Lucky Bounce: Game On, Part 2 by Jennifer Lazaris

Epilogue

Two Months Later

"Surprise!"

Holly froze, staring around in shock at the hundreds of balloons, sparkling silver and white decorations, and the "Happy 26th Birthday, Holly" banner hanging on the far wall of Callahan's.

Their friends cheered and blew party favors as she took in the scene, covering her mouth with her hands.

"Eli, what did you do?"

"Oh no." He laughed and waved his hands. "It wasn't all me. My partner in crime is just as guilty."

Penn stood in front of Holly, holding her arms out, a huge grin on her face. "I know you hate surprises, but after everything you've been through, we thought you deserved a special birthday celebration."

Holly shook her head and laughed as she hugged her best friend. "How did you guys manage to pull this off?"

"It wasn't easy," Penn told her. "Trust me. Lots of texting and phone calls from the car."

"But it was worth it." Eli wrapped his arms around Holly from behind. "You deserved a special day, and we wanted to make that happen."

She smiled at the roomful of guests. "Mission accomplished."

"All right, everyone," Nic yelled, holding a drink as she climbed onto a chair. "Time to sing and embarrass the birthday girl."

Holly tried not to laugh as the whole gang launched into an enthusiastic, horribly off-key rendition of the "Happy Birthday" song.

As she glanced around at their bright, smiling faces, she was hit with a deep sense of gratitude.

When she'd taken the job at TheLucky Bounce over a year ago, she'd been at the end of her rope, desperate for a career where she could write for a living every day. She'd also been horrified that the blog put her directly in the path of the man who broke her heart all those years ago.

But Eli had worked hard to put it back together again, and in the process, she'd gained an entire group of loyal, amazing friends.

She was a lucky woman.

As much shit as Lyla had put her through the past month, she had to give the woman a little credit. If Lyla hadn't hired her for the blog, her life wouldn't be as good as it was right now.

When her friends finished singing, Penn handed her a delicious looking mocktail, and Holly held it up in the air. "Guys, thank you so much for coming out today. I'm not big on speeches, but just know that I'm grateful to have such good friends. Now let's eat, drink, and have fun."

The group held up their drinks, clapping and cheering as Holly turned around to face Eli. "Thank you for doing this. It means a lot to me."

"Anything for you, kitten." He put a hand on her tummy and smiled. "Are you feeling okay? The little one giving you any trouble?"

"Thankfully, my morning sickness seems to be strictly in the mornings."

"You're not feeling weak? You took your MG meds today, right?"

Holly rolled her eyes. "Eli, I'm fine, I promise. All good on both fronts, okay?"

"I have to make sure my girl is in tiptop shape," he murmured, kissing her forehead. "I take that job very seriously."

"Well, take a break and clock out so we can go stuff our faces, would you? I'm starving."

He laughed. "Whatever you want. Let's hit the buffet."

* * *

Bella glanced around the room to make sure no one was looking, then swiped a freshly opened bottle of beer from the end of the bar. She creeped up the back staircase to the second floor, desperate for a few minutes of quiet.

Callahan's usually kept the top-level roped off during private parties, and this one was no exception.

Sinking down in the nearest booth, she took a deep swallow of beer, then let out a long sigh.

As much as she loved her brother and his friends, sometimes she felt out of place. Even though a few of the guys and WAGs were only a bit older than she was, she still struggled to relate to them. As long as hockey was the common denominator in the group, she'd never fit in.

She took another gulp of the pale ale and peered down at the frosty bottle. Damn, that was some good beer.

A buzzing noise got her attention, and she searched for the source of the vibration. A black Android phone lay on the seat of the booth, near the wall.

She picked it up and glanced down at the screen. The phone was unlocked, so anyone could use it.

The ethical thing to do was to take it downstairs and give it to Jake, the bartender, in case the owner came back to claim it.

Then again, maybe it belonged to someone at the party. She could skip the middleman and just give it back to them directly if she could find out who owned it.

The phone's photo gallery was probably her best shot at identifying the owner. But when she tapped the brightly colored icon, no pictures came up.

It was completely empty.

"How is that even possible?" she muttered. "Who doesn't have at least one selfie?"

Sighing, she stared down at the phone. One unread text message sat in the notification section. Curious, she tapped the messaging icon.

Hey, John. Same place, same price? How's 9 work for you?

Just as she finished reading the message, the phone was ripped from her hands.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" a deep voice growled.

