Excerpt from Heartless As Puck
AUSTIN
I’d barely stepped onto the stairs overlooking the ice when Drew McKinley slammed into me as if I were on an opposing team and made a run at the goal.
I turned, instinctively pulling my assistant, Jane, close to absorb the impact with my own body. I fought the need to wrap my arms around her and breathe in her delicate floral scent.
She works for you, jackass. Don’t make her uncomfortable.
“Watch it,” Drew barked, stomping off like he hadn’t just tried to knock me down the stairs.
I ignored him. He might be looking for a fight like always, but I had bigger things on my mind.
“You all right?” I asked Jane as I reluctantly drew back and scanned her face for any indication of distress.
“Fine.” She tucked a lock of chocolate-colored hair behind her ear and offered me a shy smile. “Drew doesn’t bother me.”
I hesitated but decided to take her at her word. After all, very little seemed to ruffle her composure. It made me wonder where she’d learned to remain so level-headed.
I started walking and Jane kept pace. Long-simmering frustration heated my gut.
Drew was an asshole, but he was only a symptom of a greater problem.
The team’s leadership was toxic. I liked to think that I could improve the situation if I was made captain, but unless the coaching staff and management changed, that was probably nothing more than baseless optimism.
Ahead of us, the men’s bathroom door opened and Nick Kelly stepped out. He glanced our way and eyes the same shade of blue as the ice in the rink crinkled at the corners.
We drew level with him, and he clapped me on the shoulder. “Good to see you, man. It’s been too long.” He fell into step with us. “What do you think this big meeting is about?”
I shrugged. “No idea, but I’m curious.”
“Perhaps it’s supposed to be a pep talk?” Nick suggested, grabbing the meeting room door and holding it open.
I snorted. “Has Coach ever given a pep talk in his life?”
Nick glanced around, checking who was present before he replied. “Only if shouting ‘get your head in the fucking game’ counts as a pep talk.”
My gaze skimmed over the others in the room, and tension eased from my neck when I realized that neither the captain nor alternate captain was here yet. A few of the younger players were hovering over a snack table against one wall.
I gestured toward a sofa on the opposite side of the room. “Over there?”
Nick grimaced. “Probably for the best.”
We were both getting older and followed strict diets. We shouldn’t tempt ourselves by sitting too near the snacks. As we crossed the room, one of my teammates from last year raised his hand in greeting and I nodded in return.
I flopped onto the sofa and Nick lowered himself down beside me, then bumped my knee with his and jerked his head toward the far wall. “Have you met that guy yet?”
“What guy?”
He gestured toward the food table, where a rookie player was towering over Jane—who apparently hadn’t followed us—getting closer to her than was appropriate. She’d ducked her head and her body language made it perfectly clear that she didn’t want to be anywhere near him.
Anger sizzled through me.
“No,” I muttered, pushing myself upright. “I don’t think Jane knows him either.”
Even if she did, she obviously didn’t like him. I stalked over to them, my glare burning a hole in the rookie’s back. Not that he seemed to notice.
I edged around him and put myself between him and Jane. Up close, I could see what a baby face he had. I doubted he was even over twenty. He must have balls of steel to hit on Jane with me right here.
I met his gaze. “Back off.”
He arched an eyebrow. “Is she your girlfriend? I thought this meeting was for players only.”
“She’s my assistant. She’s here for work and deserves to be respected. Consider her off-limits.” I kept my voice low and steady. It wasn’t his fault he hadn’t known that, even if his behavior was unacceptable.
Most assistants didn’t attend team meetings, but Jane was invaluable to managing my schedule and keeping a track of my life, so I always insisted she be present unless specifically forbidden by the higher-ups. I wanted to be the best player I could, and she was an important part of that.
The rookie held up his hands defensively. “My bad.” He turned back to Jane. “Sorry. Maybe I can make it up—”
“No,” I snapped and shuffled Jane past him and back to the sofa, determined that she wouldn’t have to tolerate another second of unwanted attention.
She sat and rifled through her bag, pulling out a tablet and turning it on. I hesitated, an apology on my lips, but she studiously ignored me, and I got the feeling she was annoyed with me for some reason.
I opened my mouth to speak, but before I could say a word, a whistle pierced the room and silence fell.
