Winning Streak (16 page)

“Sure. Have a seat.” Jacey finished signing a document. “What can I do for you?”

Saralynn closed the door then eased into the chair opposite Jacey's desk, her posture straight from years of dance training. She tried to keep her hands loose in her lap. Not that she had a ton of experience, but it felt like sitting in the principal's office. Guilt weighed on her even though she hadn't really done anything wrong. “Well, I just wanted to tell you I've been—”

“Dating my brother.”

Even for someone practiced in maintaining a cool expression, that one threw her, and her mouth fell open but only for a second.

Jacey smiled, but it wasn't exactly happy. “I didn't know for sure, but the pieces fit. It's fine. It's not an ethics breech, and Madden can date whomever he wants. Just keep it professional at work.”

“I … of course.” It couldn't be that easy, could it? She'd had a whole speech planned out with bullet points and everything. Jacey wasn't doing a jig or welcoming her to the family, but she wasn't writing up a pink slip either. This reaction was better than she could have hoped for. So why did it feel disappointing?

Maybe because it wasn't approval but more like acceptance.
Madden can date whomever he wants.
The lack of concern, or at least curiosity, felt off. It underlined the rift between Jacey and Madden, and that tightness in her chest? Another sympathy pang for the man who was starting to mean more to her than she knew how to handle.

“Is that all?”

Saralynn jolted back into the moment. “No, actually. I've been getting a lot of letters—a
lot
of letters—from female fans about the dance team. They think it's demeaning and ridiculous, and out of place at a hockey game.”

Jacey closed her eyes and rubbed her forehead. “I know. I don't disagree, but I was out-voted two years ago, and they did give us a boost in ticket sales. Besides that, they provide other important functions like T-shirt and concession giveaways. They host team meet-and-greets and do birthday parties for fans.”

“Right. They need to stay. But I was thinking, to add some validity, we could have them do shootouts and play three-on-three mini games during period breaks. They could even wear our new women's jerseys and potentially increase those sales. We could work it like any other mid-game promotion and pick two seating sections. Say, if one team of ladies wins, section 103, row M gets free pizza, if the other team wins, another row gets it.”

“That's a really good idea. It could show that the dance team has some skill and hockey knowledge and isn't just there for decoration. Nice work. I like it. There are some logistics issues though. They had to know how to skate to make the dance team, but how many of those girls know how to shoot a puck? I don't want them out there scrambling around, looking like a joke. That could make things worse.”

“Totally agree. That's why I want to run some clinics. I was going to ask Coach Windham if she'd mind sparing an hour after each team practice for a week.”

Jacey tilted her chin up like she was going to say something, but at the mention of the Sinners' coach, she pressed her lips together and looked like she was holding back a laugh. Understandable. Nealy Windham had a reputation for scaring the shit out of her players—tough, enormous men. God knows what she'd do to a dance team. But if they needed to learn hockey, there was no better teacher than Nealy. Jacey cleared her throat. “Okay. Um. Good luck.”

Saralynn saluted and stood. “So you're on-board with this?”

“On-board. Oh, Saralynn?”

She paused on her way out the door and looked over her shoulder.

“Be careful. With Madden. Workplace romances can be complicated, and you're a real asset to this team. I wouldn't want anything to jeopardize that.”

Her proud buzz took a nosedive as she tried to separate the compliment from the insinuation that her relationship would probably fail. At a loss, she just nodded and saw herself out.
Be careful with Madden.
Because
she
was the one likely to screw things up? Maybe that's not what Jacey meant. Not that it wasn't a legitimate concern. After all, she'd almost crashed and burned their love boat on an iceberg named Blake just this past weekend. But things were out in the open now, and it would be different. No more hiding or hurdles, and damned if she wouldn't prove that to Madden, to Jacey, and most of all, to herself.

She ducked into her office and ran right into her brother's back. “Reese.” She rubbed her nose. “Now's not a good time.”

