“I'm icing?—”
“You're done icing. Get dressed. We're going to the gym.”
“Rook, I really don't?—”
“Wasn't a request, Hart.” His voice was calm but firm. Captain voice. The one that didn't allow for argument. “Get dressed. Five minutes.”
He left before I could protest.
I peeled off the ice pack and got dressed slowly, my stomach churning with anxiety.
I pulled on sweats and a hoodie and followed him down the hallway to the facility gym. The door was closed, which was unusual for this time of day. Usually guys filtered in and out, doing maintenance work or extra conditioning.
Rook pushed the door open and I saw why it was closed.
The entire team was there.
My pulse spiked. “What is this?”
“Team meeting,” Rook said simply, and closed the door behind me.
I looked around the room. Volkov leaned against the squat rack, massive arms crossed, expression neutral. Mace stood near the bench press, looking uncomfortable. Finn sat on a medicine ball, bouncing slightly, eyes bright with curiosity. Benny was in the corner, quiet and watchful. Tate, Mercer, Callahan, Sato—everyone.
“Sit,” Rook said, gesturing to a bench.
I sat. My shoulder ached. My leg ached. My entire body was vibrating with tension.
Rook moved to stand in the center of the room, and the space went quiet. He looked at each player in turn, then back at me.
“We've got a situation,” he said. Voice calm. Measured. “Media's having a field day. Front office is scrambling. And our teammate is in the middle of it.” He paused. “So we're going totalk about it. Here. As a team. And whatever gets said in this room stays in this room.”
No one argued.
“Hart.” Rook looked at me. “Before anyone asks you anything, I want you to know something. You're our teammate. You're our brother. And nothing that happened between you and Coach changes that. Got it?”
My throat was too tight to speak. I just nodded.
“Good.” Rook crossed his arms. “Now. Someone ask the question so we can move forward.”
Silence. No one wanted to be the first.
Then Volkov spoke. “Is true? The photos. The relationship. Is real?”
The room held its breath.
I looked at Rook, and he was watching me with those eyes. And then he smiled.
Permission.
I took a breath. “Yeah. It's real.”
The room erupted in groans.
My heart sank. This was it. This was them rejecting me, pulling away, deciding I was too much of a liability to keep around.
But then Finn stood up, grinning like a maniac. “Pay up, fuckers. I called it.”
Benny pulled out his wallet. “You're kidding.”
