Chapter 2
TWO
Elizabeth
“Logan, someone’s here,” I whisper yell at him when I notice that he’s just sitting on the bench, staring at me.
He doesn’t jump into action, making me want to slap him upside the head. I don’t know what his deal is, but if we get caught naked in this locker room, I will never be able to live it down.
I frantically look around for my clothes, happy to see they are all in the same general area, so at least I don’t have to run around the entire room searching for my things.
When he finally snaps out of it and stands up, I can’t help the snort of laughter erupting from my chest. His track pants slid down, and they are now resting around her ankles. He is basically as naked as me.
I grab my underwear, ready to pull it up my legs, still laughing at the picture he makes.
The six-pack he’s sporting is a complete distraction, though, and I wish things weren’t this complicated at the moment.
When I decided to tell him that I loved him, I envisioned it to be a bit more romantic.
Maybe I should’ve thought of the location first. But I was impatient, and now, here we are.
“You’re so fucking beautiful,” he grumbles from behind me.
I yelp and jump up when he touches my left buttock, wishing like hell that I wasn’t in such a panicked state right now.
“Pull your pants up, Logan,” I tell him in between small fits of laughter. Meanwhile, I still haven’t managed to pull my panties up.
With him distracting me, I forget to listen for whatever is going on out in the hallway. That is why, I am completely blindsided when the door to the locker room opens abruptly.
“And here are the players’ locker room,” my father’s strong voice echoes all around us.
I let out a yelp and jump to hide behind Logan, who is still standing with his pants around his ankles. I’ve always loved that he hates wearing boxers under his pants, but they could’ve come in handy right now because they wouldn’t have slid down his legs like the pants did.
“What the hell is going on here?”
My father’s demanding tone pulls a small whimper out of me. I am shivering as I am hiding behind a naked Logan, while being naked myself. Logan’s entire body tenses, but he doesn’t move at all.
Unsure of how to proceed, I lower myself to the ground, careful not to show my face.
I blindly search for the elastic of his track pants, then, with one sudden move, I come up, bringing them with me.
The elastic band gets momentarily caught under his softening member right before snapping into place around his waist.
I feel Logan’s body flinching. “That hurt a little,” he mutters.
I slap a hand over my mouth, forcing myself not to laugh. This is the worst timing ever, for everything and everyone involved.
When it gets too quiet in the room, I attempt to peek around Logan, hoping that my father had enough sense to leave so we could get dressed.
Unfortunately for me, not only that he hasn’t left yet, but I can now see clear recognition on his face when our eyes meet.
The shock in his is something to behold.
“Give me a few minutes, everyone,” he speaks toward the group he’s with. “Leyla…” He addresses the head of the Sliders’ PR. “Please take everyone to the ice and show them around the suites.” There is some shuffling going on. “I appreciate you.”
I can tell the exact moment when the door closes, and I am ready to jump into action. Just as I am about to launch for my clothes, my father speaks again, making me freeze in place.
“I will step outside so you two can get dressed.” His voice is eerily calm. “You have thirty seconds,” he tells us. “No more, no less.”
The door opens and closes again, this time signaling that it’s just me and Logan left inside the locker room.
“Oh my God,” I let out a snort. “This is embarrassing.”
I rush to put my underwear on, followed by the socks, then my pants, and finally my shirt. I am sliding my feet into my shoes when I realize that Logan is not moving or saying anything at all.
“Hey.” I bend down to grab his T-shirt off the floor. “Put this on before my dad comes in. He won’t appreciate your abs like I do if he finds you like this when he walks back in.”
I start laughing again, trying to make light of the situation. Logan is still frozen in his spot. When I walk around to look at him, I notice how strained his face looks.
“Logan…” I touch him gently as I bring the shirt up for him to put it on. “I know this is not ideal,” I explain. “It is not how I wanted my dad to find out about us. But it’ll be okay.”
