Chapter 20

By midnight the pool deck was packed. Half the NHL was there, plus a not-surprising number of young women in small dresses and high shoes. A few people were even in the pool. The music was pumping the same bump-and-grind beats that played during the day.

Maddie was talking with Brendan Shanahan, who admitted they’d dropped the Ovechkin prank into the show just before starting, when Sid and Maddie had shown up on the red carpet. Sid had gone to ‘run an errand.’ Max, Kris and Cynthia sat on the edge of the pool, their feet in the water. Jordan and Deanne were dancing under a nearby palm tree. Geno and Erin were talking with Ilya Kovalchuk – though Erin was mostly watching people while the guys spoke Russian.

When Sidney came back, he joined Erin and Geno at the bar. Maddie walked over, shoes in hand.

“Seven o’clock,” Erin said as Maddie came up.

Maddie spun around to look. Sid’s gaze followed.

“Very stealth,” Erin mocked.

Behind them, a small group of people were sitting at a table. Maddie searched their faces and then grabbed Erin’s arm. She blushed and giggled.

“What?” Sid asked.

Maddie shut her eyes tightly. “I used to have the biggest crush on Scott Niedermayer. And there he is!”

Sid laughed. “Gandalf Greybeard? Really?”

“Shutup, Crosby!” Maddie punched him. “When I was little, he was dreamy. I used to ask my parents why I couldn’t grew up next door to a family like his. Between him and his brother…”

“Would you like me to introduce you?” Sid started pulling her in that direction.

Erin stepped between them. “No. Don’t. She gets very spastic when nervous.” Erin put her hand on his shoulder and turned him around. “Stay here and no one gets hurt.”

Maddie also turned her back. “Thanks, Er! Quality sighting.”

Erin gave her a thumbs up. “I’ll let you know if I see Joe Thornton.” Maddie put the back of her hand to her forehead in a fake swoon.

“Wow,” Sid said. “I think I’m a little jealous! You didn’t have a spaz attack when you met me. Guess I’m not that exciting, eh?”

Maddie met his gaze. “You have no idea.” She didn’t elaborate and he kept looking at her. “I… you… oh my God. Do you remember what I said? Something about your hair? Then something about giving you mouth-to-mouth? Your swim trunks were short circuiting my brain.” she said. He laughed at that.

“That’s not so bad,” he said. “Can I ask you a question? Be honest, what’s the first thing you thought when you saw me?”

“Poor Kris.”

“Poor Kris?”

Maddie rolled her eyes. “As in, ‘Poor Kris was probably hitting on me in the gym, inviting me to hang out, and he just lost his chance, big time’.”

Sid went to say something, then changed his mind. “You’re right. He came out to the pool talking about this hot girl from the gym who was really funny, and she had friends, and they were coming to join us. And then you did. But don’t worry, when I went back to the cabana to eat my sandwich, I asked him if it was okay to go for you. He made a deal with me.”

“What?!”

“Yup. If one of your friends wasn’t his type, I had to have to back off,” he said. “The next thing, Cynthia came to dinner and it was all good.” He nodded toward the pool, where Kris and Cynthia were shoulder-to-shoulder, still trailing their feet through the pool.

“Now I get to ask you a question,” Maddie said. “What’s the first thing you thought of when you saw me?”

Sid looked her in the eye and smiled.

“Poor Kris.”
___

Around 2 AM, people started to drift away from the pool. Everyone had taken advantage of the open bar and was looking a little dazed. They were sitting around a table, watching the party breakup. Geno had gone to get some bottled waters.

“I am going to bed,” Max announced. He turned and said right to Erin, “Alone. Again. Quel dommage.”

Erin smiled. “Well... I have to go somewhere. I am NOT seeing Jordan naked again.” She turned to Deanne. “No offense.”

Max’s face lit up. “Wait, let me get some more limes.” He trotted off to the bar.

Erin rolled her eyes and leaned across the table. “Geno snores. I’m not drunk enough to sleep there another night.”

Jordan took that as his cue. He helped Deanne to her feet, then swung her up onto his back. “Guess we’re in your room again,” he said. She looked like a backpack on his massive frame.

Cynthia stood and said to Kris, “I need something from the room, so let’s go with them. No more naked Staals for me either.”

Neither Maddie nor Sid made any move to get up. He was holding her hand between the chairs. They bid everyone good night, but stayed put.

“So.”

“So,” she agreed.

