XUnFoRgEtTaBlEbAbEX- I loved all your reviews. Thank you so much they were so much fun to read. I love long reviews. And I really enjoy when people tell me their favorite lines. I work so hard to throw in comedy, sometimes I think people didn't catch what I meant to be funny, so your reviews were very refreshing. Thanks so much. You seem awesome and I can't wait to read more reviews from you.
Strangexbutxtrue- Sorry to hear about your ipod, that does suck. I am glad you like drunk Kylah. I thought it made her seem more her age.
Prettypinkcheer5- I had a trip as well so it worked out great. I've never a lot of drunken experience, but have seen a lot of drunks. LOL
Emador- Shhhh! I explained the guys to you. Buzzy is such a doll. I wonder if he would like to have an Irish girl from Boston who went to BU?
Meadow567- Thanks. Drunk Kylah seems to be popular….almost as fun as drunk Silky! LOL
Flowersc781- Bah went with Craig because Bah attended UMD, so it was like he wanted to go back and see the tourney. I don't know if there is Bah therapy, but if there is…I want Rizzo therapy! LOL
Lia06- I hope you got more yarn. I've been slacking off for a few days.
January, 1980 Minneapolis
Friday, 6:00 PM
I was making a pot of coffee to warm up after coming in from practice. I had stayed and finished up a press release. I felt like I was talking in circles to the media. No Herb had not made a decision on the final player to be cut, the Kremlin still insisted on boycotting our Olympics, and I didn't know how much Janaszak would be playing in the Olympics.
There was a knock at the door.
"Who is it?" I yelled.
"It's me, open the door." Craig called back.
I went to open the door. Craig was on the other side, smiling like a fox in the henhouse.
"What happened to you? You look like Verchota after 15 minutes in the bathroom with one of those strippers from Christmas." I said.
"Pack your bags." Craig said walking in, kissing my cheek as he passed by.
"Last time you said that, I ended up in Chicago hiding from a ghost." I shut the door. "Where are we going and why?"
"Well I know you've been under stress lately from all sides because of the Soviet boycott. And I know you're more worried about who Herb is going to cut than you let on." Craig said. "And I would love to have a few days alone with you, so I planned a little trip."
"Where we going now? Point Pleasant in West Virginia to look for the Mothman?" I giggled.
"No, a little closer to home. This weekend is just about relaxing and having fun." Craig said.
"So where we going? What do I need to pack?" I asked.
"I rented us a cabin along Lake Minnetonka." Craig said. "Just the two of us for the weekend."
"That sounds wonderful. Give me a few minutes to pack." I said and ran into my room.
"Be sure you pack a swimsuit…..the cabin I booked has a hot tub." Craig called in.
I hurried to throw things into a bag. I had to dig in a bottom drawer to find a swimsuit. Craig was always doing such sweet things for me. Who walks in on any given Friday and announces a trip?
"Okay, as soon as I get one of the boys to check in on Smokey, I'll be ready to go. What is it with you and popping these trips on me?" I asked.
"I like surprising you." Craig said. "My bag is already in the car. It's only a short drive."
I grabbed my spare key. "Okay we can go. I packed warm clothes."
Craig and I started down the hall. For some reason Verchota was pounding on the door to his room. I shook my head, wondering what was going on now.
"Phil, what's going on?" I asked.
"Rammer locked me out of my room." Verchota said.
"What did you do to him?" I asked.
"I started reciting the Gettysburg Address." Phil shrugged.
"Just have Pav let you in when he gets back." Craig said.
"I can't. Pavelich already left for the weekend to go hunting." Verchota said.
"Well, be nice to Ramsey from now on. He's a great guy, and if I had a daughter, he's the kind I'd want her to date." I said.
"All mom's want their kids to date virgin dorks….less to worry about." Verchota chuckled.
I rolled my eyes. "We're headed out for the weekend. Behave, no strippers, no hookers and no groupies!"
"Boy you take all the fun out of a weekend." Verchota whined and went back to pounding on the door.
Craig and I walked further down the hall to Rizzo's room. I knocked on the door. Rizzo opened the door. Inside Silk was getting a start on his drinking and OC seemed to be joining him.
"Hey Rizzo, Craig and I are going away for the weekend, would you look in on Smokey for me?" I asked.
"Sure, he's not a problem." Rizzo smiled.
I handed him my spare key. "Make sure he has food and water. If he gets sick, take him to a vet and I'll pay anything he needs."
