Total pages in book: 102
Estimated words: 95606 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 478(@200wpm)___ 382(@250wpm)___ 319(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 95606 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 478(@200wpm)___ 382(@250wpm)___ 319(@300wpm)
Those words were out of his mouth before his brain acknowledged them.
Sensing Burgess’s knowing—and troubled—stare, Sig ran back through what he’d just said, weeding out the parts that made no sense. What reason would Chloe have to go with him if he got traded? What would that look like to the outside world? And she was now actively training to become first chair with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Maybe . . .
Maybe she wouldn’t want to come with him.
Sig’s palms grew damp in an instant, the meeting taking on a new importance.
“All right, men,” said McCarren, standing up slowly to address the room. “Thank you for coming in. Some of you even look half decent—”
Their coach was interrupted midsentence when Mailer and Corrigan swaggered into the room in T-shirts and bow ties, dapping up teammates as they passed.
“Spoke too soon. Congratulations, you both look ridiculous,” drawled McCarren. “Now sit the hell down. This is important.”
Too late, Sig realized Corrigan and Mailer were on their way to take the two empty front-row seats on his right, but there was nothing he could do about it now. They adjusted their bow ties with a flourish and took their seats, Corrigan sending Burgess a quick salute.
Burgess sighed.
“As I was saying,” boomed the coach. “Thank you for coming in on your night off. A little bit of housekeeping, then we’ll get to the point.” He proceeded to talk strategy for their next two games, which would take place on the road. Chicago and Detroit. “Moving on, I know we all saw this coming, as he’s been open with the staff, not to mention the press, about this being his final year with the Bearcats, but we’re officially saying goodbye to Abraham at the end of this season.” The staff started clapping, followed by the room full of players, the applause carrying on for a full thirty seconds. “He leaves behind a tremendous legacy . . .” McCarren’s gaze flickered briefly in Sig’s direction, but Sig couldn’t read his expression. “. . . and some mighty deep skates to fill.”
Some murmuring kicked up around the room.
Sig could feel eyes on the back of his head.
If McCarren was going to name Sig as the new captain, now would be the moment. But he didn’t. Obviously. They hadn’t even offered him a contract yet.
A bead of sweat rolled down Sig’s spine.
“Now.” The coach planted his knuckles on the table in front of him and leaned forward. “We have another announcement. And an introduction. For that, I’m going to hand it over to our general manager, Pete Bauer.”
Everyone simultaneously sat up straighter, trading looks.
Since Sig didn’t see the wealthy, somewhat notorious Bostonian in the front of the room, he turned and watched Bauer stomp his way down the aisle. Expectant silence fell as Bauer shook hands with McCarren and took his spot, front and center of the room, commanding attention with a curt nod. “Hello, gentlemen. Thank you for being here. I’m very pleased to be able to share some news with you tonight. I’m too excited to wait, so let’s get to it.” He clapped his hands together. “As you might have seen, so inelegantly reported in the press, I was recently married. For a fourth time, but who’s counting?”
Some of the coaches huffed a laugh, as if they could relate.
And yeah, Sig had seen those headlines about Bauer and his new, much younger, wife. None of it had any bearing on hockey, however, so he’d mostly ignored the stories. Right about now, he wished he’d done more than skim.
“My wife is expecting twins now, if you can believe it. I haven’t had any little ones running around in a while, but the news has made me realize how grueling the life of a GM can be. My health is more important now than ever and I need to focus on that, so I can be around for my twins.” He added dryly, “Stress drinking while I analyze the league standings and playoff predictions isn’t going to help me be present. For them. In fact, my cardiologist suggested I take a step back years ago. It’s time to listen. And so, without further ado, I’d like to announce that my daughter, Reese Bauer, will be taking over operations as general manager of Bearcats.”
You could have heard a pin drop.
Their hockey team was going to be managed by a woman.
One they’d never heard of.
Okay. Setting aside the fact that the league didn’t have a single woman as general manager, only assistant GMs, her name was totally unfamiliar. What were her qualifications? If she knew how to work hard and make tough decisions, Sig welcomed her as much as he would a man, but at that moment, he only had one thing on his mind.
How was this going to affect his contract? His captainship?