He turned her chair to face her. “You were incredible today,” he said seriously. “This was a lot, even for me. And you handled it. First those girls last night, then coming on stage, then the lime thing… you are good at handling things, aren’t you?”

Maddie put her feet up on the arm of his chair, so her calves were across his knee and her shoes hanging over the outside. He ran his hand over her lower leg. “We’ll see when I search myself online.”

“Wait till tomorrow, okay? In case it makes you want to run away from me?”

He’s really worried, Maddie knew. It was plain as day on his face. She wanted to hug him, to tell him it would be fine. And she would have, but he was scaring her a little. He’d been through this all before, the spotlight and the criticism. As much as she was sure she could deal with it, his concern made her concerned.

“I can do my best to distract you till morning,” he offered.
___

Maddie stood in the same spot in Sid’s room where she’d been the night before. She looked out the window, over the Vegas Strip, and wondered how many other people were spending the night with someone they’d just met. It felt like forever, but Maddie reminded herself they'd known each other less than two days.

Sid came up next to her, put an arm around her waist and leaned his head against hers.

“Whatcha thinking?” he asked.

“That it feels like I’ve known you for a long time,” she admitted.

He squeezed her tighter. “Seems that way, eh? Today was a long day. I have something for you.” He pulled away.

“What? Sid, don’t,” she said, turning.

He reached into the closet and pulled out a hanger. It was a #87 Penguins jersey. Real, from the size of it.

“It was here for an auction. I said I’d get them another one. I wore it in a game – sweated in it and everything. I wanted you to have it.”

She pulled it off the hanger. The sweater was thick, the material a little stretchy. It was heavy with the logo, number and name stitched on. She held it up to her body. It was big, almost as long as her dress.

“Looks good,” he said, then he grabbed it and tossed it away. He pulled her in and kissed her.

Woah, here we go, Maddie thought.

His body was so solid. She could feel every angle and plane as she practically melted into him. She lifted her leg slightly and ran her thigh along the inside of his. He responded by slipping his leg inside hers, the pressure riding her dress riding up. Hands were on her shoulders, brushing her hair back from her neck. He kissed along her ear and down the side of her throat. He brushed his lips across her chest, where his fingers had earlier tucked the napkin into her dress.

Maddie pulled her hands down the slope of his back. At his waist, she pulled his dress shirt from the waist of his pants. She took her time unbuttoning every button and pulling it back. His broad, powerful shoulders bulged beneath his t-shirt.

Sidney traced his hand around the curve of her ass, down behind her lower thigh, and pulled her leg up so it bent alongside his body. She hooked her foot behind him. He slid his hand back up, this time over the top of her thigh. His hand was hot through the fabric of her dress.

He kissed her lips, then tilted her chin up. Even in the near-darkness, gold tones swam in his dark eyes.

“Maddie. I have never met anyone like you,” he whispered. “I intend to get to know you a lot better. And not just here,” he flicked his head toward the room. “So if you don’t want to do this, not tonight, that’s okay with me. I am hoping to have a lot more nights with you.”

Maddie sighed. Is this guy for real? she couldn’t help but think. This is some kind of alternate reality.

“Sidney, I really like you too. Especially when there’s no one else around,” she said. She pressed a chaste kiss to his lips. “But if you don’t have my clothes off in five seconds, I’m going to Max’s room.”

His face cracked into a smile. “Oh that is going to cost you.” Before she could ask just how, he shut her up with a kiss.

He slid his hands behind her and undid the clasp at the top of her dress. The zipper came down in one smooth motion. Slowly, he pulled one strap off her shoulder, then the other, before dropping the dress to the ground. Then he knelt and collected the dress from under her feet. He ran a hand up her calf and kissed the outside of her leg. Her dress went nicely over the back of the chair.

“I love that dress,” he said.

Maddie was wearing a black lace strapless bra and lace boyshorts. They even had a little lace-up in the back. Definitely the sexiest thing she owned. Sid’s eyes traveled over her, from head to toe, slowly seeing every inch of her body. He traced a finger down the front of her stomach, along the curve of her abs.

He pulled off his own t-shirt. Maddie undid his belt. She pushed her palm down across him as she opened his zipper and he sucked in a breath. He wore black boxer briefs, similar to the night before. His thighs were huge, so muscular he seemed to be flexing all the time. The fabric of his shorts stretched very tight across his bulging hard-on. Maddie took a moment to admire him, and also to make him wait.