"We gonna do CPR on a cat?" OC asked. He was definitely drunk.
"We'd get fur in our mouths." Silk told him. Silk was his usual drunk.
"Wouldn't be the first time you got fur in your mouth from a pussy." OC snickered.
"But Smokey is a boy cat!" Silk insisted.
"You're a jackass." OC told him.
Rizzo shook his head. "Sorry about them. They're kinda in a game to one-up each other. Have been all day for whatever reason."
Craig was rolling his eyes. I shrugged. "Just keep them out of my underwear drawer." I said.
"We don't want your panties. We just want what's in them." Silk said.
"Silky, you idiot. Coach Craig is standing right there." OC threw a pillow at Silk.
"We're gonna go." Craig said. "Sober them up before they hurt themselves."
Rizzo nodded and started to shut the door. "Don't be too rough with her coach. She's little; you might split her in half." Silk yelled.
I shook my head and Craig led me towards the door.
Lake Minnetonka
7:30PM
We walked into the cabin Craig had reserved for us. It was right on the lake that had patches of ice on it. Once inside the door, we looked around at the cabin. There was a small kitchen and bathroom. In the corner was a king sized bed. One the stand next to the bed was a large arrangement of fresh red roses. In the other corner was a large hot tub. On the opposite was a large fireplace; and in front of it was a bear skin rug. Next to the large plush couch was a bucket with champagne on ice.
"Craig…what's going on?" I was a little confused.
"I requested a cabin with a hot tub, and told them I wanted the best cabin they had……I didn't realize they'd give us the honeymoon cabin." Craig said.
"Is that what this is?" I asked. "It's a beautiful cabin. I guess not too many people are honeymooning in Minnesota in January."
"We can get a different one if you want. I know this looks like a seduction set-up, but I assure you it's an honest mistake." Craig said.
"I know it was, and I know you're not going to do try anything." I smiled.
"Don't put words in my mouth." Craig winked.
I chuckled. "Point is, this is a nice cabin and I don't want to get a new cabin."
"Then we should unpack." Craig said and dragged our bags farther into the cabin.
"Would you build a fire in the fireplace? There is kindling in a box." I said.
Craig turned and looked at me. "Sure, I don't mind building a fire. I was going to build one, but thought you'd think I was trying to get you in bed."
I walked over and hugged Craig. "Stop worrying about upsetting me. I trust you. We're in a nice romantic setting so let's just enjoy it and not worry about it."
Craig smiled and kissed me.
8:00PM
Craig had a roaring fire built in the fireplace. We were sitting on the couch in front of the fire, drinking some of the champagne that had been in the bucket. The fire was warm and was the only light in the room.
"This is good champagne to be complimentary." Craig said.
"Yeah, I like the card. 'Congratulations to the New Mr. and Mrs. Patrick!'." I giggled.
"I still can't believe I accidentally booked us in the honeymoon cabin." Craig laughed.
"So have you been thinking much about the Olympics?" I asked.
"Everyday." Craig said. "Every time I am on the ice with the boys. Every time Herb calls a meeting. Every time you send out a new press release."
"What do you think is going to happen there?" I asked.
"I don't know. I think our chances are better now that the eastern block teams are out of it. The team is coming together very well, I think we have a lot of potential." Craig said.
"And after the Olympics?" I asked.
"I think lots of the boys are going to get called to the NHL." Craig said.
I looked over at Craig. "That's not what I meant."
Craig frowned. "What do you mean then?"
"Craig, when the Olympics are over you'll be going home to Detroit and continuing your hockey career. And I'll be going back to Qualla." I said.
Craig looked down at his glass. "I hadn't thought about it. I've been working so hard to get the boys ready for Lake Placid. I never really stopped to think that afterwards you and I have separate lives."
"It's just been on my mind lately." I said.
"I don't know, Kylah. Detroit and North Carolina aren't so far by plane. We'll see each other and stuff." Craig said. "I mean you're not my Olympic fling or anything like that."
"I know that." I said.
"Kylah, I'm not going to throw you away when the Games are over. I care too much about you for that." Craig said. "Quit worrying about it now. Let's just live in the present."
"Sounds good." I said and kissed Craig. "So about that hot tub?"
"Wanna get in after we finish the champagne?" Craig asked.
"I think you just want to get me drunk first and then half-naked and wet!" I giggled.
