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After lunch, I hit the ice with my wingers, the two guys who know me best in the locker room. We start off with a few warm-up laps and stretches, and then we work on passing and shooting reps. It’s just easing our way back in after taking the last couple months easy, and it’s mainly a session to get used to being on the ice again, to get our timing down and check our compatibility. But it’s also fun being out here again. It’s low-pressure, and it’s a lot of shit talk.
“Why are you so fucking slow today?” West asks me.
“Because I had sex before workouts. What’s your excuse?”
“Burn!” Kellan yells.
“Why don’t you try passing for once?” I ask West.
“Fuck off. It’s just practice,” West mutters.
“Yeah, but you look like you aged ten years in the offseason,” Kellan says.
West shoots him a pass, and I cut through the lane and pick it off, sending it flying into the net.
“Shitty pass, bro,” I scold West. “Get your shit together.”
We banter all through practice like always, and the shit talk continues into the locker room.
“Anyone up for a cold one?” Kellan asks, his way of inviting us to Vivi’s across the street.
“I have to meet my wife,” I say.
“Dude, knock it off with that my wife shit,” West says. “It was a goddamn bet.”
I shoot him a look that could potentially kill him. “It’s not anymore.”
He holds up both hands. “Okay, okay. Touchy subject. On another note, have you planned your annual back-to-camp party?”
“I haven’t,” I admit. Every year, I invite my teammates and dates over the first Friday after practice for a night to decompress with too much alcohol and greasy food. It’s always a hell of a good time, and I guess it’s become a bit of a tradition. “But we’ll plan on the usual.”
I head out after that toward Ivy’s office, and I’m curious to hear what this is all about. She greets me at reception, and together, we walk back to her office.
“Close the door,” she instructs, and I wiggle my eyebrows like it means something other than what it does. She rolls her eyes but smiles while she does it. “Keep it in your pants, Maddox.”
I laugh and shut the door, and she sits at her desk. She looks all hot and ready to take on the world, and I sit across from her and simply stare at her and wonder how a douche like me got so lucky to marry this beautiful, capable woman.
“I spoke with Everleigh this morning. I told her that you offered me a full-time social media management position, and I wanted to take it.”
“You did?” I’m surprised.
She nods. “I have to grab onto my dream job with both hands, even if it’s with some hockey player.” She purses her lips and rolls her eyes as she teases me, and I can’t help a laugh. “But the thing is, she wants me to run it through Ever-Brand. She said if I ever decide to leave to start my own business, she’d allow me to take you as my client.”
“Seems like a decent safety net.”
“It is. Does that work for you?” she asks softly.
“Babe, this is getting you closer to your dream. Of course it works for me.”
Her eyes soften.
“And can I just add one thing?” I ask.
Her softened eyes narrow a bit as she waits for it, and my lips tip up.
“Talking to her about all this couldn’t have been easy, and I just want to point out that it was the adult thing to do. I’m proud of you for stepping up and fighting for what you want, and I’m here to support you however I can.”
She presses her lips together and looks up at the ceiling before fanning her face with her hand. “And now I’m crying.”
