Chapter 12 Ben
Ben
Even Coach Dodds didn’t have anything negative to say after their game. The head coach was such a hard-ass that Ben had wondered whether that was even possible.
“Was that a kick-ass game or what?” Richie asked the locker room at large.
They were all flying high after the spectacular win.
“That was an incredible game, guys,” Phillips put in. “I was beyond proud to wear the ‘C’ on my jersey tonight. If we can keep playing like this, we’ll be unstoppable.”
All the guys cheered. It was moments like this that made all the grueling practices, hours in the gym, and time spent away from family worth it. There was nothing quite like the rush that came from being competitive.
Throughout the game, Ben had felt invincible. It was like the game slowed, the noise of the crowd muted, and he’d achieved a laser-like focus on the puck and the other eleven players on the ice. To hear his teammates talk, it sounded like he wasn’t the only one.
“Nice shutout, O’Rourke,” Cassidy praised their goaltender. “First for the league this season.” He held out his fist for a bro bump. O’Rourke didn’t leave him hanging, lightly tapping the front of his fist against Cassidy’s.
“Thanks, but you guys made it easy for me tonight. San Jose barely made it into our end. When they did, you guys stepped up to defend.”
“No way, man,” Cassidy contradicted. “Defense might have been extra tight tonight, but you stayed sharp and didn’t let our momentum go to your head. Keep doing what you’re doing, and you could be the new record holder.”
“Drinks on O’Rourke!” Kyle Knight proposed.
“Are you even old enough to drink, rookie?” Richie condescended.
The young forward’s ears colored. “I am in Canada,” Knight mumbled.
O’Rourke clapped their youngest player on the back good-naturedly. “I’ll tell you what, Knight. If I can break the record for the most shutouts in a regular season, I’ll spring for drinks. In Canada.”
Knight pumped his fist into the air. “Booya!”
Ben couldn’t help but smile and shake his head. With the amount of money the Challengers had spent to acquire Kyle Knight, he could more than afford to buy his own drinks. And yet, as was the case for so many, the allure of free booze was unsurpassable.
“You were on fire tonight, Knight,” Ben remarked, seeing no reason not to jump on the compliment train. “The way you carried the puck up the boards was even more impressive than usual.”
Knight brushed off the praise. “Says the MVP.” Knight was looking at him with so much admiration it was rather humbling. “You scored four goals tonight.”
“The kid’s right,” Richie agreed. “You were some kind of amazing tonight.”
“Thanks.” It was his job to be a solid hockey player, but that didn’t mean it didn’t feel great to have an outstanding game and help ignite his team’s drive to win. “I was in the zone.”
“I would say,” Volkov put in. “It was like you had eyes in the back of your head. I do not know how you do it, but it was like you had a 360-degree view of the game at all times. You are a great player, but tonight . . . vpechatlyayushchiy. Impressive.”
“Let’s just say I woke up in a really good mood and it carried over,” Ben said evasively.
“Ha!” Richie barked out a laugh. “Did someone finally get some last night?” He winked in an exaggerated way that was kind of off-putting coming from another guy.
Trust Richie to take it there. Ben was glad Phillips had turned away to engage some of the other players in conversation because he didn’t want their captain to get the wrong impression. And he might have, given the role he’d played in getting Ben to the speed dating event last night.
“It’s not like that,” Ben clarified. Not really, at least. Not in the sketchy way Richie was thinking.
“Sure, sure,” Richie acquiesced. Someone was clearly determined to think with his little head.
“Hey,” Ben said as he saw Coach McGuire enter one of the glass-walled rooms that was being used as an office. “I’ll be right back. I need to speak to Coach McGuire for a minute.”
“Ask for a raise!” Knight shouted at his retreating back. “After tonight’s game, they might just give you one.”
Ben smiled and shook his head. It didn’t quite work that way, which the boys well knew, but he appreciated the sentiment.
Once he reached the office, he knocked on the door.
“Come in!”
Ben opened the door to find Coach McGuire as alone as he’d hoped. His only company was a pile of paper, a slew of pens, and a smattering of clipboards.