"Not drunk, but can't deny the second part of that." Craig smirked.
I giggled. "Refill my glass."
10:00PM
I had gone into the bathroom to change into my swimsuit for the sake of modesty. Craig had changed earlier and was already lounging in the hot tub. I neatly folded my clothes and laid them in a pile on the bench in the bathroom, grabbed an extra towel and stepped out. I felt a little dizzy, having drunk more champagne than usual.
I walked over to the hot tub, where Craig had his head back, eyes clothes and was enjoying the jets. He opened his eyes and smiled at me.
"I like that better than your tight sweaters." He winked.
"Thanks…I think." I said and climbed into the tub.
The water was warm. We still had the fire roaring in the fireplace. It was our only light, and I liked it that way. I moved over and curled against Craig.
"I am so happy you agreed to come here. This is nice, relaxing, none of the boys to interrupt us, peace and quiet." Craig said. "Have I mentioned how good you look in that swimsuit?"
"Craig!" I giggled.
"You're beautiful, really you are. I feel very lucky to be with you." Craig said. "That's not flattery. I really mean it."
"Thank you. I am really glad I am here with you too." I told him. "What gave you the idea to do this?"
"Well I knew you needed a break from everything. And I had been toying with the idea of taking another weekend trip for awhile. I was walking out of the shopping center last week when I saw a rack of travel brochures. One for this place was among local attractions." Craig explained.
"For a second I was wondering if this was a place Verchota told you about because he brought girls out here." I giggled.
"No, but I wouldn't be surprised if he did." Craig chuckled.
"So what are your plans for tomorrow? What is there to do up here?" I asked.
"I didn't plan anything. I figured we'd just see what happens. It's really cold outside. But I thought tomorrow night we'd go to the park lodge for dinner." Craig said.
"That sounds nice." I said.
"The brochure advertises that the lodge restaurant serves venison." Craig said.
"That is like Buzz, Baker, Ramsey and Pavelich's dream come true….I think Janny is starting to hunt too." I said.
"Why are we out here alone, in a hot tub and still talking about the boys?" Craig laughed.
"I don't know…they're funny conversation sometimes." I said.
"I think there are much more interesting things we could be doing with our time." Craig smirked and leaned over to kiss me.
"Aren't you full of energy tonight?" I chuckled when he pulled back.
"I can't help it. Have you seen what you're wearing?" Craig winked and leaned in again.
12:30AM
I had thrown the pillows from the couch onto the bearskin rug and was lying down in front of the fireplace. Craig was taking a shower. I had dressed for bed after getting out of the hot tub.
I heard the water in the shower shut off and Craig moving about the bathroom. I felt warm and content in front of the fire. I had really begun to unwind since Craig and I walked through the cabin door earlier.
Craig walked out of the bathroom. "Kylah, what are you doing? The bed is over here."
"I know that. I just wanted to lay here awhile. This bearskin rug is so soft and the fire is nice. Why don't you come join me?" I asked. I looked over Craig, he was dressed for bed.
"You're going to be the death of me." Craig smiled, and walked over to where I was in front of the fireplace.
Craig lay down next to me and wrapped his arms around me. His skin was ice cold.
I flinched away. "You're cold to the touch."
"Sorry about that. My shower was pretty cold…after being in the hot tub with you I needed it." Craig shrugged.
I smiled, thinking of how nice being in the hot tub with Craig was. I snuggled back into Craig's arms.
"This was a wonderful idea. I can't thank you enough." I told him.
"You don't have to; I'm enjoying every minute." Craig said and chuckled. "Champagne, firelight, a hot tub and now lying on a bearskin rug…..this is going to kill me you know that, right?"
"I like to think I'm worth it." I said.
"Yes you are….and what a way to go." Craig laughed. "These past few months with you have really been great."
"They have been good times. You've helped me grow in so many ways." I told him.
Craig leaned up and looked down at me. I smiled up at him. Craig looked strange for a moment then leaned down and kissed my cheek. He then lay back down behind me.
I yawned. "If I fall asleep here, just carry me to bed."
"What a loaded statement." Craig said. I could tell he was smiling.
"In the past few hours you have gotten so flirty." I said.
"What can I say? You bring it out in me." Craig sighed dramatically.
I chuckled and snuggled back against Craig and closed my eyes. I felt relaxed. For a moment at least, all the stress and problems were back at the U and I was free to just enjoy the weekend with my boyfriend.