Chapter 51

Another win for my boys of winter tonight! :) I was sad Siddo sat out - hope he's better soon! LOL - it makes me giggle to think about how he ended up with a sore groin! Yay for Jordy and Geno being 2nd and 1st stars tonight!

And YAY for the live feed on the Pens website being available in Cleveland - even though they said it would only be available in the Pittsburgh area. I almost wish they would broadcast every game like that - there weren't announcers, but instead you had all the sounds of the arena - the skates, the sticks, the yelling, the refs whistles, John Barbaro, fans chanting - glorious. What more could you ask for?

Chapter 51

The next day was New Year’s Eve, and Sidney and Lauren spent the day walking around Chicago. Since there were so many hockey fans in town for the game, Sidney got recognized a lot, but for the most part, they were great about not intruding too much on Sidney and Lauren’s day. Late in the afternoon, Sidney looked at his watch. “We should be getting back. We need to get ready.” He said.

“Get ready for what?” she asked, confused. When they had talked about how they wanted spend New Year’s Eve, they had both agreed on a quiet night in, rather than going out and facing the crowds.

“Another surprise.” He said with a wink.

They headed back to the hotel and Lauren jumped in the shower. When she got out, Sidney was on the phone, but he abruptly ended the call when he noticed her standing there in only a towel, listening in. “Who was that?” she asked.

“Oh, no one. I was just taking care of a few details.” He winked at her before brushing past her and closing the door to the bathroom, leaving her shivering involuntarily as Sidney’s scent filled her nose.

About 40 minutes later, Sidney and Lauren were dressed and ready to go. Sidney had told Lauren to dress casual, so she was wearing the sweater he had given her for Christmas and a pair of jeans he always said he liked so much. He had pulled on a black dress shirt and a pair of jeans that always made Lauren drool a little bit – he just had such a gorgeous body.

He pulled his toque onto his head, slipped into his jacket, and held hers up to help her put her coat on. Sidney lead her down to a back door where a car was waiting – with all the fans in town for the game, he was trying to be as inconspicuous as possible. About 25 minutes later, they arrived in front of an apartment building. “Where are we?” Lauren asked as he lead her towards the front doors.

“We have an appointment with someone very important.” Sidney said with a sly grin as they took the elevator up a few stories.

Lauren started to ask him who they were meeting, but she knew he wouldn’t tell her anyways, so she just let him lead her down a long hallway. He knocked loudly and a moment later the door opened. Lauren through herself into the arms of the young woman who greeted her at the door. “Nicole!” she shrieked, tears coming to her eyes. Nicole was one of Lauren’s best friends from college and she hadn’t seen her since she had moved to Chicago with her boyfriend over the summer.

“Hey kiddo!” Nicole laughed, hugging her back. She smiled as she wiped the tears from Lauren’s face. “I’ve missed you. How have you been?” The two women had momentarily forgotten that there were two men standing in the room with them, so Sidney quietly cleared his throat.

“Oh, you must be Sidney.” Nicole said, extending her hand for him to shake. “Yep. It’s great to finally meet you in person.”

“Likewise. I have been dying to meet the guy who finally stole my little one’s heart.” Lauren smiled at the old nickname. Nicole was one of Lauren’s older sorority sisters, and she had always called her “her little one.”

“And this is Chris.” Nicole said, nodding to her boyfriend. Sidney and Chris shook hands and Nicole ushered them all into the living room. As they sat down on the couch, Sidney rested his arm across Lauren’s shoulders.

She leaned up and kissed his cheek and whispered in his ear, “I am the luckiest girl in the world. You never cease to amaze me.” Sidney just grinned and kissed the top of her head.

“I’d walk on fire just to see that smile on your face. I love you.” He whispered back, tickling her ear with his hot breath. “And besides, I can assure you that I will amaze you even more…later.” He added in a husky whisper.

“So, Sidney, I have to admit, I’m more of a Blackhawks fan.” Chris said, striking up a conversation.