He turned around and smirked but just as fast traded it for an apologetic expression. “I'm sorry, Sare.”

“No biggie. I should have watched where I was going.”

“No, I mean for Saturday night. For everything. Madden came and talked to me yesterday after practice. I like to think I'm pretty intimidating, but he didn't back down. I respect that. He's a good guy, and I'm sorry I made you feel like you couldn't tell me.”

She tried to imagine Madden going toe to toe with her big brother and smiled. Facing off with Reese was no small feat. No guy had ever done that for her before. It should have felt good. And it did on some deep, basic level. So why did she have the sudden urge to run away for a week by herself on some remote island? No doubt Allie would have the answers, but Saralynn didn't, so she hugged her brother to avoid talking it out. Reese might be all evolved and ready to listen, but she wasn't ready for more self-excavation at the moment. He tucked his chin on top of her head like he'd always done. With everything that had been going on, she hadn't even realized how much she'd missed him.

“You all right?”

“Yeah. I'm fine.”

“Never in recorded history has fine ever meant fine coming from a woman.”

“Stop worrying about me. I can take care of myself.” Said the girl clinging to a hug from her big brother. She stepped back.

“Sorry. Worrying's in the job description. Sure you're okay?”

“I'm cool. I'm great. I'm awesome. And I'm way behind on a project for Friday. Catch you later?”

He studied her like he wasn't convinced, but he was smart enough to back off. “Yeah, okay. Love you.”

“Love you back.”

When he left, she fell into her chair and stared at the filing cabinet. By all accounts, she should be happy. She was doing well at work, seemingly well in her relationship. Things were out in the open with no dramatic kickback. So where was this anxiety coming from?

What's wrong with me?

Thursday, March 27th

For once, Madden actually hoped Cole would be around as he pulled up the horseshoe drive to the enormous mansion, but the house was dark. He didn't feel like being alone, and he needed to think out loud with the possibility of getting an answer back. He'd expected Jacey to have
some
kind of reaction, but according to Saralynn, it was apathy with the caveat that they keep it out of the office.

His sister kept building the wall higher and higher between them, and he had to get through. Jacey was the only family he had left. Losing her wasn't an option. He pulled into the garage and frowned. No lights on, but Cole's SUV was in its spot. Maybe he was watching a movie. Madden headed past the laundry room for the kitchen and threw his keys on the counter. “Honey, I'm home.”

Silence. Okay, this was creepy. “Yo! Cole!” Nothing. Oops. What if he'd brought Tricia over? Maybe the two of them were in Cole's room, hoping he'd go away. They usually worked out that kind of thing ahead of time, but it was possible. Only one way to be sure. He went up the marble stairs in the foyer, holding his breath. One good thing about stone—it didn't creak. Blue TV light shone underneath Cole's door, and muted sounds came from inside, but not the carnal kind. There was music, but filtered like it was coming from headphones, and the occasional … whimper?

Oh man. He was so not suited for this. He turned to leave the guy alone but stopped. Is that what best friends did? How many times had Cole listened to his sob stories? He at least had to offer. Shit. Madden winced and knocked a few times. The music cut out.

“Cole? You okay, man?”

More sounds from inside. Cole blowing his nose, the bed creaking, and then the door opened. His eyes were red and puffy, but he made an effort to look casual. He must have realized how badly he failed because he laughed and slid a hand over his face. “Well, this is fucking embarrassing.”

“Remember who you're talking to. The embarrassment bar is pretty high. Nobody else needs to know. What happened?”

He ducked his head, clearly trying not to cry again. “Tricia broke things off.”

Damn
. What was the protocol here? Dudes didn't hug unless they were saying hello or goodbye, and even then with a handclasp between them. Absolutely not when any emotion was involved. “Do you want to grab a beer from the fridge, kill some zombies? Talk or not talk?”

Cole looked back inside his dark room then nodded. “Yeah. Yeah, that sounds good.”

