So yeah, the idea of my sister buying an opposing team tracked.
But Astrid shook her head. “Not the Jazz. A much smaller team. It’s in a town that had an FPHL team until the end of this past season. The owners pulled out. The town still wants hockey, but they need a new owner. They came to Declan with the idea.” She looked across the wide stretch of Declan’s desk. “But of course Declan would never do something like that. Hockey has to be perfect. The highest level to be worth anything. Heaven forbid anybody have any fun or do something just for the love of the game.”
Her tone was biting, and I knew her ire was obviously targeted at the billionaire across the desk, but I felt a jab in my chest at her words.
I love hockey, but I also take it very seriously. I don’t remember the last time I played hockey just for fun or the love of the game. It’s serious stuff. It’s statistics and standings and money and fame and glory.
“FPHL,” I repeated. “That’s not even the minor leagues. That’s like a step up from a beer league.”
Astrid nodded. “And it’s a little tiny town in Louisiana where there’s no food delivery, nothing is open past ten—except the bar on the weekends—they wear denim and work boots and call people honey and darlin’ a lot. And they love hockey just for the sake of hockey. I get to build it from the ground up. With the help of the town and the fans. Which is how it should be. And they have a lot of ideas.” She met my gaze. “Come with me. You’ll be able to learn everything about managing a team. It’s not at Declan’s level, but it’ll be hands-on. It’s everything from working with the players to interacting with the town, the press, and the fans. We’re deciding on mascots and what to serve at the concession stands. We’re hiring all of the staff, from social mediamanagers to janitors. You’ll literally be able to touch every single part of what goes into making a hockey team work.”
I looked over Declan. “She has a point.”
He arched a brow. “Your sister is a very smart woman.”
Wow, a blatant compliment. I glanced at Astrid. Her cheeks were pink, but she wasn’t smiling, and she said nothing.
“If I go with Astrid and learn about everything from the ground up, that would be a very good, interesting experience.”
Declan nodded. “It would.”
“You know that Alex and I are very used to getting our way and being extremely successful,” Astrid said. “Obviously, this is going to be amazing.”
“Not to mention expensive,” Declan said, though he didn’t seem upset.
I guessed my sister used some of his money to buy this hockey team. She does fine, but there’s no way she’s got hockey-team-owner money.
She shrugged. “You’re the one who told me that I didn’t have to worry about money.”
Declan simply inclined his head in acknowledgement.
And now I’min Louisiana, about an hour and a half away from my first practice as a swamp werewolf. For fuck’s sake. I focus on my sister inheroffice. “Declanwouldhate it?” I ask. “He hasn’t seen it?”
Astrid laughs. “No. And I don’t expect him to.”
“Really?”
“Declan O’Grady isnotcoming to small-town Louisiana.” She frowns, studying the way the velvet moves as she brushes over it. “Declan likes things very neat and polished and perfect. Things here are way too messy for him.”
“Yes. We’re going to talk about your husband and the fact that you’re here in part to annoy him,” I tell her, leaning forward to rest my forearms on my thighs.
“We are not talking about that,” Astrid says. “We’re talking about what we’re going to do about the ticket sales here.”
“What’s going on?” Nora asks, sitting forward.
I realize from their body language that they’re very comfortable with one another.
“I had three hundred season tickets sold as of this morning,” Astrid says.
“Only threehundred?” I ask, my attention effectively torn from Nora and the cute way her hair flips up at the ends just below her jawline.
“Well, two hundred ninety-three,” she clarifies. “But I had five hundred and sixty-five before they found out you were coming to play here. And since you got to town, I’ve lost thirty more.”
I sit forward. “What? You’relosingticket sales because of me?” I scowl. “Do you mean you’ve lost more in the pastthirty minutessince I got here?”
Astrid shrugs. “They don’t like you here.”
“I’m aware.” I turn my gaze on Nora.
