Chapter 2

As Mario and Karen sat on the boards, they talked about old times.

"You looked good out there. Haven't lost anything in all these years" Mario said.

"Thanks. You ok?"

"Yeah, just haven't really played that hard, even for fun lately."

"Well you asked for it. All I did was obliged" she said.

Watching everybody skate around Mario noticed a pair of eyes looking directly at Karen. "I think you did what nobody has ever done to Sid" seeing her look towards his direction and noticing him look away, "you awed him."

"Um, I've heard interviews with him that he's said himself he's been awed by other players in the league while playing against them."

"Ok, let me rephrase it. You are the only girl to awe him. That takes talent my dear" Mario said pushing her slightly with his shoulder. "I wouldn't be surprised if he's a little taken by you too the way he keeps looking over here at you."

"You do remember how old I am, don't you? Tell him that and he'll forget all about me and what happened today once some pretty young girl walks by flirting with him."

"Sidney is not like other hockey players."

"Maybe that's because he's been living with you" she said laughing.

"Alright, try and prove me wrong then, but you won't succeed."

Laughing, "you haven't changed a bit Mario. How's Nathalie and the kids?"

"They are wonderful as always."

Karen saw the twinkle in his eyes that was always there when he talked about his family, something she wish she had kept a hold of in her life. "She is one lucky lady to have you."

"Thanks."

"Hey Karen, we need to get going. Its almost 5pm and we said we'd be back by now" Liz called to her friend.

"Ok, I'm coming." Jumping down off the boards, "Thanks for letting us have some ice time. I know I had fun today."

Mario got off the boards and Karen hugged her friend. "Anytime you're in town and there is ice down, you are more than welcome to it."

"I appreciate it. See you around Mario" waving goodbye and skating towards the opening.

"Karen, wait" Mario called and skated after her. "Do you guys have plans now?"

"Well, they do. They left the boyfriends at the hotel and promised to be back now so they could all go out for dinner."

"You're not going with them?"

"Nope. I am the lonely single and not one for being the 9th wheel. So I am going to chill for a bit and then meet them for drinks later. Why?"

"How about coming over for dinner? Nat will kill me if she knew you were in town and I didn't invite you over to see her. Besides, I think Lauren will be very surprised to see you too."

"I miss that little girl. I think babysitting her was the best thing I did in my life."

"Karen come on," Stacie yelled.

"Come on. You know you want to."

"Alright, you talked me into it. What time?"

"How about 6:30pm?"

"Ok. Can I bring anything?"

"Just yourself."

"See you later then" she said as she skated away.

At 6:30p, Karen pulled up to the Lemieux residence and got out of her car. She walked up to the door and rang the bell. She smiled when she heard Mario tell Nathalie to answer the door. When she did, she was very surprised at who was on the other side.

"Oh my goodness. Karen what are you doing here?" Nathalie said while pulling her into a hug.

"Well, I dropped by the arena and played some hockey with your husband there and he invited me to dinner. I guess he didn't tell you that you were getting a guest huh?"

Walking up behind them, "what kind of surprise would it have been if I had told you about it" Mario said. "Come on in and make yourself at home."

"Thanks. So where are the kids?" Karen asked hoping to see Lauren all grown up.

"Sidney took them out to get movies and pizza. They should be back soon."

"Karen, have you met Sidney yet?" Nathalie asked.

"Yeah, my friends and I played a little 4 on 4 with him and some of his teammates today." she smiled.

"I think she had too much fun today" Mario concluded.

Karen just smiled and he took that as a yes. They walked into the living room and sat down to chat for a bit while dinner was still in the oven. Nathalie had told Karen that they were waiting on Sidney to get back as well.

At 7p, dinner was ready to come out of the oven and at the same time Sidney and the kids came running into the house. As the kids went running past their dad and Karen in the living room to the kitchen, Sidney stopped in his tracks and locked eyes with Karen.

"What are you doing here?" Sidney asked

"Apparently Mario didn't tell anyone I was coming over to dinner." That got a sly smile from Mario as he took the pizza box from Sidney and went into the kitchen.

Smiling at her, "Well I'm glad he asked you to join us tonight."

