First Last Kiss: A Shots on Goal Spinoff Standalone Romantic Comedy Read online

  First Last Kiss

  A Shots on Goal Spinoff Standalone Romantic Comedy

  Kristen Hope Mazzola

  Contents

  Foreword

  The New York Otters Logo

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Did you enjoy what you just read?

  Acknowledgments

  About the Author

  Also by Kristen Hope Mazzola

  Want more hockey hunks?

  Copyright

  First Last Kiss

  Copyright © 2019 Kristen Hope Mazzola

  Published by Kristen Hope Mazzola

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form, including electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return it to the seller and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the author’s work.

  Cover Design: Kristen Hope Mazzola

  Editing by:

  C. Marie: [email protected]

  Created with Vellum

  Foreword

  Dear Reader,

  With a New Year come new possibilities and a blank slate! What a better way to ring it in than with stories to help create good cheer. So, whether it’s a happy ending or happy beginning, we got you covered! These stories will have you falling in love, grinning ear to ear as characters count down to a new year! Join us on this adventure and remember, this is the first page of your new year. Make it shine bright! May your glass of champagne never be empty and the clock strike midnight while kissing the one you love!

  Always, Your Authors!

  Find All of the New Year’s Eve Kisses Collaboration Books Here: http://bit.ly/2QWDITa

  Kiss Me Like You Miss Me by Felicia Fox

  A Kiss to Remember by Geri Glenn

  First Last Kiss by Kristen Hope Mazzola

  Covered by a Kiss by Lisa B. Kamps

  Kissing Gabe by Mayra Statham

  Kiss My Glass by Melanie Codina

  Just a Kiss by Shantel Tessier

  31 Kisses by Sonya Jesus

  B.A.K.E. Belladonna’s Arousing Kissing Extravaganza by Teresa Crumpton

  Lost in His Kiss by Tracie Douglas

  Kissing the Bad Boy by Winter Travers

  The New York Otters Logo

  “I believe that everything happens for a reason. People change so that you can learn to let go, things go wrong so that you appreciate them when they're right, you believe lies so you eventually learn to trust no one but yourself, and sometimes good things fall apart so better things can fall together.”

  ― Marilyn Monroe

  Chapter 1

  Gret

  “What in the ever-loving fuck was that? You trip and miss that wide-open shot and then not even ten minutes later you’re assisting the opposing team in the game-winning goal? You have got to be kidding me.” Gavin Hayes was yelling within an inch of my face as his dark eyes smoldered and steam bellowed from his nose.

  Standing in the middle of the locker room after a crushing loss was hard enough. Knowing that defeat was all my fault was crippling. Having my coach chew me out in front of the entire team was soul crushing at best.

  “Nerves got the better of me,” I tried to explain.

  “Gret, I just don’t know what to do with your sorry ass right now.” He rubbed a hand over his face as he sighed. “Hit the fucking showers.”

  Gavin Hayes wasn’t just the coach of the New York Otters or one of the most talented former players of the National Hockey League—he was my father—fact that made it even more humiliating to be one of the worst players on my team. It wasn’t that I was god-awful or anything, I definitely had my moments of victory, they were just fewer and farther between that they should have been. I was the legacy of greatness—the son of Gavin Hayes, the nephew of Braydon Cox, the grandson of Gideon Hayes and Reggie Cox—all incredible Otters players.

  It wasn’t a secret that most of the guys on the team didn’t think that I deserved the Otter logo on my chest. And they definitely didn’t think I should have a starting position—most of the time I agreed with them. I knew that I was a decent player but decent doesn’t get you drafted to one of the best teams in the NHL. My connections were my saving grace—a fact that wasn’t lost on me for even a second.

  Defeat hung heavy in the air and all eyes were locked on me. Frustrated glances and awful stares attacked me as I slunk away from all of the guys that I had just let down.

  Standing in the shower, I tormented myself with the events of the game that hadn’t ended more than an hour before. The way I let the other players get in my head. The fact that I let my ankle relax a little too much on a turn making me falter with the puck. The worst was trying to get the puck to my teammate and overshooting it by a damn mile right into enemy territory and watching it fly right into the back of our net. Ridgeway, our goalie, didn’t even have time to respond. It all happened too fast. My head was still spinning from it all.

  I didn’t want to see my father again. Disappointing him was the worst thing in the world. Why couldn’t I have just become an investment banker like my brother? Or gone to medical school like my sister?

  Shaking off my disheartened nerves and self-doubt, I changed and grabbed my stuff out of my locker.

  “You know I am hard on you because you’re better than you give yourself credit for,” my father’s low voice came from behind me.