Assistant Coach Willets stood in front of the glass wall that overlooked the ice, his shoulders tense, his rangy frame stretched to its full height.
“Welcome.” He tried to smile, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “Thank you all for coming in this morning. We have several important announcements to make, and I’d appreciate it if you could save your questions until the end. Understood?”
A murmur of ascent rippled around the room. My stomach tightened. Exactly what was going on?
“As you might have heard, there will be several significant changes this season.” He put his hands behind his back, perhaps to hide the way he was fidgeting.
“First off, I want to make it very clear that everything said within this meeting is confidential. You may tell your agents but no one else. If I learn that someone has spoken out of turn, there will be consequences.”
I exchanged a look with Nick. I could only imagine what kind of consequences he’d dream up. I liked the guy, but he knew how to work a player until they almost broke.
Willets scanned the room, pausing briefly on each of us. “A few weeks ago, the Chicago Chaos was bought by Joseph Trent.”
My breath caught. What?
“Under Trent’s ownership,” Willets continued, without giving anyone a chance to react, “we’ll be instituting some changes to the coaching staff and the players.”
My head spun. Holy shit. Did the fact that Willets was giving this talk mean that one of those changes had been removing the problematic head coach?
All of a sudden, the absences I’d noted earlier took on new meaning. Had our captain and alternate been disciplined for their previous behavior… or, better yet, traded?
And if so, did that mean I had a chance to become captain? Could I really be that goddamn lucky?
Fuck, I hoped so.
To my left, Jane was furiously tapping on her tablet, recording everything that was being said.
Willets cleared his throat. “I’ll take questions now.”
“Are our positions on the team in danger?” Brian Taylor asked.
My gut flipped over. It hadn’t even occurred to me to wonder that.
Willets smiled and shook his head. “No. Everyone present for this meeting is guaranteed a place on the team for the upcoming season.”
Thank God.
Nick raised his hand. “Does this mean you’ll be reconsidering the team captain and alternate?”
Willets nodded. “We’ll be reevaluating everything under Mr. Trent’s guidance. Hopefully, our new leadership will guide the team to a brighter future.”
People elbowed each other. Some whispered excitedly. I straightened, thoughts whirring through my mind.
This was it. The opportunity I’d been waiting for had just been handed to me on a golden platter.
I would not screw it up.
Willets ended the Q&A session. “Please allow me to introduce your new head coach.” He gestured toward the entrance. “Coach Murray Dunn.”
We all followed the movement. A tall, broad-shouldered guy with a bit of a gut and a stubbled chin straightened from where he’d been leaning against the wall beside the door. He unhooked his thumbs from his pockets and removed his ball cap.
“Hi, all.” He spoke in a slow drawl, but his gaze was sharp.
“You can call me Coach or Coach Dunn. I’m looking forward to getting to know you all and figuring out how we can work together to turn this team around.
Before we get to it, I want you to know that I won’t tolerate the same antics that your last coach did.
There will be no bullying and no dirty plays.
Anyone who causes problems will be dealt with. ”
Judging by his expression, he expected protests, but I, for one, was relieved. Our last coach had let Taggert get away with whatever he wanted. A stricter approach was just what we needed. But how could I impress him?
“We want to make this team one that knows how to win and one that has no reason to be called the loose cannons of the league. We expect your whole-hearted commitment to our goal.”
Reading between the lines, he was warning us all to work hard and be on our best behavior. What would happen if anyone refused to play nice? Would they be traded too?
“There’s no proper training today,” he went on. “Instead, there will be a casual skate in half an hour so I can get an initial impression of where you’re all at. Training camp will begin properly tomorrow. Don’t be late.”
My stomach dropped. So I wouldn’t have the opportunity to show him my full range of skills today. Oh well. At least I’d have time to prepare for tomorrow.
Dunn and Willets left the room, leaving us to talk between ourselves.
Nick leaned toward me. “How many people are missing? Do you think they’ve been traded?”
“At least two.” I looked around, taking a mental inventory of who’d been on the team last season but wasn’t here today. A couple of players had retired, but it was still clear that several others were absent.
“Four.”
We both turned to Jane, who’d dragged her chair closer and was studying her tablet, a cute little furrow between her eyebrows.