24. Josh
JOSH
“You swear you didn’t know about it?” I demanded from Hartman.
He put his hands up. “I swear. Kendall and I had dinner with her dad. I didn’t hear about anything.”
I shook my head. “It was one thing to spring a forced double date on us, but the way they were talking. . .” I huffed, “It wasn’t like them at all.”
“Because it was untrue?”
“I mean, factually, no. If Victoria wanted to have a relationship with me, she could move to Utah, quit her job, and give up her dream of covering women’s hockey.”
He cringed. “They said she should do that?”
“She could if she wanted to be with me badly enough.”
“That doesn’t sound like them at all.”
“I know,” I dropped onto my chair in front of my locker. “That’s what I don’t get.”
“But you left with her?”
“Yeah, after Madi ordered an obscene amount of food. I’d feel bad about that if I wasn’t so angry about the way they were acting.”
He shook his head. “It doesn’t make sense.”
“It’s completely opposite of everything the Pride is about. If Chloe or Kendall heard what Madi was saying, they’d think she’d been brain-swapped or was being held against her will.”
“Maybe they’re getting desperate about how single you are,” he teased, and I shot him a halfhearted glare. “What? You know how much they love love.”
“They can be sneaky and pull off extravagant plans to help couples along, but this was not that.”
“Well, now we can ask him.” Hartman crossed his arms. “Erik.”
A few of the guys glanced toward us at the use of Hartman’s captain voice but wisely decided to go back to their business.
“Hey, man,” Erik patted his shoulder, then shot me a grin. “What’s up?”
“What’s up?” I repeated. “What was last night?”
“What do you mean?” He cocked his head, and I really wanted to slap that stupid smile off his face.
“Besides ambushing both of us, you and Madi were way out of line. I couldn’t believe the things you were saying.”
“You!”
We stopped and turned toward the showers, where Bryce glared daggers at Tyson. “Did you do this?”
I had to bite my lip to stop from laughing at the shockingly green color of his normally brown hair.
Tyson surrendered. “It wasn’t me, man. I’m not behind the pranks,” he laughed. “Though I have to say this one might be my favorite yet.”
A few of the guys let a few chuckles slip, but the tension in the room shot up. Coach appeared, frozen in what I could only guess was shock. “Chambers, what happened to your head?”
Bryce’s jaw tensed. “Someone switched my shampoo with hair dye.”
“Well, wash it out. It’s almost game time.”
Erik let out a squeak of laughter.
I couldn’t stop staring at his head. How was it so vivid?
Like Grinch green? I wasn’t a specialist, but I was pretty sure green on brown wasn’t supposed to look like that.
Didn’t you have to bleach it first? That’s what Cambrie was telling me about getting her pink hair. You have to lift, then color.
“If there is a game five,” Coach muttered on his way out. Well, that was harsh. I must have missed something.
He disappeared, and I turned to Hartman. “That wasn’t super motivating.”
Erik shrugged. “If we lose today, the tournament is done.”
“Right, getting back to you.” I ignored the laughter and chatter around us about Bryce’s disaster, as I had far more pressing matters. “What was that?”
“Well, whoever it was, better hope I don’t figure it out, because payback is mine!” Bryce declared like some supervillain.
“It’s fine, Chambers! Move on,” I yelled, seriously annoyed by Erik’s smirking face.
“What is one of the best unifiers for a team?” he asked me.
“Camaraderie?” Hartman guessed.
“Money,” I narrowed my eyes. “Sometimes it’s the only reason I have to stay around you.”
Erik winked. “Funny, but no.”
“A common goal,” Hartman tried again.
“Closer,” Erik pointed at him. “But no.”
“Nah, I’m pretty sure I could gather enough guys with the common goal of tossing you from the rafters.” I glanced around, eyeing who’d be the most supportive.
“Violent,” Erik frowned.
“Eh, you’d live.”
“No, the best unifier is a common enemy.” That stupid grin was back.
Hartman burst out laughing. “So you guys did that on purpose?”