  Looking over my shoulder, I saw the kindest eyes that my old man could muster.

  “Yeah, pop. I know. I just don’t like letting everyone down.”

  “Don’t forget about the Christmas party tomorrow night at our place. Your mom will have your head if you no-show.”

  “Wouldn’t dream of it. No one wants to rile up the pit bull that is hiding under that sweet smile that mom has.”

  “Are you bringing Ridgeway again?” my old man teased as the goalie strode over to us.

  “Come on, Hayes, you know I’m the best date this team has to offer,” Ridgeway laughed while toweling off his wet hair.

  “Not this time, Gret. You’re not getting off that easy again.”

  “Fine,” I huffed with a forced eye roll.

  My mother lived for throwing parties and missing them wasn’t an option. Going alone wasn’t either. Mustering up a date at the last minute was going to be the hardest task for me. Between all of the traveling and practices, dating was never really in the cards.

  “Your mother will be so happy.” My old man was beaming as I tried to smile back. Putting a sympathetic hand on my shoulder, my dad sighed. “Next game will be better. See you tomorrow. Get some food in you and rest. It’ll do the body good.”

  “Later, pop.”

  * * *

  After games, mos
t of the guys went out together. Usually I joined them but there was no way in hell I wanted to be around anyone after my piss-poor display on the ice.

  Taking a seat at my usual bar, I ordered a cheeseburger and a manhattan.

  Like father, like son.

  One thing I definitely inherited from my dad was his taste for good, expensive bourbon.

  “Surprised to see you show your face,” Jackie harassed with a little giggle.

  I glanced up at the TV over my usual bartender’s head that was mocking me with the highlight reel on Sports Center.

  “Can you just turn that damn thing off?” I scoffed with a forced sigh while my hands flew in the air.

  Jackie popped out her hip, pointing a finger at me. “You made your bed, Hayes. Now just lie in it. It’s better you deal with it now than beat yourself up for the next week like you usually do.”

  She was an Otters fan through and through and I loved her for all of the shit she gave me. Even though it stung, she was right and I needed to take my licks.

  “Tonight we have a very special surprise for you. Please welcome Etta James to the stage.” Turning around, I saw the bar manager holster the mic and start clapping.

  “Etta James?” I squinted over at Jackie.

  She shrugged. “She’s new and yes, that is her real name.”

  “Her parents had high hopes for her,” I remarked, cutting into my burger to make sure it was cooked to the perfect medium rare.

  “You’re one to talk, Gret,” Jackie remarked over her shoulder as she ambled down the bar to help another patron.

  Chapter 2

  Etta

  Right as I started singing the last song of my set my eyes locked with the most handsome, smiling face I could ever hope to see at a table right in front of the stage.

  Lee Lybrink could make my knees go weak with one smirk, even after all of this time. I couldn’t believe that we had been together for five years already. Seeing him sitting there, I felt butterflies crashing in the pit of my stomach as I sang A Sunday Kind Of Love right to him.

  “Thank you.” I waved to the applauding bar flies. “I’ll be back after a quick break.”

  Holding my long evening dress in one hand with my knock-off designer purse slung over my shoulder, I gripped the rail of the stairs as tightly as I could. Falling down those steps was easy to do in the heels I had on and doing a swan dive in front of a crowded bar was extremely low on my priority list.

  Been there. Done that.

  “To what do I owe this pleasant surprise?” I asked as I leaned down to kiss Lee’s freshly shaved cheek.

  “Can’t a guy leave work early to see his girl perform?” He held out his hand. “Sit, I have some news.”

  “Oh really?” I took the seat across from him before ordering a glass of brandy neat.

  Lee looked downright lickable in his overpriced suit. The long nights at his law firm didn’t damper the twinkle in his eye or his radiating smile.

  “I was offered a new position today with the firm,” he explained.

  I sat up straighter as excitement started to take over. “That’s amazing, babe. Congratulations.”

  We raised our glasses to cheers his new-found success.

  “Thanks…” Lee trailed off as he smoothed out the lapels. His face twisted a bit as he swallowed hard. “It’s in San Francisco, though.” He started to thumb at the napkin under his seven and seven—he always got fidgety when he was nervous.

  “When do you have to leave?” My heart started sinking. We had already moved to New York from Denver for his job. I had just started to get used to the bustling city after months of hating it. Now we were being whisked away again.

  “I’m leaving on the red eye in a few hours.” His eyes locked on the table.

  “I can pack up the apartment this weekend and meet you out there next week.” My mind started racing with all of the gigs I was going to have to cancel and arrangements that had to be made.