Bella glanced up—way up—at Kingsnakes defenseman John Cohan. His blue eyes narrowed as he glared down at her and shoved the phone into the front pocket of his jeans.

Wow, he was even better looking up close. His wavy dark blond hair stuck out from beneath a baseball cap, and his full lips were—

Well, right now they were set in a snarl, but even so, the man was hot, hot, hot. Even if he had the temperament of a rabid dog.

"Sorry, I just—"

"You just nothing," he snapped. "What gives you the right to go snooping through someone's phone?"

"I wasn't snooping," she said patiently. "I was trying to find out who the phone belonged to."

"Bullshit. You were just being nosy."

Okay, now he was starting to piss her off.

"Yeah, no, I wasn't," she declared. "I don't know what your problem is, but—"

"My problem is you, princess. And every spoiled, entitled, little girl like you who thinks they have the right to violate someone's privacy." He crossed his arms and glared down at her. "How would you like it if I looked through your phone?"

Spoiled? Entitled? Oh, it was on.

Bella snatched her cell off the table and held it out to him. "Go ahead, Stretch. Look at my photos. Read my texts. I don't give a shit. I've got nothing to hide."

He stared down at it, then flicked his gaze back to hers.

Ugh. Why was she always so attracted to jerks? If there was a hot jerk within fifty yards, she'd find him like a heat-seeking missile.

"I don't know why you care so much about someone looking through your phone, anyway." She took a sip of beer. "You've got nothing interesting in there. No selfies, no vacation photos, no pictures of your friends. Not even one measly dick pic."

Bella flipped her long hair back. "That says a lot." She flashed a smile and held up her thumb and index finger. "Or a little, if you know what I mean."

He barked out a laugh. "Fuck. What a goddamned mouth on you."

She blinked innocently. "Thanks for noticing. It's my best feature."

He sliced a hand through the air. "This conversation is over."

"That's probably because you don't have anything interesting to contribute. You know what I learned about you from your phone, John? You're boring."

He crossed his arms and stared down at her. "You don't know shit about me."

"I know enough to know that I don't want to know more," she replied, shrugging dismissively.

"Co? Are you hiding out, bud?"

Bella jumped at the sound of her brother's voice, then shoved the beer bottle across the table, away from her.

It didn't escape John's notice.

"Hey, Jet," John said, his voice cool. "Yeah, I came up here to make a phone call and take a piss."

"Bells?" Brandon frowned as he pushed a lock of shaggy dark hair away from his face. "What are you doing up here, sis?"

The sullen look on John Cohan's gorgeous face turned to shock. Guess he hadn't realized Brandon was her brother.

"I just needed to get away from the crowd for a while, Jet."

Brandon turned to John. "You've met my sister?"

"Yeah." Co nodded. "We were just talking."

She gave him an amused look. "Right. Just having a chat."

"Oh yeah? About what?" Brandon's expression turned watchful.

Bella rolled her eyes. "Jeez, Brandon. Cell phones, if you must know. Life. And all things big... and small."

John shot her a withering look, and she grinned.

He might think she was spoiled and entitled, but she was determined to add “witty” to the list whether he liked it or not.

"Dammit, Bells. Did you sneak this beer up here?" Her brother pointed to the bottle. "You aren't old enough to drink, and if someone finds out—"

"No. It's mine," John cut in, picking up the bottle.

She raised her eyebrows before turning back to her brother. "Wow. You always think the best of me, Brandon."

"Sorry, Bells. I guess I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions, but with your history..." He looked over at Co. "Bella has a habit of swiping alcohol at parties, even though she's too young to indulge. I've always got to keep one eye on her. Anyway, I'm heading back to the bar. See you guys downstairs."

After Brandon left, she turned her attention back to John. "Why did you cover for me?"

"Because you're Bella Lear."

She wrinkled her nose. "So?"

"So, I don't need you running to your brother and telling him that the big, bad defenseman was mean to you."

"You think I need Brandon to fight my battles? I can handle myself, thank you."

The corner of his mouth quirked. It was the closest she'd ever seen him come to a smile yet. "Yeah, I guess you can. How old are you, anyway?"

"Twenty. Is that really why you covered for me?" she prodded. "Because you don't want to piss off my brother?"

"No. Maybe I just want you to be in my debt."

"You want me to owe you one?" she asked, raising an eyebrow. "And just what will I owe you, Stretch? If you have something sexual in mind, I'm not interested."