He pushes his arms through the holes in the shirt, his moves abrupt and uncoordinated. He looks at me with crazed eyes. “I don’t want to lose my spot on the team.”
My eyes widen in disbelief, which is then replaced by a little bit of anger. I am irritated that he is more concerned about his position on the hockey team than he is about me.
“He is not going to get rid of you because of this, Logan,” I snap at him, feeling like he’s purposely blowing things out of proportion.
I don’t have time to say much more when the door opens, and my father walks back in. Thankfully, he is alone this time around. His eyes lock with Logan’s, never acknowledging me at all.
Unsure of how to proceed, but happy that at least I have my clothes on now, I jog lightly to him, then hop up a little to kiss him on the cheek.
“Hi, daddy,” I say like nothing ever happened. “I know this is a weird way to introduce you to my boyfriend,” I start. “But…”
“Your boyfriend?” He barks at me. “This is who you’ve been seeing?”
In the last few months, every time I went out, I’d tell him that I am dating someone new, and that I would introduce them when the time was right. Logan was always worried about it, so I never had a chance to. Until now.
“Yes,” I chuckle nervously. “Surprise!”
I clap my hands together, like it is the best thing ever, but my father is not impressed in the least. Instead, he focuses all his attention on Logan.
“You’re the third stringer we just signed on,” he tells him.
Logan tries to swallow around the obvious lump in his throat. “Yes, sir.”
“Well…” My father lets out a sarcastic laugh. “You have an interesting way of approaching how to advance in your career.”
“Daddy!” I am appalled by what his words imply.
Logan finally snaps from his stupor. “Sir, this is not what you think at all. Elizabeth and I met by chance…”
My father rolls his eyes at that. “That’s what they all say.”
“All who?” Logan snaps back before looking at me. “How many players have you been with?”
“What?” I slap a hand to my chest. “None! And I don’t like what you’re trying to imply, Logan.”
My words offend him. “Me? It wasn’t me who suggested this happened before.”
“Just because he said it,” I throw my arms out toward my father, “it doesn’t mean it really happened. He’s trying to make you feel bad.”
My words echo around the room when I raise my tone toward the end.
“Daddy, don’t make Logan feel bad about this,” I beg. “We didn’t do anything wrong…”
My father shakes his head in disbelief. “I would take you two more seriously if you didn’t sound like you were in high school,” he declares. “You are both adults…”
“Yes,” I exclaim, happy that he gave me something to fight with. “And we are allowed to do and see whomever we want.”
He ignores me, though, and turns his eyes back to Logan.
“You signed a contract with the New York Sliders,” he starts.
Logan nods in agreement. “Yes, sir.”
“That contract contained a morality close,” my father continues. “And I know for a fact that all terms were spelled out to you clearly prior to you putting the pen to the paper and signing.” A brief and dramatic pause ensues. “Is that correct?”
“Yes, sir,” Logan rushes to confirm once again.
“The morality clause included any fraternization with the staff…”
I hop up and down as I interrupt him. “I’m not employed by the Sliders,” I yell and point at him. “Ha!”
He doesn’t pay me any attention before addressing Logan again. “Or anyone deemed inappropriate by the New York Sliders organization.”
That part completely knocks the wind out of me. “That could be anyone, daddy.”
I hate how whinny my voice comes out. I do sound like the high school kid he accused me of being like.
“That could be anyone,” my father agrees, this time finally looking at me. “And that includes you.”
“What are you saying?” I argue back. “That Logan is forbidden from being with me? What is this, the Dark Ages?”
“What I am saying is that Logan,” he enunciates his name when he says it, “should’ve known better.” His voice is stronger now, leaving no room for further arguments.
Logan takes a step forward, getting closer to me. I don’t know if I should be grateful for it, or if I should push him back and force him to save himself at the risk of sacrificing me.
“Sir,” he addresses my father. “With all due respect, I love Elizabeth.”
My heart grows in my chest at hearing his words.
“None of this was deliberate,” he continues. “We didn’t know who the other was when we first met.”