  Lee is worth it. I reminded myself again and again. I loved him unconditionally and I knew from the start of our relationship that I was going to have to make sacrifices for his career. But how many more of them was I going to have to make? I had already dropped out of the University of Colorado, had taken joke gigs over the years, put my dreams of making it big as a singer on hold—indefinitely.

  “Etta, that’s not it. You’re not coming with me,” he muttered before chugging down the rest of his cocktail.

  “Excuse me? What in the hell does that mean?” There was no way in fucking hell that he was doing this to me.

  “It’s not our apartment, it belongs to the firm,” Lee started to explain, “My assistant already has my replacement taking over the flat. All of your stuff is going to be shipped back home to your mom’s place. I have an overnight bag here for you and I need your keys. The new tenants are going to be moving in on Monday. This is going to make or break my career and I have to be completely focused on that. I can’t be worried about a relationship right now.”

  “I can’t believe you’re going to break up with me after everything we have been through. Wait not even breakup with me, leave me homeless in a city I never wanted to move to in the first place on top of all of this bullshit.” I threw my hands in the air as I fought back the tears that were swelling in my eyes.

  “Look, you’re twenty-two. I’m almost thirty. I can’t be with some kid that is a joke bar singer forever. We were young and having a good time in college. This should have never gotten as far as it did.” The callousness of his tone shot daggers into me.

  “I’m a joke?” the yell shot out of me as I scrambled to my feet.

  Reaching out a hand, Lee tried to get me to sit again. “Etta, please. Don’t make a scene. You must have seen this coming.”

  “No. I love you. But apparently I am just garbage that you can throw away. A dirty old rag that you’re finished with, just tossed aside.” Fumbling for my keyring, I pulled the gold key to my former home off, setting it on the table in front of him.

  “This is going to be the best for both of us. Now you can finally follow your dreams.” I hated how relieved he looked. I hated everything that was happening.

  Grabbing the water glass in front of him, I threw the contents into his face. “You can go fuck yourself. Have a nice life, dickface.”

  He leapt to his feet, yelling after me as I rushed to the lady’s room. “Etta! This is so typical of you. Drama queen!”

  What a fucking asshat.

  I locked the tiny washroom door and leaned up against it.

  Just breathe.

  I was hysterical and only had ten minutes before I was supposed to get back up on that damn stage.

  In my mind, Lee Lybrink was the end all be all. How fucking stupid could I have been?

  I had never felt so naïve in my entire life.

  Grasping the porcelain sink, I stared at myself in the mirror trying to think of what my mom would say if she was there.

  “Etta?” My mom called through my cracked bedroom door.

  “Go away,” I sobbed into my tear-soaked pillow.

  Walking in, she sank onto the foot of my bed. “Honey, you know that I can’t do that. Talk to me.”

  “There’s nothing to talk about.” I scooted further away from her.

  “Etta, what’s got you so upset?”

  “Nothing!” I whined, tossing a throw pillow over my shoulder at her.

  Laughing, she put her hand on my leg. “Now I am really not going anywhere. Spill.”

  Sitting up, I huffed, “Fine. Julius broke up with me in front of the entire school in the cafeteria today.”

  My mother looked relieved as she mustered an understanding smile. “If you have to beg someone to be in your life then they don’t belong there.”

  “My life is over. I can never show my face at that school again. You have to homeschool me.”

  “Don’t be overly dramatic, Etta. You’re fourteen for crying out loud. Men will come and go in your life. Just re
member one bad chapter doesn’t mean the story is over.”

  “Can’t you just be a normal mom and say that he’s a jerk for doing it? I can’t stand the canned quotes of wisdom.”

  “Fine. He is a jerk. He’s a fucking good-for-nothing piece of donkey-shit.” She pursed her lips in a tightknit grin before we both burst out laughing.

  “Thanks,” I mumbled. “Sorry I threw a pillow at you.”

  She shrugged. “At least it was soft. Now let’s go eat our weight in chocolate ice cream and watch Dirty Dancing.”

  “You’re better than this,” I reassured myself. Grabbing some toilet paper, I cleaned up the eyeliner that was running under my eyes, reapplied my lipstick and mascara, and took a couple of deep breaths.

  Show time.

  I peeked out of the bathroom door. Lee had already made an exit, leaving my overnight bag on the floor next to the door.

  Fucking dickbag.

  Marching back on stage, I threw my purse and duffle bag onto the barstool behind me and grabbed the mic.

  “Well folks, I just got dumped,” a sinister snicker soared from my throat as the words sank into my bones. Raising my glass of water high in the air, I toasted, “Here’s to scumbag lawyers and the girls who are stupid enough to fall in love with them.”