"Me too" smiling back to him.

They were brought out of their staring contest when Mario came to get them for dinner. Sidney motioned for Karen to go first and when she passed him, she felt his hand on the small of her back, leading her to the dining room. As she walked towards the dining room, she peeked her head into the rec room and saw the kids heavily into their movie. She decided to wait until after dinner to see Lauren and to see if she would remember her.

During dinner, it was like walking down memory lane, only Karen wasn't sure if she wanted to go down that road once the conversation started.

They were all laughing at the story Mario had told about an incident at the arena with Karen and some friends during the 1992 playoffs.

"The way you tell it makes me and my friends look like the antichrist of Penguin fans." Turning to Sidney who was still laughing, "It wasn't as bad as he makes it seem, besides Kevin and Rick dared me and Steph to do it."

"There is an unwritten rule that the Captain of the team is not to have pranks pulled on him" Mario said sternly, only to laugh after.

"Is that true Sid? Or do we call some of the guys and ask them?" Karen asked.

"I try to stay out of the locker room pranks, but I have had some played on me. I think we need to have the unwritten rule published for the team to read." They all laughed again and when Karen smiled at Sidney's direction he couldn't help but smile back at her.

"yeah, you and Rick became a terror couple getting the guys back with what pranks they played on him."

Karen's smiled faded as soon as Mario said his name. Rick Tocchet was basically Karen's first real love and everything didn't end up happily ever after that she had hoped.

Nathalie hit Mario's arm and whispered "you shouldn't have brought him up."

"It's ok Nat. He was part of my life and part of the good ole days. I can't keep avoiding his name forever."

"No, just him" Mario said taking a sip of his wine.

"He told you?"

"I was on the road trip with the team when they played Phoenix and we talked after the game for a bit since we didn't leave town until the next morning."

"I was in town visiting a friend who had just moved there and we went to the Coyotes' game that night. I guess he saw me during the game and he came out to find me when we left because I turned down his offer to meet him by the locker room."

Sidney just sat back and listened to the story. He got a sense that she got hurt by Rick and wondered if she would be cautious to date another hockey player.

"All he wanted to do was talk Karen. Where was the harm in that?"

"Where was he when we needed to talk 12 years ago?"

"He said he was stupid for how he handled the whole situation with you."

"I was a situation? I thought I was his girlfriend, who pretty much put her life on hold to be with him. Not only when he was still playing here but after he got traded to LA. When he left here, he changed and not for the better around me" Karen explained.

"I know I didn't want to see him go, but that is what comes with playing professional sports."

"I understood that Mario. I didn't care where he played and he knew that, but somewhere down the road I was left standing on the curb. He shut down on me."

"What do you mean?" Nathalie asked

"I'll use you two as the example. You know how you would go to the games with him Nat and he would wait for you to get out of the car. You guys would walk beside each other into the building. Well, it started out like that, like he was proud that I was with him. Then as the days went by and turned into months it went from being beside him to being one step behind to 'come to the game if you want, I don't care'. I knew it was over from that point."

"He realized he was being an ass but you were gone when he got back."

"Where did you go?" Sidney chimed in.

"They had a three game road trip and while he was gone, I packed all my stuff and left him. I guess you could say I took the coward's way out, but I didn't want to continue living with a guy I fell head over heels in love with and he had obviously fallen out of love with me."

"Did you come back home?" Sidney asked.

"No, that's when I tried out for Team USA. I was already in LA and I had seen the advertisements for it. Tried out and made the team. That was in 1996. After that I learned that Rick got traded to Boston. He continued on and so did I."

"Well I still think you two should get together and talk about everything. Clear the air and maybe salvage the friendship that you guys started out as" Mario said almost fatherly.

Turning to Sidney, "does he make you guys do that when ya'll don't get along?" she asked.

"No, he usually ties us to the goal posts and shoots pucks at us until we give up and talk to each other" seeing her laugh to break the tension starting to build. "Either that or he lets us beat the crap out of each other until we feel better."

"Now see I believe the second one."

That smile of hers was silently killing Sidney and the intensity in his eyes were doing the same thing to Karen. Just neither was ready to admit it...yet.