Chapter 83

I was doing everything I could think of to take my mind of the fact that I still had not heard from Sidney. I had so many mixed feelings, I didn't really know what I was feeling anymore. Angry, sad, bitter, frustrated, worried, scared, you name it, I was feeling it.


On Friday morning I decided to call Sidney one last time before leaving for Harrisburg. "We're sorry, the customer you are trying to reach is not available." This broad was really starting to get on my nerves. I was so pissed off at him; it was not like him to completely drop off the face of the earth, but I still had a conscience. I didn't want to leave without him knowing where we would be and how he could get a hold of me. I did the only other thing I could think of to do.
"Hello?"
"Hi Trina, this is Bekah."
"Hello dear, how are you?"
"I'm okay - no actually that's not true, I'm a little worried about Sid."
"Why did something happen?"
"I'm not sure. I haven't been able to get in contact with him since he left and he hasn't called either. It's not like him not to be in contact with me. Have you heard from him?"
"No, not since he got to Rimouski. He called to let us know he got there okay and that he'd be here Sunday. You know how boys are Bekah, he's probably got into hanging out with his friends and hasn't thought to pick up the phone. I wouldn't worry, I'm sure he's fine," Trina said trying to sound convincing. She knew better than anyone that Sid was not the type of guy not to call, at least to check in. She knew how much her son was in love with Bekah, and the fact that he hadn't called her since he left concerned her. She tried to sound positive through the rest of the conversation.
"You really think so?"
"I know so."
"Thanks Trina, that makes me feel a little better. Can you give Sid a message when he gets there?"
"Sure."
"Tell him that the boys and I are staying at the Marriott downtown in Harrisburg this weekend, so if he can't get me on my cell, he can try there."
"Of course dear. Have fun and don't worry about Sid, he's fine."
"Thanks Trina. Bye."


As Trina hung up the phone, she began to feel a twinge of guilt and fear. Guilt because she had lied to Bekah, but what was she supposed to say? She had no explanation. That's where the fear came from. Did something happen to keep him from calling; or is he doing something he's going to regret?



As soon as Alex saw his best friend Tyler in the lobby of the hotel, all signs of my quiet, subdued child were gone. They were like cages animals being released into the wild for the first time; running around trying to explore everything. Tyler's parents Pete and Sarah and I just shook our heads. As I was about to tell them I still needed to check in, Max appeared from his trip to the men's room with Jake. (I swear there is not a public bathroom that this kid hasn't been in...twice!)
"Hey bijou, have you checked in yet?"
"No, not yet."
I noticed Pete and Sarah give each other that 'who the hell is that?' look and felt obligated to make introductions.
"Sarah, Pete, this is my friend Max. Max, this is Sarah and Pete Thompson, Tyler's parents."
"It's great to meet you Mr. Talbot," Pete said as he shook hands vigorously with Max. "You're a hell of a hockey player!"
Damn, so much for being low key!
"Thank you," Max said politely, "but I'm looking forward to the stellar performances we're going to see this weekend."
"I need to go check in so..."
"I'll come with you!" Sarah said eagerly as she linked her arm with mine and we headed for the front desk.
When we were out of earshot I got "Oh my god Bekah, Max Talbot? You really jump in with both feet don't you?"
"What are you talking about?"
"You go from practically being a nun to dating Max Talbot?"
"Dating!" I practically choked. "We're not dating. We're friends, that's all."
"Friends? From what I hear, Max doesn't have female friends unless they come with benefits."
"Sarah!"
"What? Are going to tell me that it's not true?"
"It's not in my case. Max and I have a mutual friend. They were supposed to come with me, but when plans changed at the last minute, Max offered to come along instead. End of story."
Sarah studied my face for any sign that I might be holding out on her, but when my facial expression didn't change, she conceded.
"Alright missy, I'll take your word for it...for now. So I guess the next logical question would be what mutual friend could you have with one of the Penguins?"
"May I help you down here Mame?"
Whew, saved!
"Yes, I'd like to check in please. The last name is Jones. I have two rooms reserved for the weekend."
"Of course Ms. Jones. I just need some id and a credit card."
I gave him the documentation he requested and then waited...and waited...and waited. When he finally came back, I had a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach.
"I'm sorry Ms. Jones but there was a problem with your reservation."
"What kind of problem?"
"It seems the request for the second room was made well after the initial reservation, and with the hockey tournament in town, we just don't have a room available."
"You're kidding me right? My son is in that hockey tournament. We need a room!" I said much louder than I intended.
"Oh, you have a room - one room; not two."
A million things went through my mind at that moment. How was I supposed to share a room with Max? What would the boys think? What would everyone else think? What would Sid think?
"One room? I guess there are worse things. Please tell me there are two beds at least?"
"Yes Mame. Two queens and if you need it, we can try and round up a cot."
"That won't be necessary, the room will be fine."
"Looks like there may be more to tell by the end of the weekend after all," Sarah laughed.
I completed the check in process and Sarah and I headed back to where we had left the men. There was now a crowd gathered around. As we approached, I was amazed by what I saw. Every person that had congregated around Max was mesmerized by him. Talking about hockey of course, men hung on his every word and the women gazed admiringly at his eyes and other exquisite assets. I smiled to myself and thought 'Sid was right. He can charm the pants of of anything - man, woman or animal.'
"He really is something isn't he," Sarah said.
"You have no idea," I said. "No idea."
I held my arm up and waved the room key through the air. Max smiled and nodded his understanding. He graciously excused himself and headed over.
"We should get together for dinner once we all get settled," Sarah suggested. "Pete and Max seem to have hit it off and I'm sure the boys wouldn't object."
"Sounds good to me, and I'm sure Mr. Social won't have a problem with it. We'll meet you down here at six?"
"What's happening at six?" Max asked sliding his arm around my shoulders.
"We're going to meet Pete and Sarah for dinner. Is that okay with you?"
"Absolutely."

