“Your…daughter?” I ask, narrowing my gaze.
He either doesn’t notice or doesn’t care. “Yeah, we’re going to have to teach Lindy some boundaries. She walked right into his room yesterday morning, asking him to have breakfast with us. Poor kid just got out of the shower. I think he had a mild stroke.” He snorts out a laugh.
“Jesus.” West shakes his head. “Lindy okay?”
“I don’t think it fazed her at all. Lourdes has this thing about not making body parts taboo or some bullshit like that. So, a penis is no different than an arm or a leg.”
“I beg to differ,” West says, chuckling. “But it’s good she’s not traumatized. Blaze may need therapy, though.”
“He’ll be fine. Now, if it was Jayne who saw him…that would be different. She needs to stay far the fuck away from hockey players.”
West doesn’t miss a step. “How come? Some of us are nice guys.”
“Not the ones she picks. I lived through that nonsense when I coached at Stephens College. He totally took advantage of her to get in my good graces, so there’s a strict no hockey players rule at our house. Full stop.”
“That’s a bummer,” I say quietly.
He snaps his gaze to me, irritation written all over his face. “We both know what you boys are like. Even the married ones. My daughter needs a better human being than an athlete. Especially under my roof.” With that, he nods and turns on his heel, calling over his shoulder, “Have a good workout.”
“Did he just call us bad human beings?” I ask West once he’s gone.
He nods. “I think he did.”
We exchange a look.
“Good to know,” I say, scowling.
“Look, just focus on the game. Everything else is bullshit. You have something to prove this year, so that’s where you need to put your energy. Forget about his dumb rules and opinions.”
“He’s our head coach—how the hell do I forget about him?”
“By keeping your nose clean and yourpenisfar away from his daughter.”
“Well, that’s already done, but I still don’t like that he thinks we’re all shit humans.”
“Think about that nice paycheck that’s coming. This is the most money you’ve ever made, right?”
I nod.
“And you don’t want to go back to the minors, so let it go. He tells you to play on the left, play on the left. He puts you in net, you gear up and pray it doesn’t hurt too much.”
We both chuckle and I set the conversation out of my mind.
I truly don’t need any distractions.
Chapter
Fourteen
Jayne
I pace nervously, hoping Broderick isn’t buried in the crowds watching me. I feel like an idiot and there’s a big part of me that thinks he isn’t going to show up. There’s an even bigger part of me afraid that he’s going to be some bald, overweight fifty-year-old who catfished me.
But I’m not alone.
Kelly is here.
We’re in a big public place.
