34. Chapter Thirty-Four #3
My heart squeezed. I closed my eyes and sucked in a deep breath.
Somewhere between Ping-Pong matches and stolen kisses, between watching him fumble through fatherhood and fight for what mattered, I’d fallen for Shep Landon.
Not just his golden boy charm or the heat between us, but the man beneath.
The one who loved his daughter with fierce determination, who saw past my analytical walls to the woman wanting more.
The realization settled warm in my chest. I loved him. The way he turned competition into foreplay, how he balanced cockiness with vulnerability. How he made me feel brave enough to want everything. Career, love, maybe even a ready-made family.
Finally, after a hell of a morning, a tiny ounce of control seeped back into my system. A little warmth. A hint of future’s-gonna-be-okay infiltrated my bloodstream.
I didn’t know what our future would look like, but for the first time since seeing that headline, I felt ready to defend my chance at happiness. Ready to fight for it. For Shep.
But what if the headlines spooked him? What if protecting his career and Hannah meant cutting me loose? I needed to see those blue eyes, to hear him say we’d figure this out together.
In place of a reassuring hug or a stolen kiss in an empty hallway, I had text messages out the wazoo.
A steady stream of texts I couldn’t bring myself to reply to.
I needed time with him, to look into those mesmerizing blue eyes and find the truth in their depths.
I needed Shep to make me believe we could weather this storm.
“Things are crazy right now, but it’s going to be okay. We’ll get through this.”
“Try not to stress too much. Do you need Joonie?”
“Of course you do. I’m leaving him on your desk.”
“Meeting with my agent before heading to practice. Talk later.”
I hadn’t heard from him since that last, ominous message about meeting with his agent. Because of the fallout?
Of course because of the fallout. He needed his agent to help mitigate the damage.
I’d caught glimpses of him doing drills with the other forwards and the assistant coach, his power and grace a painful reminder of everything I was risking.
Every cell in my body called for me to linger, to throw myself against his chest and let his arms close around me.
But as good as his hug would feel right now, it wouldn’t insulate me from the realities of this mess.
We hadn’t just broken the rules—we’d shattered them in a spectacularly public way.
Hours later, I walked into the video room at Algonquian Arena, the pre-game buzz of the crowd a dull roar beyond the glass. Wilson didn’t even turn around, just greeted me with a grunt. A disgusted grunt. Heat flushed up my neck and into my face. “Please—”
“So the competitions were what? Some kind of foreplay?”
“Don’t be ridiculous—”
“I mean, word out of the locker room was that you two were gonna have another Ping-Pong match. Heard Landon even went out and bought a special paddle for the occasion. What’s the story?”
“I heard that, too.” And I had, as I’d passed the tablets out.
One of the equipment guys gave me a high five and said something about having a twenty on me for the next match.
He’d caught me so off guard, all I could do was smile.
Shep had been nowhere in sight. And for the first time since I’d joined the Renegades, I still had Joonie come game time.
“There’s a lot of misinformation flying around—”
“So you’re denying you’re in a relationship with Landon?”
I swung around to face my co-worker head on. “I’m saying it doesn’t matter. I’m saying it’s none of your business. Not yours or anyone else’s what I do with my private time.”
He barked out a harsh laugh. “Dream on, Wylie. Take a look in the seats downstairs. Then tell me it’s not anyone’s business.” He jabbed his finger toward the wide windows that looked down on the arena.
I stormed over to see for myself. I needed a minute to get a grip on the temper Wilson’s words unleashed anyway.
Shep’s silence gnawed at me. I should have called him, maybe.
But something held me back. He should have reached out to me by now with more than text messages.
I wanted answers, explanations, reassurances. I wanted him.
I couldn’t seem to come to any sort of decision about my future other than the fact that I wanted to be with Shep and I wanted to keep my job. Was that selfish? Demanding? Why did I need to choose?
But one glance down into the seats and my breath hitched, escaping in a soundless gasp.
The Renegades played to a sold-out arena most nights, but tonight? Fans filled every seat, an ocean of blue and silver. And signs. A million signs. I fumbled for the binoculars on the table.
Shep Landon Scores with Merri Wylie!
Shep & Merri Broke the Ice!
Yo, Shep, Don’t Puck This Up!
#13 Hat Trick! Merri’s Watching!
“This is insane,” I whispered.
“Insane is thinking you can date a star player and think the fans wouldn’t make it their business.”
I sat the binoculars back on the table with a heavy thud. My stomach churned. “Coach Trasier is going to kill me.”
Wilson sank onto one of the cheap office chairs with a groan. “Depends on whether or not Landon gets that hat trick or goes into another skid.”