Free Their New Beginning (Oh Captain, My Captain #5) by Lindsay Paige, Mary Smith, Rebecca Cartee Page A

best.” He reaches into the cooler with his eyes closed.
    “Ah, a man of danger. I like that in a guy.”
    He laughs, and my inside flip at his smile. “Picking a sandwich at random is pretty dangerous.” He takes a bite, and I know instantly what’s wrong. “Ugh, mayo. Maybe we should switch?”
    It’s my turn to giggle, and I hand him mine because I know roast beef is his favorite. “So, Jax, what do you do for a living?” I hoping he’ll play along.
    “I play the rough and dangerous,” he winks, “game of hockey. You?”
    “Mmm,” I moan seductively at him. “More danger, I like that. I was a nurse, but I recently made a career change and I’m a personal assistant and accountant for some hockey player.” I wave my hand like it isn’t a big deal.
    “So, Avery, aside from liking mayo, what else do you like?” He continues to inhale his sandwich.
    “Well, I love Broadway musicals and hope one day to go to New York City and actually see one, but for now, I settle for the traveling shows. What about you? Hobbies?”
    “I like to gamble here and there,” he smirks. “I’m pretty boring as far as hobbies go, aren’t I?”
    I fake gasp at him. “I don’t know because this is our first date.” I try to keep a straight face, but fail. “I’m sure you’re not boring at all. You sound like a busy guy.” I look down at my watch, remembering he can’t hang out with me too long. “Our short lived date is over. Someone needs to go watch films with the coaches.”
    He pops in the last bit of food into this mouth and washes it down with a bottle of water. “Thanks, Avery.” The corners of his mouth twitch. “Are you going to call me for a second date?”
    I hiss through my teeth, trying to act unsure as I shake my head. “I’m not sure. I mean, you seem a bit pushy, but I might.” I wink at him, grab the cooler, and head down from the stands.

Chapter Eleven
    Jax
     
    Avery left me smiling. I wasn’t expecting her to show up, but I’m glad she did. Once things wrap up with work, I call Ashton on my way home.
    “Hey, how are things going?” he answers.
    “They’re going. We had lunch together; she recreated our first date. Things felt good for a bit.”
    “Good.”
    “Well, believe it or not, I didn’t call to talk about me. How are things with you and Lexie? I’m about to send Reed another package soon, by the way.”
    I can hear the smile in his voice. “We’re good, Jax. Real good. Reed’ll be excited. He’s probably going to call you tonight. He told Brooke this morning that he missed his Uncle Jax. Poor kid doesn’t know what he’s talking about.”
    I laugh. “I’ll definitely have to send him something extra then. Maybe he wants to switch from the piano to the drums? Brooke will love that.” Brooke is Reed’s mom and one of my good friends as well. One very drunken night between those two gave them Reed. They’ve always been friends, and they didn’t hesitate to find a way to raise their boy together.
    Ashton laughs. “Don’t do that. She’ll blame it on me somehow, I’m sure.”
    “I’ll think about it. All right, I’m at the house. I’m going to go relax for the rest of the evening.”
    We hang up, and I wonder where Avery is. Her car isn’t in the driveway. She’s probably running errands or gone to see her sister or maybe Jasmine. I ignore the nagging thought in the back of my mind that she could be out with someone else. Maybe I should just take a nap. I could possibly get one in before Avery gets back from wherever she is doing God knows what. The temptation of my own bed, not the one in the guest bedroom, has me debating where I should sleep for the next hour.
    I push open the door to our bedroom, my eyes on the bed like it’s chocolate I really crave, but shouldn’t have before dinner. Fuck it. It’s my bed in my room in my house. I can sleep wherever the hell I want. No one ever really uses the guest bedrooms, so the beds aren’t that great. My bed,