Sidney gave him a good-natured smile and chuckled. “I’ll try not to hold it against you. Besides, they’re a good team. They’ve got some great guys. I’m excited for the game tomorrow.”

“Yeah, me too. Thanks for the tickets by the way. That was really awesome of you.” Lauren gave Sidney a warm smile, as if to thank him for doing something so nice for her friend.

“Little one, this one’s a keeper.” Nicole said with a wink.

They spent about two hours with Nicole and Chris and then Sidney stood up and Nicole nodded at him, as if they had a secret. “We should get going. I promised you a quiet evening in.” he said, pulling Lauren to her feet. Now she was confused. She had assumed when they had arrived at Nicole’s that they would ring in the new year there. Sidney, however, seemed to have other plans.

“Yes, little one, we’ll see you at the game tomorrow.” Nicole said, giving Lauren a hug and a kiss on the cheek and winking at Sidney.

When they arrived back at the hotel, it was around 10:30. When Lauren opened the door to their hotel room, she could see the room was lit entirely by candles. There were pink roses everywhere and a bottle of champagne chilling by the kitchen sink. A fire was lit in the fireplace and it’s glow was warming the room. The curtains were drawn and the Chicago skyline lit up through the windows. The TV was on but currently muted, showing Dick Clark’s annual new year’s eve special.

Sidney wrapped his arms around her and kissed the skin between her neck and shoulder. “This is perfect.” She whispered, turning her neck to offer her lips to him.

“It is perfect. I didn’t want to share you with anyone tonight. I wanted it to be just you and me ringing in the new year together.”

They stood in the middle of the room holding each other for a few minutes, not saying anything. Each was lost in their own thoughts, enjoying each other’s presence. Lauren rested her head on Sidney’s chest and smiled at the feel of his heartbeat against her ear.

“Hey darlin’?” Sidney said, his voice barely above a whispered. Lauren grinned. He had picked up on her pet name for him and started calling her by it.

“Hmm?” she murmured.

“Will you sing for me?” he asked. She looked up at him and grinned.

“For you? Anything.” She kissed his chin and he laughed. “Hmm, what should I sing?” she said, trying to think of the perfect song. She smiled when an idea came to hear and she started to sing.

I couldn't live
I couldn’t live without your love
For one kiss
Well I'd give everything up
There's no words I can describe
What I feel deep inside
So I let this song say it all

While she sang, Sidney smiled at her, his eyes never leaving hers. His hands were on her hips, and he pulled her closer and began to sway their bodies together in tempo with her voice.

Then I hope you'll understand
Once you've listened till the end
Heard the music in my head
So before I could forget

I start singing
Yeah I was singing
This song
For you

Lauren rested her head on Sidney’s broad chest again, but continued to sing.

Just made up the words
La la la ohhh ohhh yeah
My heart with a melody

So I am singing
This song
For you

(AN: This is a Celine Dion song. I have been a huge fan of hers since I was young – she’s one of my favorite Canadians! Bet you can’t guess who my favorite one is? (-: )

When she finished the song, she looked up at him and was a little surprised to find his eyes were glistening. “I can’t even express to you how much joy you have brought into my life.” He said, his voice a little hoarse.

“Not as much joy as you’ve brought into mine, I’m sure. You turned my whole world upside down. And I wouldn’t want him any other way. She stood on her tip toes to kiss away a solitary tear that had fallen from his eye. She looked over at the TV and could see the ball dropping. “Happy New Year, Sidney.” She whispered before he attacked her lips with his.

The spent the next few hours just curled up on the couch, sometimes talking, but mostly just sitting in content silence. Around two in the morning, Lauren fell asleep with her head on Sidney’s shoulder. He noticed her breathing had become steady and he carefully lifted her into his arms. She sighed and snuggled deeper into his chest, but didn’t wake up. He pulled the sheet and blanket back with one hand, and laid her gently on the bed, being careful not to bump her head on the headboard. He slipped out of his jeans and pulled his sweater over his head and discarding it on the floor before carefully crawling into bed beside her. As he pulled her close, he kissed her hair before falling into a dream-filled sleep.