When we were in the elevator I told Max about the revised sleeping arrangements.
"I'll sleep with both boys and you can have the other bed," I offered.
"Three of you in one bed? That's crazy. The boys can share and we can share," Max whispered with that cheeky little grin on his face.
"Not a chance superstar!"
"Superstar? Oooh, I like it! Okay, how 'bout I take one and you take one?" he proposed.
"Max, you don't have to, I can manage with the both of them."
"No way. I'll sleep with Alex, you take Jake."
"I wouldn't do that to you, Alex is very restless. You take Jake, I'll take Alex."
"Deal."

Dinner was...well, it was...comfortable. The conversation never hit a lull, even though Sarah and I spent most of the night listening to the guys talk hockey. We did manage to get some girl talk in there too. My recent memory could not provoke any thoughts of a time I felt more comfortable or had so much fun. It was nice to be out in public without worrying about who was going to see us or what was going to be said. Our hysterical laughter often elicited stares from other patrons of the restaurant, but none of us cared. A few people wandered over to our table and asked Max for autographs and he handled it with ease, apologizing to us for the inconvenience after the signature seekers had left. At nine o'clock we decided to call it a night since the boy's first game was at seven the next morning.

When we were back in the room, it took the boys all of five minutes to fall asleep, leaving Max and I to our own devices. He found a movie on TV and we settled in for the night. Me in my bed, and he in his, the boys between us.
Half way through the movie (which was so horrible I can't even remember the name) I looked over at Max and found him laying on his side, peering over Jake's sleeping form, staring at me. I rolled up onto my side, and looking over Alex's sleeping body, returned Max's glare. We didn't speak; just drank in what our eyes were seeing, occasionally exchanging smiles and winks. I don't know when, but at some point we both fell asleep and were awakened by the screeching of the alarm clock.

The tournament was long and physically draining for the boys, but in the end, the Midget Penguins (Alex's team by pure coincidence) were champions of western Pennsylvania and Alex was the tournament MVP, leading all players with 15 goals and 8assists in 10 games, credited all to Max for helping him with his shot of course! It was a long four hour drive home and I don't know who was more hyper, Alex or Max!

We rolled in the front door at 8pm and was immediately greeted by the phone ringing. I didn't rush to get to it, opting to make sure the boys got in the bath right away. Max finished carrying the bags and hockey equipment in and we both flopped on the couch and burst out laughing at the same time. No reason why; it's just something we found happening alot. We'd look at each other and just laugh. When all was calm again, Max's face got serious.
"Why are you looking at me that way?" I asked.
"I don't know, because I can't stop thinking about how much fun this weekend was. Spending that time with you and the boys was amazing. Thank you for letting me be a part of it Bekah."
"Thank you for coming with me. I couldn't even imagine how I would have coped without you there."
For the first time, there was a bit of awkwardness between us, like neither of us knew what to do next. Max was leaning towards me, just about to say something when the phone rang again.
Saved by the bell!
"Hello?"
"Beks, thank god! What the hell's going on with your phone, I've been trying to call you for two days?"
"Sidney?"