Total pages in book: 128
Estimated words: 124494 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 622(@200wpm)___ 498(@250wpm)___ 415(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 124494 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 622(@200wpm)___ 498(@250wpm)___ 415(@300wpm)
I can’t tell if she’s kidding. I might need one.
“The team calls me Hammer, my dad calls me Peggy, and Hollis calls me Aurora,” Hammer adds.
“Or Princess,” Hemi adds.
“That’s sweet,” I say.
“You’d think, wouldn’t you?” Hammer’s grin turns sly.
I’m trying to keep track of the dynamics of this group, but I feel weird about cozying up to Roman’s daughter. I’m keeping this secret from her, and everyone else.
We arrive at the Watering Hole as the first drops of rain fall. The second I step inside I fall in love. One wall consists of massive TV screens, all playing sports. The floors are wide hardwood planks. Booths with plush cushions line the walls, and in the center are long, wide tables with bar chairs. The bar is dotted with businesspeople and casually dressed locals.
Four women wave at us. Three look to be in their mid-twenties, and the other looks closer to Ophelia’s age. One I recognize from Tristan’s social media.
“Come on.” Hemi touches my arm. “Let me introduce you.”
“Sure. Yeah. That would be great.”
“Ladies, this is Alexandria Forrester, the Terror’s new assistant coach and a hundred percent badass,” Hemi announces.
“Outside of work, I usually go by Lexi.” I lift my hand in a wave. I’m so out of practice with socializing off the ice.
“Tristan told me about the Connor-Flip debacle. Impressive metaphorical balls you’ve got.” She extends her hand. “I’m Rix, Tristan’s fiancée and Flip’s sister.”
“You’re in school for nutrition, right?” I overheard Tristan talking about it to Dallas during warm-up before all hell broke loose.
“That’s right. I just went back.” She touches the shoulder of the girl beside her. “And this is Essie, my childhood best friend and our resident makeup artist.”
Essie smiles and waves. She looks runway ready with her long black hair and perfect makeup.
“And next to Essie is Tally,” Rix says.
“Hi.” Tally gives me a wry smile. “Vander Zee is my dad.”
Is it weird to be hanging out with my boss’s daughter? Why is navigating a new workplace so treacherous? “It’s nice to meet you, Tally.”
“And I’m Dred,” the woman to my left says. “Short for Mildred. I’m related to none of these wonderful women by blood or boyfriend, but Flip is my neighbor, and these ladies took it upon themselves to fold me into their crew.”
“We have no regrets about that, and we hope you don’t either.” Hemi smiles fondly at her.
“Having a hockey player as a friend has turned out to be the best thing that’s ever happened to me,” Dred replies. “Have a seat and join the party.” She pats the spot beside her.
I slide onto the chair, envious of their tight bonds and easy conversation. For the last year I’ve been trying to keep my head above water as I managed two grieving kids, my own grief, learned how to parent my siblings, and oh yeah, did my job. At the end of the day, I was too exhausted to entertain going out with friends.
Dallas sets a pitcher of margaritas on the table and another of water, Flip following with glasses. The rest of the guys from the team line one side of the bar. Roman’s gaze shifts toward me for a second, so I quickly look away. Pulling him aside to talk won’t be easy in this intimate environment.
“Sorry about today, Coach,” Flip says. He doesn’t look like the fuck boy without a care in the world. This is the man who cares about his team.
“Lesson learned, I think.” Part of me want to pull him aside and see what I can learn so we can fix the issue with Connor. But I need to earn his trust first, and being social is one way to show him and everyone else this is more than just a job for me.
“My legs will remind me to keep my fists to myself in the future,” he says wryly. “Talls, you need a refill on your soda?”
She shakes her half-full glass. “I’m good, thanks.”
Flip and Dallas join the other players at the bar, leaving me with the girls. They pour margaritas and pass them out, but I opt for water.
“How’s your university experience so far?” Dred directs the question at Tally.
She glances over her shoulder, then drops her voice. “Classes are fine. But I went to an off-campus party with a couple of girls in my program, and it was just a lot of stupid drunkenness and boys peeing wherever they felt like.”
“That sounds accurate, and like parts of my job,” Dred says dryly.
“Where do you work?” I ask.
“The public library. Sometimes people suffering with addiction issues use the space to stay dry and warm. Especially in the winter,” she explains.
“Oh wow. That must be hard.” My library experiences were limited to the local one in my smallish town growing up. I imagine it’s different in a big city.