“Hey.” Zanders grins, his eyes locked on mine.
I try to hold back my laughter, I really do, but this man who is known to be the city’s biggest playboy and probably has more enemies than fans is wearing what’s supposed to be a floor-length dress, though it hits just below his knees.
But he’s doing it on a Saturday night in the middle of November to make sure his best friend’s daughter has a good Halloween.
And that sweet act is the last thing I expected from the notoriously hated hockey player.
“Have you lived here the whole time?” Maddison’s question pulls me back to reality, realizing that I was right. Zanders didn’t tell him that I was his neighbor.
“I moved in at the end of August.”
Logan turns back to Zanders. “That’s why you never use the penthouse elevator anymore.”
“Lo...” Zanders’ eyes are wide, his voice stern in warning, trying to stop his best friend’s wife before she completely throws him under the bus.
Maddison wraps both arms around his wife’s shoulders from behind, the two of them utterly amused, laughing with each other at their friend’s expense.
“So, you’re Belle?” I return my attention to the sweet girl who this night is really about.
“I’m really Ella.”
“Ella? That’s a beautiful name. You didn’t want to be Cinderella? You made your dad be her instead?”
Ella starts giggling at my question. “No.” She shakes her head, proudly pointing at her chest. “Belle is smartest. Like me.”
“Ahh.” I give an understanding laugh. “Well, I think you made the right choice.” I cup my hand around my mouth, whispering, “Belle is my favorite, anyway.”
“What about Elsa?” a deep voice asks from the back of the group.
When I look up at Zanders, he shrugs his shoulders as if he isn’t being a little desperate for attention right now.
Playfully rolling my eyes, I return my focus to Ella, taking the candy her parents provided and adding it into her already very full basket. “Well, Ella, I hope you have so much fun with your family tonight.”
Her little hand motions me closer. She puts a satin-gloved hand up to my ear, cupping her lips. “I like your hair,” she whispers.
I make the exact same motion back to her. “I like your hair, too.” Her hair looks as un-tamable as mine. We wild-haired girls have to stick together.
“What do you say, baby?” Maddison pipes up.
“Thank you!” Ella waves before taking off down the hall towards the next apartment door.
A shorter man dressed like the chick from Brave follows closely behind, but judging by the ginger brows he’s rocking, the curly red wig isn’t too far off from his natural hair color. Next is a tan guy dressed like Jasmine, mid-drift showing and all, who is carrying a newborn baby, Maddison’s son, I’m assuming, followed by a teeny-tiny girl in a Snow White costume, complete with a pair of black Doc Martens.
Maddison rests his chin on his wife’s head, looking like a needy little puppy, as the two of them linger by my door with Zanders.
“She’s cute.” I watch Ella’s brunette hair bounce along with her excited strides.
“She’s three going on thirteen, but we’re big fans of hers regardless. I’m Logan, by the way.” She reaches her hand out to shake mine, a kind smile on her lips. “I hope the boys aren’t making your job too hard.”
“Not this one.” I motion to the man hanging on her. “This one, on the other hand, is a bit of a diva.” Turning towards Zanders, my voice is laced with humor, even though the statement is extremely true.
“I’m not that bad,” Zanders whines.
“Yeah, he can be a real pain in the ass.”
“Lo!”
“But we love him anyway.” Logan shoots Zanders her sweetest smile before turning back to me. “It was so great to meet you.”
“You too.”
“See you, Stevie,” Maddison tosses out before walking away with his wife tucked under his arm.
Zanders somewhat sheepishly steps up to my front door once all his friends are out of earshot and down the hall.
“You following me?” I tease.
He knowingly shrugs his shoulders. “Hey.” A small smile plays at his full lips.
“Hey.” My eyes rake down his body, unable to hold back their amusement.
“Sexy as fuck, I know.”
“That’s one way to describe your...dress. I knew you were pretty, but I didn’t know you were this pretty. And that gash really sells the look.” I motion towards the cut on his right cheek, which I’m assuming he earned during his game today.
“I told him to keep it away from the money maker, but you should see the other guy.” Zanders stands straighter, smugly running a hand down the sparkly blue fabric covering his chest. “He messed with the wrong ice queen.”
A laugh heaves in my chest as I cock my head to the side. “How did you get stuck with Elsa? All your other friends at least looked like their characters.”
“You don’t think the blonde wig works with my skin tone?”
Zanders chuckles as I raise a single brow in answer.
“Ella picked our costumes. Said that people think Elsa is mean the way people think I’m mean, but that we’re actually both really nice.” He holds his hands up in defense. “Her words, not mine.”
The more I get to know the Chicago defenseman, the more I think Ella might be right.
She really is the smartest.
“I see you’re walking better these days.”
Rolling my eyes, I don’t honor his statement with a response. Instead, I try to cover my blushing cheeks by sticking the end of my hoodie string in my mouth and locking my eyes on the ground.
“And we still haven’t thrown out those disgusting sweatpants, I see.”
Mouth gaping in mock offense, my head snaps up to look at him. “If you’re so concerned with my loungewear, you can buy me new ones.”
“Don’t tempt me.”
“Don’t worry. They’ll be coming off soon. I’m about to get in the shower.”
Zanders’ hazel eyes hood over. “Are you really trying to turn me on while I’m wearing a fucking dress, sweetheart?”
“Everything turns you on.”
“You turn me on.”
Swallowing hard, I pull my gaze from his.
“How have you been?” Zanders’ question is soft and completely sincere, taking me by surprise.
“Good?” My brows furrow in confusion as to why he cares.
“Good. That’s good. That’s great even.” His words come out flustered, and I’ve never seen this confident man so flustered before.
Looking him up and down, it makes me wonder why the headlines never cover this part of his life. What would the buzz be if people knew Chicago’s playboy was spending his Saturday night in a dress that his best friend’s daughter picked for him?
And that little thought makes me wonder what else they’re not publishing in news articles about him. He did say he pays his PR team a pretty penny to push the narrative he wants, which clearly isn’t this version of him.