousand percent happy with them.”

“That’s exciting. Would you show me some of your designs? I might be able to give you a man’s perspective since I do enjoy women in lingerie.”

Her eyes twinkle. “I guess I was a letdown that night in New York.”

“You were nothing of the sort,” I say firmly, sliding my arm around her shoulders.

“What else do you want to know?”

“Well, I know you like bourbon. And dancing.”

“I do.” She cocks her head. “And you like bourbon as well. But not dancing.”

“I don’t mind dancing under the right circumstances.”

“Tell me about your life,” she says, licking a clump of ice from the snow cone.

Jesus, it’s hard to concentrate when she does that.

“Which part?” I ask. “You must know that hockey can be all-encompassing during the season.”

“Is that partly why your marriage broke up?”

I wasn’t expecting that kind of question, and my initial reaction is annoyance.

But I quickly tamp it down because she’s right.

It was one of many reasons Shandy told me she cheated.

“I’m at a point now where I refuse to give her a pass—two wrongs don’t make a right, you know? I may not have paid enough attention to her, but I never cheated and I took our vows seriously.”

“Oh, I completely agree,” she says quickly. “I just wondered if she used that as an excuse.”

“She did. She also said I didn’t support her enough because I couldn’t go to all her fashion shows or walk the red carpet with her—but Christ, I work a lot of hours, travel all the time, and need to focus. And it goes both ways. It’s not like she showed up for my games, either.”

“You both prioritized your careers, instead of each other.”

“Yeah, and I’ll cop to that. But I loved her. Right up until I caught her sucking my best friend’s dick.”

“Is that how you found them?”

“Yup. In our bed, no less.”

“Ugh. I’m sorry.”

“It’s been more than a year. I’m over that part of it.”

“Maybe you’re not. Maybe you tried to put it out of your mind instead of dealing with it and that’s why you’re still…struggling.”