“Logan,” Coach McGuire acknowledged as he stepped through the door. “What can I do for you, son?”
Ben closed the door behind him. He was pretty sure he didn’t want anyone to overhear this conversation.
“Killer game tonight,” Coach McGuire added.
“Thanks, Coach,” he acknowledged. “May I?” he asked as he gestured toward one of the available seats.
Coach McGuire flipped his hand over, palm up, in silent offer. “Please.”
Ben could feel as much as see curious eyes surveying him as he took his seat.
“Why do I have the feeling this is going to be a much more serious conversation than I originally thought?” Coach McGuire asked.
The assistant coach was one very astute man. But then, one didn’t get where he was without being good at reading his players.
Now that he was here, Ben wasn’t quite sure how best to introduce the topic that was on his mind.
Coach McGuire surveyed him for a moment before saying, “Just spit it out, son.”
“Well,” Ben began without preamble, “I was hoping to obtain your blessing to date your daughter.”
Coach McGuire’s eyebrows flew up toward his hairline. “Come again?”
“I’m hoping to gain your blessing to date Melody,” Ben repeated.
Coach McGuire’s eyebrows pinched together, causing his glasses to slip the tiniest bit down his nose. He shook his head, as though to clear it. “You want my blessing to go out with Melody? My Melody?” It was as though he needed to clarify that he hadn’t misheard.
“I do,” Ben stated simply.
It was obvious Ben had surprised Coach McGuire with his disclosure. Under the circumstances, it seemed the least he could do was allow the man some time to gather his thoughts.
Coach McGuire spoke after a few beats of silence.
“I don’t quite know what to say here,” he said in a slow and measured tone.
“Melody is a grown woman. She can date whoever she wants. That said, I’ve never been in the position of having a player actually come to me with this sort of request. It’s a unique situation. ”
“I know it is, sir,” Ben acknowledged. “That’s why I wanted to talk to you.
I know it’s Melody’s decision who she does and doesn’t want to date—” which is what he was the most concerned with “—but I wanted to make my intentions clear. I didn’t want to go out with her and then risk you finding out about it in an awkward or uncomfortable way. ”
Coach McGuire sighed heavily. “You’re a good man, Logan. If I didn’t already know that, this conversation would make it plain.” He raked his fingers through his hair. “That said, involving yourself with Melody could create a lot of complications.”
Coach McGuire held up his index finger before continuing.
“First and foremost, that girl is my world. Melody might be an adult, capable of making her own choices, but I can’t help but feel protective of her.
No matter how old she gets, she’ll always be my little girl.
Your dating her would create a dual relationship that could prove tricky to navigate.
And ‘tricky’ is the best-case scenario.”
Ben nodded his acknowledgment. Dating one of his coaches’ relatives was complicated, which is why he was here, having this conversation, when his preference was to keep his romantic life private.
Coach McGuire lifted his middle finger so that it rested alongside his straight index finger.
“Secondly, if you choose to date Melody, you’re going to have to work extra hard to prove you deserve every advantage you’re getting.
You’re new to the team and these boys barely know you, so it would be all too easy for them to suspect nepotism.
Which means Coach Dodds and I might have to be extra hard on you to allay fears of bias. ”
Coach McGuire took a breath before continuing his monologue.
“I pride myself on trying to be a fair and upstanding man, but the optics of a player dating a coach’s daughter are terrible—even if there isn’t an official rule against it.”
Ben cringed. He might not like it, but he could see what Coach McGuire was saying. He canted his head as he waited for him to voice his next concern.
Coach McGuire lifted his ring finger to highlight his third concern.
“And this lifestyle,” Coach McGuire stated, letting the thought hang heavy in the air for a moment before adding, “it’s not what I would have wished for Melody.”
Ben nodded his head. It wasn’t easy dating a career athlete. During the season, he traveled as much as he was home. When he was home, he spent long hours on the ice, in the gym, reviewing tape, and generally prioritizing his career. There wasn’t a lot of time left over for anything—or anyone—else.
Ben started to nod but stopped when he took in Coach McGuire’s expression.
Based on the look in his eyes, Ben didn’t think lack of time was what his coach was referring to.