He reached for her shoulders and turned her around. Pressing against her back, Maddie could feel his erection. He moved his hands over her breasts and down her stomach and over the lace of his panties. He slid them over her ass, between his body and her own. He gripped her hips and pulled her in even tighter, before running his hands down onto her thighs. One hand trailed across the middle, and he lightly grazed her crotch. She felt her body shudder. He was breathing a little heavily and stroking her through the fabric. He touched farther down, and Maddie knew he could feel that she was wet.

“Maddie,” he said softly.

She turned around and backed toward the bed, unfastening her bra. He followed and climbed above her as she lay back. With one knee on the bed, he tugged at the sides of her underwear and pulled them off. He stood and removed his own shorts.

Every inch of him was beautiful, as Maddie knew it would be. He returned to the bed and she reached down to grasp the length of his cock. She was impressed with his size, even for someone with a stocky lower body. She ran her hands along it, feeling his pulse beating through his shaft. Shifting under him, she positioned her hips just below her hands. He tore open a foil package and gave her the condom. She unrolled the thin filament over him.

“Sidney,” she whispered into his mouth as he kissed and she guided him inside her.

Immediately, she was breathless. He pressed slowly, and she felt every part of him filling her up. He pressed once, twice, spreading her wetness along his length. She hitched her hips up to make room for all of him. They got aligned, and he started moving.

Maddie was flat on her back, her legs stretched out and her feet hooked over his calves. She caressed his naked back, down onto his lower body. She pulled him into her on each stroke, showing him how she wanted him to move. He obliged willingly, reading the pressure of her hands on his ass. He kissed her neck, she shoulders, her mouth.

He stroked into her. She moved her hips in rhythm with his, giving him every inch inside her body. It wasn’t long before his breathing was getting more ragged. Maddie was feeling a little dizzy herself, that low, slow buzz was getting louder in her lower body.

“Sid,” she urged him on, feeling her wave of pleasure rising. He thrust harder, more quickly. She pressed down on him with all her might, and used her hands to twist his hips slightly. He shifted and she felt the tip of his penis brush her g-spot. A moan escaped her lips.

“Just like that,” she panted.

He did it again, and again. On the fourth stroke, Maddie felt thunder. On the fifth, lightning. She dug her fingers into his back to keep from moving. She probably screamed, but she couldn’t be sure. Sid kept going, rubbing over her soft spot and sending an earthquake through her body.

“Oh God,” he gasped. His body shuddered too, starting with his cock and rippling out through every muscle. He arched his back and pressed down hard, all his weight on Maddie, as she squeezed him inside her. After a few seconds, he dropped down onto her.

She put a hand through his hair and kissed his mouth. Sweat from his brow dampened her skin. He sighed, still catching his breath. Eventually he lifted his head.

“Now I’ve really got it bad for you,” he smiled.

She kissed his soft, ripe lips. Her heart was pounding against his chest.

“Me too. Me too.”

After a few minutes, Sid rolled off. Maddie removed her makeup and brushed her teeth. As she stood in the bathroom, Sid came to the door. He just looked at her, standing there naked, and shook his head. When she finished, she climbed into the bed, still naked. Sid had gone into the bathroom.

Wow, she thought in the quiet room.

Sid poked his head around the corner. “I have a surprise for you,” he smiled.

“I already saw that,” she teased. He was standing naked in the light spilling from the bathroom.

“Something else, something better.”

“Ha! Impossible,” she said.

He disappeared back into the hallway, and she heard the closet door open again. His voice came back to her.

“Remember by the pool, when you asked me if I slept with the Cup?” He came into the room, holding the Stanley Cup.

Maddie screamed. Just a short one, but it was loud. She gaped at the trophy. At Sid, holding it, stark naked. One side of it caught the light, shining like a mirror and throwing a reflection across the wall. Sid laid the Cup next to Maddie, then walked around and got in the other side of the bed.

“Holy shit.” That was the best she could do.

“I knew you would like it,” he said, arranging his body so Maddie could curl up with him. She rested her head on his arm and faced him. His leg slid over hers and his hand rested on her lower back. He kissed her, gently at first.

Maddie’s whole body stirred, remembering the treat it had just received. She instinctively moved closer to him. Her breasts pressed against his chest as their tongues touched and the kiss deeped. Then Maddie started laughing.

She craned her neck back to the other side of the bed. “I think the Cup feels like a third wheel!”

Sid just smiled at her. “Imagine what Max did on his night with the Cup.”
____