“Locked up?” Nick asked, playing it off. “I’ve gotta get back to the arena, actually. See you again soon?”
“Sure, man,” Dev said, turning to me. “Ready, Annie?”
“Yeah, let me just hit the restroom and I’ll come down to your office,” I said a little too loudly.
And as I stepped into the bathroom, I flattened myself against the closed stall door, silently using every curse word in my vocabulary.
Dev had to know. I was so screwed.
Chapter 37
Nick
FEBRUARY | Tarot: Five of Cups
Annie
I need a favor
You got it, angel. What’s up?
I have a prospect who wants a behind the scenes at
the Princes. Coach knows we’re coming, but can you
take him under your wing? You’re the newest rookie
and closest in age
Of course. Always happy to help, baby.
Glad you asked
Thanks bub. XO
XO
XO. We knew what we had was bigger than XO, but Annie was comfortable with XO. On the determined day, Annie walked in with the kid I was supposed to show around. Annie obviously knows what I look like naked, but I still felt like I needed to flex by having my shirt off when she showed up. She took a quick glance at me, then turned to Romelski, giving him a hug.
“Hudson, good to see you!”
“Annie, who’s the kid? This our newbie?”
“Maybe,” she said with a wide grin, “if y’all can impress him today, you might get to keep him next year. This is Paxton Marshall. He’s going to start at Princeton, but we’re going to keep an eye on him and see if we can bring him to the dark side sooner.”
“Love that,” Romelski bobbed his head.
Annie gestured to me. “And if Obi would put a shirt on, he could meet you properly.”
“What’s up, man?” Paxton put his hand up for a bro hug, which I gave him. From the jump, something was off. I didn’t like the way he looked at Annie. Like he was better than her somehow. And something more sinister that unsettled me.
There are lots of great guys in hockey. I’m lucky my team’s pretty good to each other and mostly stays out of the darker side of the sport. But there are also some atrocious guys out there. They reek of toxicity, a part of the underbelly of hockey that I avoid at all costs.
Annie sensed my unease, her smile faltering for just a moment as she met my eyes, then returning to an even brighter smile.
“I’ll let y’all get changed and I’ll see you on the ice, yeah?” she asked. “Nick promised me you’d be in good hands with him.”
“Sounds great, Annie,” Paxton drawled as she turned to go, pulling out her phone on her way out. He turned to me. “She your agent, too?”
