I pulled him aside, and with a low voice said, “Remember, all eyes are on you now. One stupid move and this whole PR win goes up insmoke. Understood?”
He smirked faintly. “Yes, ma’am.”
“I’m serious, Hunter. You’ve got momentum. Don’t blow it.”
He studied me for a moment, something unreadable flickering behind his eyes. Then he said, “Come with us.”
I blinked. “Excuse me?”
“Come out,” he said, like it was the simplest thing in the world. “Make sure I behave. Consider it overtime.”
And his cocky smile when he said it, well it damn near knocked the script right out of my head.
5
Holly
“Come on, PR, at least one beer,” Tucker said, sliding a sweating bottle toward me across the scarred table. “You came all this way.”
The bar smelled like old frying oil, old beer, and stale cigarette smoke. I’d barely been standing here five minutes before a chorus of cheers had gone up for someone behind me. The whole room pulsed with rowdy locals chirping the Surge guys in good humor, neon signs buzzing.
“I’m working,” I said, keeping my voice even as I scanned the corner booth.
Hunter sat across from me, with Mason Calder beside him, and Theo tipped back in his chair. The captain, Grayson, and his girlfriend occupied the end of the bench on our side. He didn’t seem too bothered with her being glued to her phone, glossy nails scrolling with a casualness only someone used to being watched could pull off.
Theo stopped rocking long enough to slide the beer closer to me. “If it’ll make you feel any better, I’ll keep an eye on Hunter tonight.”
“Yeah,” Grayson added. “After what you pulled off at the shirt ceremony, you’ve earned it.”
Hunter sat up, gaping at his teammates and friends. “The correctresponse is, ‘Hunter doesn’t need to be looked after like some kid’. I thought I could count on you guys.”
They sniggered into their own drinks, none of them ready to take on that argument.
“Well, you were the one who said I should make sure you behaved,” I replied, immediately hating how much like a hall monitor it sounded. Hated even more the looks I got from the others at the table.
A smirk tugged Theo’s lips, and he said, “You know that’s not the real reason he asked you here, right?”
Theo Bouchard, Surge defenseman. His Quebec accent turned the simple question into something soft and teasing. I hadn’t studied up much about the team, but I knew he was often the instigator behind Hunter’s off-ice shenanigans. Drinking buddies, is how Bob explained it.
“Excuse me?” I turned to face him fully. These guys were all the same. Always ready to hand it out, but not so quick to take it back.
“Nothing. Never mind.” And he hid behind an extra-long sip of his beer.
I caught Hunter’s eye for a fraction of a second, and saw all I needed to see. He was my charge, but still part of this team with a reputation. Me sitting here like a sour school teacher wasn’t helping what was supposed to be a celebration.
“Fine,” I said. “One beer.”
A cheer went up from the table and I felt my face heat up. I took a sip and let the icy bitterness loosen my shoulders and warm my chest. I supposed a little help to survive the night out with this crew would come in handy.
Mason tipped his chin toward me. “The press circus today… that was all you, wasn’t it? You could’ve given me a million guesses, and I never would’ve thought of Trey coming out there to hand him the jersey.”
“Just doing my job,” I said, glancing at Hunter. I couldn’t tellwhether he looked proud or annoyed.
“That was more than your job.” He took a sip and when he placed the bottle back down, he wasn’t looking at me anymore. “Trey was a lost cause when he walked out on us, and you fixed it. I still don’t know how.”
The acknowledgment startled me enough that I could only think to take another swig. “You’re welcome. Maybe next time show a little trust.”
The girlfriend, Josie, finally looked up from her phone. “You’re going to have to get used to it,” she said to me, her tone friendly but blunt. “This one’s allergic to soundbites. He’s even tougher to break in than Grayson.”