An odd look crossed his face. "I don't want sexual favors from you, Bella."

"Then what?"

"Guess you'll find out when it's time for me to collect."

"Wonderful. Can I have my beer back now?"

He tipped the bottle back and drained it, then slammed it down on the table.

"Gee, thanks," she muttered. "Not like I wanted that or anything."

"Let this be a lesson to you. Stop looking through other people's phones, and lay off the beer until you're old enough to drink. Both will keep you out of trouble."

"I'll work on that," she called as he walked away. "And you can work on being less boring. Seriously, dude. Spice things up, okay? Please? Just a little."

He turned around, but continued walking slowly backward toward the stairs, a smirk on his handsome face.

"You can think whatever you want about me, princess, but I promise you this: there's nothing about me—not one damned thing—that's little."

Her mouth dropped open as he disappeared down the stairs.

Well, damn.

Now she wasn't going to be able to stop thinking about him.

* * *

After eating two big slices of birthday cake, Holly patted her stomach. "If I eat anything else, I won't be able to button my jeans."

"Everyone should get as much cake as they want on their birthday," Eli told her. "It should be a law."

"Eli Donnelley’s law?"

"And so it shall be called," he said, holding up his fork. "From here on out."

Holly snorted. "You're ridiculous."

"I know." He took her hand and stood. "Come on. I want to show you something."

"Where are we going?"

"Upstairs."

"You do realize it's roped off again?" she asked, getting up from the table.

"And you realize it's never stopped us before, right?"

"Touché."

He led her up the back stairwell after she hooked the rope behind her.

"Eli, if your goal is to get busy in the bathroom, I have to tell you straight up it's not happening after all that cake. I'll need a rain check."

He laughed. "No, it's not that." She followed him through the empty dining area and over to the hallway that led to the bathrooms.

"Okay, we're here."

Holly looked around. "Um, do I need to clarify that sexy times aren't happening in the hallway, either?"

Eli smiled. "No clarification. I just wanted to give you your birthday present."

"Here?" She gave him a dubious look.

"This place is special."

"A hallway of bathrooms is special?" She bit her lip, trying not to laugh. "You're going to have to explain."

He gave her a mock wounded look. "Kitten, don't you remember? This was where we had our first kiss. Well, after seven long years, anyway. And right here is where we made our deal. We wouldn't be here now if we hadn't kissed that night."

"True. That was a really great kiss," she said wistfully. "My toes curled."

"Of course they did." He winked at her. "I know what the fuck I'm doing."

"No arguments there."

He pulled a small velvet box wrapped with a pink ribbon out of his pocket. "Happy birthday, Holly."

She peered up at him, biting down on her lip as she undid the ribbon. Opening the box, she found a beautiful, emerald-cut diamond ring inside.

"Oh my God," she gasped. "Is this...?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "I was serious about that lifetime Team Eli membership. I hope you were, too."

"I was. Very serious." She choked back a laugh, and he raised his eyebrows.

"What's so funny?"

"I was just thinking that this beats the hell out of an 'I love Eli Donnelley' button or a laminated membership card."

Eli chuckled. "For what it cost, it better." He took the ring out of the box and slipped it on her finger. "Be mine, Wilkes. Forever. Let's make this official."

She looked down at the ring, then stood on her tiptoes to give him a kiss. "I'm all yours. I always have been."

He pressed his forehead to hers. "I'm so fucking lucky."

"Speaking of lucky..."

He cocked his head. "What?"

"Take a picture with me?"

"Sure."

She took a selfie of the two of them, holding her hand up in the picture to show off the ring.

"Perfect."

"Is this to commemorate the occasion?" he asked, amused.

"That, but I've got something else in mind, too."

She attached the photo to a text and typed "Kingsnakes Eli Donnelley is officially off the market" in the message box before hitting send.

"I just thought TheLucky Bounce should have first crack at the headline. Eat your heart out, Lyla."

Eli laughed. "She's going to turn green with jealousy. You're so bad, Wilkes."

"But you love me anyway."

He swept her into his arms. "Oh yeah. I do."

Holly grinned. "Remember those two words, Donnelley. You're going to need them."

* * *

Don’t miss Bella & John’s story! Click here to order Out of Luck.

If you are curious about what will happen with Sam London & Mia, their story, titled London 23, will be available very soon in a new series called Kingsnakes: Quick Shots.