They made a trek through the kitchen to pick up a six-pack then headed for the theater room. It was a little awkward, but Cole seemed steadier, and that felt good. Madden had never had a little brother and never wanted one, but since Cole moved in, he'd seen what he'd missed. It was rewarding to look out for him, to pay him back for all his advice and support.

They sat in their usual spots and each cracked a beer. Madden powered up the projector and game system and waited for it to load or Cole to say something—whichever came first.

“I didn't see it coming at all.”

Madden nodded. It was best to let the kid unload in his own time. Besides, what could he say? Only hearing Cole's side of it, it'd sounded like the two had a perfect relationship. Of course he was blindsided.

“Things seemed so great, you know? I guess looking back, she wasn't that excited when I brought up moving in. And maybe she didn't text me as much this past week. I honestly didn't notice with all the games we've been playing and the bachelor auction. That sounds bad, doesn't it?”

“No. You're one of the busiest people I know. And you've been dating her for a few months; she knew your schedule going into it. What'd she say?”

“She met someone else. I asked who, but she said it wasn't important. She said he had more time for her. How could I argue with that? My life is what it is. I did the best I could.”

That much was beyond question. Dylan Cole did his best in every area of his life. He wasn't capable of anything less. If Tricia couldn't see or respect that, he deserved better. “I'm sorry, man. This is really rough. I know you cared about her a lot and it doesn't seem like it now, but if that's how she feels, she's not right for you. I happen to know there are millions of other girls who would sell a kidney to be with you. Your fan clubs are proof of that.”

Cole laughed. “Yeah, I don't think so. They kinda scare me.”

“Okay, they're a little extreme, but you get the point. I promise you there's someone out there.”

“Thanks.” He took a long pull of beer and stared straight ahead for a minute before refocusing. “What about you? How'd Jacey take the news?”

“She already knew. That shouldn't surprise me. Observation has always been one of her things. Other than that, Saralynn said she didn't seem to care at all. I've been trying to get a minute with Jace all week, but she keeps blowing me off. She's been mad at me before, but she's never frozen me out like this. I just wish I knew what I did that was so bad.”

“She knows you didn't gamble, so it can't be that, right? Do you think she's more upset about Saralynn than she's letting on?”

“She never got involved in my dating life before, even if she didn't like a woman I was seeing. She's only ever wanted me to be happy. Why wouldn't she like Saralynn?”

“I don't know, man. You're right. It doesn't make sense. She'll be at the arena all day tomorrow since it's a game night. Get her to talk. Looks like you both need it.”

Madden nodded. This runaround had to stop. He'd like to get more than three hours of sleep a night. He hit the start button on his controller. “So, zombies?”

“Zombies.”

Friday, March 28th

At noon, Madden crossed the hall to Saralynn's office and knocked before poking his head in. “Hey, you up for lunch? I got takeout. Thought maybe we could eat down by the ice. It was just resurfaced after practice, so it has that crisp, fresh smell. Plus the lights are low, no one's around. A nice, romantic atmosphere.” The perfect place for the conversation he wanted to have.

“Uh … ” Her gaze swept over her desk, her computer screen, then the rest of the room like she was looking for something. Her posture was rigid, but she might've just been stressed about trying out the hockey stuff with the dance team tonight. Still. It was enough to take the edge off his appetite. Finally, she met his eyes. “Sure. I guess I can do a quick lunch. I have a lot to get ready for, though, so—”

“Quick it is.” He held her door open with one hand, two bags of takeout in the other, while she grabbed her purse then started for the elevator. She kept a step ahead, but the hallway was narrow, so that didn't necessarily mean anything. The silent ride to the main concourse level was a little more disconcerting. Saralynn was not known for being quiet. And while she didn't back into a corner, she kept about a foot between them, painfully noticeable in the small space.

Before he could think of something to say, the door slid open, and she didn't exactly bolt, but it was not a slow exit. She led the way down into the stadium and didn't stop until she chose a seat right against the glass by the penalty boxes. He sat beside her and handed her a bag. Tried a smile.