Unable to resist, I press her against the wall beside the door and I kiss her, long and deep, a promise, a certainty. No matter what answer I get, we’ll figure something out. We have to. I can’t let her go.
At the gate to the palace, I poke my head out the car door. The fact that I got here on my own is some kind of miracle, but it’s late, and I’m not sure if I should have waited until the morning. Patience, once I want something, is not my strong suit.
Since I don’t know if King Alexander can or will help me, I didn’t want my driver gossiping about this visit. Generally, he’s been good, but there have been a few leaks in the press about me or Sawyer that have made me wonder. I’m not taking any chances when the outcome could change my life forever.
The security guard at the gate checks his watch. “You have an appointment?”
“Logan Bishop,” I say. “No appointment. I’m here to see King Alexander, if he’ll see me.”
“I’m assuming it’s an emergency at this hour.”
“Definitely a ticking clock,” I say.
“Heard you’re getting traded,” the guard says. “You’ll be missed. Put on a hell of a show on the ice.”
“You’re a fan?”
“Enough that I’ll risk the king’s ire to see if he’ll see you,” he says with a hint of a grin.
Then he holds a phone to his ear and turns away from me. I sit at the gates, willing them to open.
“You’re in luck,” the guard says. “King Alexander’s in a good mood. Queen Aurora’s starting to feel better, so that’s a good sign for his temperament. Good luck!”
The gates ahead of me swing open, and I inch along the long gravel drive toward the humungous, old building that I know overlooks the ocean during the daylight. At night, it’s just a series of pretty lights and big trees dotted around the property. Tennis courts. Basketball courts. A few walking paths that seem to be lit circling the grounds.
While it’s not the first time I’ve been here, it’s the first time I’ve paid much attention. The other times I’ve been here it’s been with Sawyer or for hockey events, and the place has been buzzing. It’s a lot easier to take in the scene when there’s no one else around.
I park in front of the door marked as the main entrance, and I climb the stairs. Before I get to the top one, the heavy door swings open.
“Is this about the trade?” King Alexander asks. “You know I’ve bowed out of the team.”
“You’re saying you don’t have any influence?”
King Alexander bristles. “No, I wouldn’t say that.”
“Then I’m here to make a deal for my life, for my happiness. I think there’s a way where everyone gets what they want, and the team is better for it.”
“Your life and your happiness?” King Alexander asks, a hint of an amused smile tugging at the corners of his lips. “Bit dramatic, isn’t it?”
“I’m as serious as a heart attack, Your Highness. You’ve got both in the palm of your hand right now.”
King Alexander takes a step back and seems to be giving me a second, assessing look. “Is this about Sawyer Tucker?”
“It is,” I admit. “But it’s also about this island, this team. We’ve both got a lot of good to give, and if we leave this island, that goes with us.”
He releases a deep sigh. “I’ve been you, desperate for an outcome I didn’t think I could get, and I got lucky. Let’s see if you can get lucky too.” He steps back from the door and ushers me in. “Tell me how we all become winners.”
Chapter Forty-Three
Sawyer
For the next two days, I keep myself busy with work. Radek and Auston asked if I’d train them, too, and I agreed to work with them during the offseason. Since I wasn’t sure what was going to happen with Logan’s trade, I didn’t want to commit to more. And I still need to have my pro bono and low-income clients in the roster at an interval that keeps them on their paths to recovery.
Logan and I have texted and spoken on the phone, but we haven’t seen each other in person. Whatever deal he’s trying to work out has required long hours from him and his agent, and from what Logan’s told me, a lot of negotiation at a bunch of levels. Last I spoke to him, the deal still wasn’t done or even a certainty.
Some of the hockey news sites are reporting Logan’s trade to Oregon as though it’s happened or is imminent, which is making me nervous. But I’m trying not to let the trade gossip get to me.In the end, Logan will be wherever Logan will be, and I might have to make some hard choices.
The only thing that gives me hope is that I know Dalton is out of every sphere of influence, and I’ve heard through the family grapevine that King Alexander is back in the mix with the team.