I see the urge on my father’s face to roll his eyes at that last part. It’s obvious he doesn’t believe Logan.
“And when we realized it, we tried to come up with a way to make it work.”
“How long exactly has it been?” My father snaps at him.
Logan stands up straighter, looking taller than ever. “Six months, sir.”
“Six months,” my father repeats in disbelief. “And you haven’t found the time to come forward with this in six months?”
“Daddy, we wanted to be sure first,” I try to interfere.
“Sure of what?” He looks at me with pure fury.
“That I’d learn about it when I found you both naked in the arena locker room?
Because let me tell you, Elizabeth.” He points a finger at me.
“Finding my daughter naked with a man was not on my fucking bingo card for this year, or for the rest of my fucking life, for that matter!”
I flinch at his tone of voice. I’ve always been a daddy’s girl through and through. He never raised his voice at me like this, and he’s never dropped the F bombs on me either. I am at a loss on how to proceed, but I am still hopeful that things will work out in the end.
I am so into my own head, I almost miss what he says next when he addresses Logan.
“Meeting tomorrow morning, seven o’clock, sharp,” he barks at him. “If you have an agent, I advise you to bring him or her with.”
“Sir, I urge you to reconsider letting me go,” Logan is quick to respond. “I am a great goalie, and I…”
“Third string goalies are a dime a dozen, son,” my father sneers at him.
“I can fill an entire arena with them before midnight tonight. This is a professional hockey league, you’re not billeting in the middle of nowhere in Canada.
You should’ve thought of where you wanted your life to go when you decided that a contract with the Sliders didn’t mean anything to you. ”
“Sir, the contract with the Sliders means everything to me,” Logan yells back. “It’s changed my life for the better.” He sounds desperate and out of breath. “And so has your daughter. I love Elizabeth…”
“I am done listening to any of this nonsense,” my father informs him in a cool tone. “I will see you tomorrow morning. Bring your agent, bring your lawyer, bring your mother for all I care.”
He turns around on his heels, ready to leave the room. I am left in complete shock, unsure of how to react to anything that’s happened right in front of my eyes. I am scared to look at Logan, worried that I may have ruined his life without meaning to.
“Say goodbye to your boyfriend, Elizabeth,” my father snaps. “We’re leaving.”
The sarcastic way in which he refers to Logan rubs me the wrong way. I want to respond in kind, but I don’t want to make things worse for Logan. I know when I am about to lose or win a battle, and I decide that the current battle is not completely lost.
I pull my shoulders back and walk over to Logan, ignoring my father who is holding the door open for me. I get up on the tips of my toes, hoping to get as close to Logan’s face as I can, annoyed that he is so much taller than me.
“I will fix this, Logan,” I tell him. “Please believe me when I tell you.”
He shakes his head at me, disbelief and anger obvious in his eyes.
“This is so much worse than I ever imagined,” he tells me. “What the fuck am I going to do?”
My heart clenches in my chest at hearing the pain in his voice. He told me before that hockey meant everything to him, but I can’t even begin to comprehend the desperation he is experiencing right now.
“We’ll make it work.”
I try to get him to bend down and kiss me, but his body is tense, and he now refuses to meet my eyes. The fear from earlier, which I thought I’d pushed away, comes back with a vengeance.
“I’m not giving up on us, Logan,” I promise him. “Please don’t do it either,” I beg.
He nods but still won’t look at me. I can tell that he already checked out. I stare at him for as long as I can until I hear my father clearing his voice behind me.
“I’ve been as patient as I can be given the circumstances,” he growls at us. “But if I need to call security to get everyone removed off the premises, I will. Don’t test me,” he warns. “Either one of you.”
I jump up and kiss Logan on the cheek, then turn around and run to the door. I don’t wait for my father to catch up to me, and I don’t plan on going home with him either. Instead, I run all the way outside and to my car. I get in and start it, wondering where I could go.
I don’t understand how such a perfect day ended in the worst way possible.