“Of course,” Erik put his hands on his waist. “Everything we said goes against what we stand for,” he scoffed. “Encouraging Victoria to give up her life?” He tsked. “We would never.”
Speaking of evil villains…
“And it worked.” He puffed out his chest.
“Not necessarily.” I needed to deflate that enormous ego before it took up the entire arena.
“You left together, didn’t you?”
“Yeah.”
“And you had a good time.”
“You don’t know that.”
“You’d be far more upset if that wasn’t the case.”
“I am upset.”
“But not angry, angry. Just annoyed angry.”
I was going to request a trade immediately. Coach Abrams could get started on putting out feelers for a new team.
“See, it was a great plan.” He elbowed Hartman in the ribs, and he grunted and stepped further away. “He even got her number.”
“How do you know that?”
“Because Victoria already ran into Madi and grilled her.”
That made me grin. She was the type to demand answers, and I was glad I didn’t have to explain to her what they’d done.
“Well, glad we cleared that up, and our plan worked.”
My smile dropped at his self-satisfied smirk. “Not really.”
“What do you mean? You got a night alone with her.”
“Yeah, but nothing’s changed.” I might like her more than I did before, which was not helping my situation.
“Not yet,” he winked and walked away.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked Hartman.
“No idea. I stopped trying to predict his and Madi’s moves years ago.”
That was fair.
“Hurry up. We’ve got to get on the ice in ten.” He walked back to his locker, and I continued to pull on my gear while watching Schultz from across the room.
Why was the truth of mine and Victoria’s viability so hard for them to accept? Sure, they loved love and matchmaking, but there were relationships that simply couldn’t work. It was horrible and sad, but true.
I was working on moving on. Why weren’t they?
From years of being around them and watching the Pride work, I knew better than to think they had a plan. I just didn’t know what it could be. Part of me doubted they did. But those women, and sometimes their husbands, had pulled off miracles before.
But I didn’t want to get my hopes up.
There was more than a good chance that after next week, I’d never see Victoria again. Not unless I made it to the Olympic team again, and she was there covering the women.
I pulled my jersey over my pads and slouched. The worst part of all of this was that I honestly wanted the best for her. I wanted her to reach her dreams and get the job she’s been working her whole career towards.
But that meant a life without me.
I wished I didn’t care. That I could be the type of person to ask her to give it all up so we could have a chance.
No.
No, I didn’t.
She wouldn’t want a man like that.
I wanted her to be happy.
I wanted to be happy.
“You ready?” Jason held out my helmet, and I took it and stood.
“Yeah.” We walked out to the tunnel and headed to the ice.
“You think maybe you could get injured? Just a little, nothing serious,” he teased with a grin.
“A little twisted ankle?” I joked.
“Nah, something to take you out for the game, but you can be back for the next one.”
I pretended to consider it. “Abrams knows me well. It would have to be pretty major for me to willingly leave the net.”
“Stomach flu?” he suggested. “Super bad for the day, but then you’re magically better.”
“Oh yeah, that’s a good one. I could puke on command; that would really sell it.”
His eyes widened. “Can you do that?”
“Nope.” I slapped him on the back and stepped onto the ice, heading to the net as he laughed.
“Next game?” he called, and I shook my head.
If our roles were swapped, I’d be doing the same thing, but I stopped being the backup goalie years ago, and I had something to prove after the last two losses.
The arena was already nearly full, with warm-ups starting. The energy was like a playoff game. Which, in a way, this was, since it was a short series, but it fueled me like the Stanley Cup was on the line.
My routine was what kept me from letting the adrenaline get to me.
I moved in front of the boards and started stretching.
With the rise in social media, catching players in awkward and suggestive poses made me think through my progress.
I discovered the closer I am to the boards, the less fans can film me from behind.
Most of the guys in Utah didn’t care, but after a few too many fan edits, I found a way to limit their footage.
Moving on from stretching, I moved to the net and started cutting the crease, simultaneously warming up my legs by scraping the fresh ice and creating grip. Then, practicing side to sides to make sure I liked the feel.