It took a moment, but Ben realized his coach was alluding to the infidelity and party culture that ran rampant through pro sports.
Ben held back a heavy sigh. He couldn’t deny there was something about being an athlete that seemed to encourage a fast and loose lifestyle, but that wasn’t him.
Ben had grown up with strong values. His mom and dad had been high school sweethearts. He’d witnessed disagreements between his parents, but he’d also seen their unwavering love, trust, loyalty, and friendship. With role models like that, puck bunnies didn’t hold much appeal.
In college, when his hormones might have swayed him, one of his NCAA teammates had gotten a little reckless with his partying and gotten a random fangirl pregnant.
Within a few short months, Ben had witnessed his teammate’s life fall apart.
He’d lost his scholarship, his spot on the team, and any shot of advancing to the NHL.
That had served as motivation to keep his pants zipped.
Somehow, Ben didn’t imagine Coach McGuire would care for a guided tour down memory lane. As such, he kept his response simple. “I know you don’t really know me, but I’m not that kind of man,” Ben stated honestly.
“Perhaps not,” Coach McGuire conceded, “but, after all of my years of coaching hockey, I’m sure you understand my skepticism.”
“I guess I’ll just have to prove it to you,” Ben stated in a tone as earnest as his sentiments.
They stared at each other for a long moment, each trying to get the other’s measure, Ben suspected.
Coach McGuire was the first to look away.
“I won’t try to stop you from dating Melody,” Coach McGuire assured as he resumed eye contact. “It’s her right to decide who she does and doesn’t wish to get involved with, but those are my concerns.”
“I understand,” Ben acknowledged. He didn’t have any children of his own, but he could guess at a father’s protective instincts. And heaven knew he’d witnessed enough cheating and derelict behavior to know Coach McGuire’s concerns weren’t unfounded.
“One more thing,” Coach McGuire said.
“I’m listening,” Ben answered.
“If you and Melody choose to get involved and things don’t work out between you .
. .” Coach McGuire lifted a silencing hand when Ben moved to interrupt him.
“If you go out with Melody and things don’t work out—and I’m not saying things couldn’t work out—I would try not to let it influence the way I treat you.
I would still try to be a good and impartial coach.
But . . .” The word hung in the air, heavy with meaning.
“Hurt her and I can’t promise how I will react—no matter my best intentions. ”
Coach McGuire’s eyes bored into Ben’s, leaving him with no doubt his coach spoke true. For a man he outweighed by a solid twenty-plus pounds of pure muscle, Coach McGuire managed to be surprisingly intimidating.
“I have no intention of hurting her,” Ben relayed sincerely.
“I believe you, but romance is a tricky thing. Two good people could as soon make a horrible match as an excellent one. It’s all a matter of dynamics.”
Ben chose his words with care. He was wading into awkward waters and wanted to minimize whatever potential discomfort he could—for both their sakes. “I know that, but I really like her. And the only way I’ll know what could be is if I put myself out there and give us a shot.”
Coach McGuire’s lips curved into a begrudging smile. “As much as I might prefer it were otherwise, you’re making it really hard for me to dislike you,” he stated with clear reluctance.
Ben smiled, pleased by the admission. It wasn’t a ringing endorsement, but it was more than he’d dared to hope for at this stage.
Coach McGuire cleared his throat. “I do appreciate your coming to talk to me. We both know you didn’t have to do that, but I respect the fact you did.”
“Of course, sir.” Ben could only imagine how poorly it would have gone over if Coach McGuire had learned about him and Melody through a gossip site or something of that nature. This conversation might be awkward, but it was far better than he predicted that would have been.
Ben didn’t think more words would help here, so he just nodded for what felt like the dozenth time in as many minutes and stood up to take his leave. There wasn’t really any more to say at the moment.
Ben felt certain Melody was worth whatever challenges there might be, but he felt like he should prepare himself for the probability there might be some rocky patches to move through.
Why was it that all great rewards seemed to come with such great risks? He could only hope that things worked out between him and Melody because, if they didn’t, not only might he be stuck with a broken heart, he’d lose the one ally he’d thought he’d found on the coaching staff.