Like No One Could | Danny Amendola

Chapter 35

I pulled my Bruins hoodie over my head and slid my belt through my belt loops. I made sure my hair was neat, then grabbed Danny's keys off the dresser.

When I walked into the living room, the sight in front of me was just too much. Danny was lying, asleep, on the couch with the baby, also asleep, on his bare chest. I sighed and shook my head— as much as I wanted to stand there and gush, now was the perfect time to head to the office and get a few hours of work in.

Bentley, just eight days old, already created a bond with Danny. I grabbed a post it note and wrote "going to work, Love ya" then stuck it to Danny's phone. I placed a soft kiss on Danny's cheek, and one on Bentley's forehead and sighed.

I carefully snuck out of the house and dashed down the street to where Danny's car was parked. When I made it to his car, I let out a sigh of relief and started his car- Time to work for the first time in nearly a month.

***

I walked into the office and the receptionist looked up at me like I was crazy. "Jess?"

"Hi Erica, how are you today," I asked as I began walking toward the cubicles.

"I'm uh... I'm good... Aren't you supposed to be on maternity leave? You had the baby like a week ago," she stumbled upon her words.

I shrugged. "Oh well. Danny and the little one are enjoying each other's company right now. I'm here to work on the playoff campaign that was brought up in an email," I said with a smile. "Hockey never has a down time. Plus I miss being here... Pick the right job and you'll never work a day in your life."

She sighed but nodded, letting me move toward where my desk was. When I got to my cubicle, I sat down and fired up my laptop. I still had congratulations upon congratulations emails, but just pushed those aside. I reread my email about the playoffs and began jotting down ideas that fitted the criteria, as well as players who could be good for those promotions.

"It's true! You really are here," Marchy's voice startled me, causing me to jump.

I put my hand over my heart and swiveled around in my chair. "Marchy! You scared the shit out of me," I complained as I calmed down.

He had a large smile on his face. "Welcome back, Jess! I was gonna try to stop by your place later and drop off something I got for your little boy... but... you're here now," he said and slid a box over that was hiding behind the cubicle wall.

The box was just a plain ol' cardboard box and had a few things in it. I rolled my chair over and grabbed the things on top, a Bruins mini stick, and little knitted socks that were ice skates that were tied to it. "Brad," I began, "you didn't have to do this."

His smile only got bigger. "Keep going." I looked down and grabbed the Bruins teddy bear.

"This is adorable," I mumbled and held it close. "He's so cute." I leaned down and grabbed the last thing, it was a gold onesie.

I held it up and began to laugh. "Brad! Are you serious!? 'Hockey is better than football'? Danny is gonna kill you," I told him with a shake of the head.

He smiled back at me. "The kid deserves a real sport," he joked with a smile. "And the back even says Amendola on it too. I know it's big right now, but it could be good for when we make it far in the playoffs."

I shook my head and playfully rolled my eyes. "Only you Marchy." I stood up and wrapped my arms around him. "Thank you. I'm sure Bentley will love all this stuff."

"Come down stairs. All the guys are in the locker room getting ready for practice," he said as he motioned for me to come with him.

I sighed, but nodded. "I guess I can do that. Not like I have anything to catch up on. I only have one thing assigned and it's optional," I said as I followed him to the elevator.