Chapter 4
TYLER
Minneapolis
“Are you sure you want to do this?” My agent stood next to me, his shoulders taut.
Brian had been with me from the start, and while anyone else would look at him and find him the epitome of relaxed, I knew that was not the case.
He was known for his poker face, and that’s what everyone else would see right now.
His features were impassive, his stance casual.
Yet his eyes were constantly moving, taking everything in around the empty locker room. I knew my agent.
He was anxious.
I leaned down to check my skates, one of the last things I did for my routine. I cast him a quick frown. “Kinda late for that question. The ink is dried. I signed the contract.”
It had been a whirlwind since I’d called Brian a couple days ago and told him what I needed to do. After I’d talked to Ski, I had no other choice. An offer materialized for me very soon thereafter. It was generous too, and a surprising one considering this was one of the newer teams in the league.
I’d been shocked. So shocked I’d had to sit down when he’d called to let me know.
He had told them the reason for the sudden transfer was family.
My former team hadn’t wanted to give me up, and I didn’t want to leave.
I’d been with them since I was drafted. I respected them, but they also respected me and letting me out of my contract was the biggest show of that respect.
Once I told them the reason, they didn’t balk.
Leaving my teammates and friends, however, had been another matter. Since everything happened so fast, most of the guys and their partners came over to help me pack. We’d loaded up what I needed for a few weeks, and I’d figure out what to do with my house later.
Along the way there’d been beers, food, and lots of idle chatting, as all of us were in some level of denial about me leaving the team. Nolan, my best friend, broke first, demanding to know the reason. We were all close, so I told them the truth. Some of them got weepy.
Nolan’s eyes had gone glossy. “Fuck, man. Zoey?”
I’d nodded, my vision blurred. “Yeah, man. So, I gotta be there.”
Nodding, he’d crossed the room, wrapping me in a tight hug. “I got it. Zoe’s your girl.”
Yeah, she was. My niece. My goddaughter.
Even so, Christ. That goodbye was one of the hardest things I’d had to do.
Although going to see Ski and Zoey early this morning had topped it. When I saw Zoey in the hospital, her arms so thin and tangled up in all sorts of cords, I almost lost it.
But the Grays had wanted to move fast. So here I was.
I hadn’t even practiced with my new team.
We’d had an early warmup skate this morning, so I went straight from the hospital.
I’d met the guys, met my new coach and the rest of the coaching staff, then was swept off to sign my contract. After that, things had been a blur.
I’d had lunch with the team, followed by a meeting with the coaches. They’d explained I’d be on third line tonight but would be moved to first almost right away. I understood. A morning warmup and lunch didn’t make up for the fact I hadn’t practiced with this team yet.
There had been no announcement of my trade yet, either.
It hadn’t slipped to the press. I knew my old team wouldn’t let it out, and I guessed my new team was solid too.
I wasn’t worried. All the people I cared about knew what was happening.
Everyone else would find out when they made the announcement as I stepped onto the ice for warm-up before the game.
Brian spoke again, moving closer. “I can do something. Claim something. You want out, I got you. I’m just saying. This is a new team. They aren’t… They aren’t what you’re used to, and there are always loopholes.”
Just then one of the Grays’ managers popped his head around the corner and smiled at me, though it was tense. “They’re, uh, they’re ready for you, Mr.—”
I shook my head, stepping past him. “Griff is fine.”
One of the team’s PR people was ahead as I rounded the corner, smiling widely. She took a deep breath. “Ready when you are, Mr.—”
I just growled and cleared the chute. I looked back once, saw her tap something on her phone, and stepped onto the ice as the loudspeaker blared.
I was officially a Gray Wolf now.