Page 18 of A Shot at Love
She’d gotten dressed way too early and had spent the next two hours questioning every conversation she and Frankie ever had. Totally fine, totally normal, she wasn’t nervous at all.
“Something like that,” Frankie answered and her voice was warm but shyer than Jules expected. Paired with the little half smile on her face and the way she was fidgeting with a silver signet ring on her index finger…Jules would almost guess Frankie was nervous too. “Should we head inside? I made a reservation just in case it was busy.”
Jules just smiled and motioned for Frankie to lead the way. “After you.”
The hostess sat them at a table near the back in a quiet cozy corner and the industrial style lighting paired with old fishing nets draped over the ceiling gave the space a unique atmosphere that was very fitting for where they actually were; just a short walk from one of the busiest harbours in North America and its bustling boardwalk.
The inside of the restaurant, with its dark wood paneling, soft melodic music, and close quarters had solidified what Jules had already assumed from the outside. The space was intimate, it was romantic and it felt like she and Frankie were the only two patrons who weren’t actually there on a date, though Jules wouldn’t have minded if they were.
“Maybe I should’ve looked at a few more reviews,” Frankie said, glancing around at the people seated nearby. “It looks like half of the people here are about to get engaged then go home after they scarf down their oysters to celebrate. Not exactly a casual spot for friends to grab a bite.”
“Hah, yeah…I uh, I didn’t really notice but I think you’re right,” Jules said, her heart dropping because that was the confirmation she hadn’t known she was looking for.
All Frankie wanted to do was share a meal with a friend, nothing more, and she had mistakenly taken them to a restaurant where people didn’t come to do that.
“Did you want to go somewhere else?” Frankie asked. Her eyes darted around in search of a server. “There was a pub up the road I think?”
Jules waved her off with a slight grin. It didn’t have to be a big thing and she was more than capable of eating anywhere regardless of what surrounded them. If anything, leaving after they’d already been seated to go somewhere else would almost make it more awkward.
“It’s fine, we’re already here and the food looks great so what’s a few oysters between friends, am I right?”
They agreed to stay and thirty minutes later, a seafood spread sat between them on the small table. Jules laughed at something Frankie said as she took a sip from a glass of very expensive wine but she didn’t care about the price.
She was enjoying herself and Frankie was dazzling. She was funny and witty, kind to the staff, and when she spoke about her job it was so clear to Jules just how much it truly mattered to her.
“I think if there had been a solid women’s league fifteen years ago, I would have never considered coaching at all and maybe I would have worked harder to get back into playing form after an injury,” Frankie said, reaching for her glass of water. “But I love what I do and the role I play on the team.”
“You played in college though, right?” Jules asked, wanting to know more, to know everything if Frankie was willing to confide in her.
Swallowing, Frankie nodded. “Mmm, I sure did, at The Ohio State. I got a scholarship and things were going pretty well until I broke my leg just before nationals in my senior year. To be honest it was devastating because playing women’s hockey in college, especially back then, was the closest thing to playing in the NHL. Breaking my leg meant missing my chance to win the Stanley Cup.”
”Oh my god,” Jules said, her voice dropping in disbelief. “Frankie, I’m so sorry. That’s awful.”
Frankie shrugged but she smiled, though it didn’t reach her eyes. “The injury kept me out of training camp for team Canada that year after making world championships the year before. By the time I came back from rehab, my college eligibility was over and Canada never came knocking again. My dream was always to make the 2018 team Canada Olympic roster but that didn’t happen and Canada lost the gold.”
“They definitely lost because you weren’t on the team.”
”Oh yeah, absolutely. I would have been their saviour.”
They broke into a fit of laughter but a moment later the mood turned serious again.
“But it’s okay,” Frankie said, swallowing and leaning back in her seat. Jules watched the way her throat dipped and the way she toyed with the ring on her finger again. “Everything happens for a reason, right? What about you though, did you ever want to play before…”
A sad smile slid onto her face and Jules looked down at her lap. “Before my parents died?” She pursed her lips and inhaled, long, deep. It had become easier over the years to open up about what happened, but it didn’t hurt any less. “Yeah, I did play. It was hard for my parents to ferry us both around but I loved it and then, well…”
She looked up to find Frankie studying her with a look of pure sympathy and concern on her face. Her features were soft and even in the low light Jules could still see the warmth in her eyes.
“I’m sorry. We don’t have to talk about it.”
Jules shook her head and bit her lip then laughed a little bit. “Considering where my brother ended up, I think it all worked out okay in the end. He was always destined for something special.”
Frankie reached across the table and put a hand on Jules' arm. She stroked the fabric of her sweater with her thumb. “We’re talking aboutyou. I know who your brother is, but I’m not having dinner with him tonight, am I?”
The tug, the current Jules had felt since the moment she met Frankie, buzzed. It flowed between them freely now that they were touching and it made her breath catch in her throat because no one had ever really wanted to know anything abouther.
She had always been a stepping stone to something more, to something bigger and better, but the way Frankie looked at her right now, her solid and reassuring presence, made Jules feel wanted in a way she couldn’t quite make sense of.
“If you could be doing anything right now, what would it be?” Frankie asked.