I signaled to Tyson I was ready to start, and almost immediately, two lines formed, and the guys started taking shots.
The rapid fire was overwhelming to most, even to watch, but it was my favorite part of pregame. I didn’t count the saves or scores. This was just as much for me as it was to get the guys warmed up.
I focused on seeing the puck and predicting movements.
When we were done, Abrams would tell me where my weakness was so I could focus on it during the game, but today I felt great.
When I looked back, the net had far fewer pucks than normal and I took that as my sign that we were going to have a good game.
And I was right.
Tyson got a hat trick. His career first.
We played like we were at war, defending our homes and families. The guys left nothing on the ice, and I fought just as hard for them. The roar of the crowd was deafening. It took all my concentration not to let it distract me.
Especially when I caught sight of Victoria watching me. Once I found her during the second period, I was constantly aware of her presence. I felt her cheering for me, rather than heard it when we locked eyes after a save. She was screaming, but so was everyone around her.
I dipped my head, making sure she knew I saw her without drawing too much attention.
She clapped, and I swear her cheeks flushed when Cambrie elbowed her.
I was a kid again, falling for the very first time.
We ended up winning by four.
She was in the press room, as expected, but she ran over the second I walked in after showering and changing.
“You were incredible!” She threw her arms around my neck, and I half spun her out of the way of my teammates walking in.
“Hey! Where’s my hug?” Schultz teased behind us.
“After last night, you’re lucky I haven’t posted something to humiliate you.” She shot him a hard look.
“We did it for you!” he argued, and Hartman put his hand on his shoulder.
“Give it a few days.”
Schultz sulked but let Hartman guide him away to a waiting reporter.
“You really were amazing tonight." She took my hand and led me to Cambrie, who lifted the camera and gave her a nod. “You weren’t named a star of the game, but you deserve the title.”
I wanted to hold on to that compliment, but slipped into interview mode. “Nah, Tyson earned that tonight.”
“The game was brutal. Between the penalties and fights, how did you keep your head clear?”
“I trusted the guys to do what they needed to and knew they were doing the same for me. I got my job done, and so did they.”
She grinned and signaled for Cambrie to cut. “Thanks, I need to get a few more interviews done before I can do my side project.”
“Which is?” I looked between the two of them, catching a look they shared.
“Well, the prank videos have been doing really well, and it looks like another one happened today.”
I searched the room and spotted the green head. “You should get Bryce over here then. He was one of the stars, and I’m sure he’d have a lot to say.”
Her eyes lit up. “Do you think he’ll do an interview?”
Cambrie tried to cover her laugh as I called Bryce to come over.
He rubbed his head, as if that would make the green go away. “Hi, ladies.”
The camera was already back up, and Victoria fought to keep a composed smile in place. “Congratulations on a great game, Bryce. Your goal during the third stole the energy from the Stripes. Do you think the green had anything to do with what we saw on the ice?”
He swallowed, staring her down. “No, I don’t think so.”
“No luck of the Irish on your side?”
“Nope.” He glared at me, but Victoria was already moving on.
“Fans have different theories on who is behind the pranks plaguing the men’s teams. Do you have any guesses as to who it is?”
He looked down the lens. “Not yet, but when I find out…there will be payback.”
Victoria grinned, and Cambrie lowered the camera.
“What do you guys know?” he asked then.
“Nothing,” Victoria held up her hands. “I don’t know who’s behind it.”
“But you’re always there first.”
“I have a source, but I don’t know who it is.”
He eyed her before giving up. “Fine, but if you find out––”
“You’ll be the first person I call,” she promised.
He huffed as he turned and walked away, and Cambrie started giggling again. “It’s truly an awful color on him.”
“Shouldn’t he have had to bleach his hair first to get it that bright?” Victoria asked.
“You’d think.”
“I thought that too,” I grinned, glad I was right.
“Must have been some nasty dye,” Cambrie smirked. “Poor guy.”
He'll be fine eventually.
But watching Victoria laugh made my chest tighten. Would I be fine after this?