Nora Mallone had never been one to cause trouble. When she moved to downtown Toronto at age eighteen, she had plans to attend university and make a life for herself alongside her best friend. But all of it went down the drain when she lost her paren...
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austonmatthews: starting the year off strong with the boys in front of the best fans in the world 🍁 good night toronto tagged: mapleleafs
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Comments:
marner_93: yesssirr
mapleleafs: let's go leafs nation! 🍁🍁🍁
bunting27: papiiiiiiii
williamnylander: king of the castle
random: im in love with you
justinbieber: keep lighting it up out there big boy ↳austonmatthews: see you at the next one brother 🤝
random: check your dms 🥰
random: next time pass the fucking puck
random: this guy fucks
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𝖠𝗎𝗌𝗍𝗈𝗇
By the time he and the boys arrived at the Castle, Auston already felt drunk—and he hadn't yet taken a sip of alcohol. There was nothing better than playing that first game of the season in front of the Toronto crowd. Scoring two goals made it even sweeter.
The whole bar roared when the door swung open and Auston stepped inside, adjusting his suit jacket with a smile. "First round is on me," Mitch announced as he led the group inside.
All the better, Auston thought. It meant he wouldn't have to talk to the bartender, who definitely still hated his ass since he broke a table at the end of last season. It didn't help that she was hot as hell, since that made talking to her awkward for Auston on its own. He didn't even know her name, though he supposed it didn't matter now.
As he headed towards the team's reserved section, several other patrons stopped him to congratulate the team, offer a handshake, or snap a drunken selfie. Auston at least appreciated that the Castle almost never allowed non-celebrities past the door, so there was no line of fans hoping to get autographs or photos with anyone.
Chris Bassit, a pitcher from the Blue Jays, approached the Leafs section once Auston sat down. "Nice work out there, Tone," he shouted over the music, extending a hand to Auston, who accepted it gratefully. "Hell of a fucking shot on that last one," Chris added.
Auston smiled and shrugged. "You're too kind," he replied.
Mitch arrived to the couch empty-handed, but he was followed closely by the Castle bartender, who balanced a tray of beers on her palm. Auston averted his gaze, as if that was any equivalent to disappearing altogether.
As the girl passed out the glasses, she remarked, "Fun one to watch, boys."
"Thanks , Nor," Mitch piped up in response, taking a beer from her hand.
Nor? How the fuck does Mitch know her name? And what kind of name is that?
Auston shook it off: Mitch Marner was one of the nicest guys around—odds are, he'd asked her name the first time the team had come to the Castle two years ago. Hell, he probably conversed with the girl enough to know every damn detail of her life. That was just Mitch.
Distracted, Auston lifted his gaze, and his eyes fell on her just as she held out the last glass to him.
Fuck. Now he was looking at her, admiring her long legs and tight black shirt. She had wavy brown hair, tied back to frame her face, dark eyes cold on Auston's expression. Awkwardly, he cleared his throat and took the glass from her hand. "Thanks," he muttered, looking away again.
All she did was hum in response before she spun on her heels and returned to the counter, the serving tray tucked under her arm. Auston rolled his eyes as he took a long sip. Bunts, ever the flirt, watched the bartender all the way back to her post behind the counter.
"Damn, I love watching her walk away," he breathed. "Mitchy, she got a man?"
Mitch shrugged. "Why would I know?" he asked.
Now it was Auston who chimed in. "I mean, you seem friendly with her," he observed. The hint of jealousy in his own voice made Auston shudder—who the fuck cares if he's friendly with her?
"I mean I've just talked to her when we're here," replied Mitch, still nonchalant. "She's very nice." He shot a look at Bunts before adding, "Too nice for you."
Auston chuckled and ran his palm up and down on his cheek, where a thick layer of stubble had formed since his last shave. On their own accord, his eyes floated to the bar; there, the girl Mitch called Nor was talking animatedly with the other bartender, a young guy who leaned down in order to hear her over the noise.
"Too nice for you, too, Tone," Mitch told him with a grin, following his gaze. "Especially since she's the one who had to deal with that broken table after the Ottawa series last year."
Auston shook his head. "That's fine," he concluded, "I'm not interested in her, anyway."
