I pulled the lettuce out of the burger and put it on the side of the plate. I contemplated the burger for a long moment.
“Devon?”
“No.” Instead of biting into the mammoth burger, I ate a fry.
Not nearly as satisfying.
“No what? What are you not saying?” Claus took a long drag from his beer.
I didn’t recognize the name of the brand. I assumed it was a local brewery. “No, last night wasn’t the first night. No, I didn’t see you when I got out of the SUV. No, it won’t happen again.”
Claus held my gaze.
For what felt like an eternity.
Finally, he broke the silence. “You swear?”
“I swear.”
My phone buzzed with an incoming message.
On autopilot, I checked.
Coach.
Claus snatched the phone before I realized what he was doing. He arched an eyebrow when he saw who was messaging me.
I snatched the phone back. “It’s probably about the practice.”
“Bullshit.” He tapped his beer. “Do I have to stay here all night to ensure you don’t respond?”
“No.” I put the phone down with the screen facing the table. “I’ll see him tomorrow at practice.”
The phone buzzed four more times before I went to bed.
I never answered.
CHAPTER 9
JACK
I could take a hint. My texts went unread and unanswered. When Devon arrived for the morning skate, he was all business. He wasn’t even avoiding my gaze or acting nervous around me—our interactions were strictly player and coach. End of story.
Just as well. As much as I wanted him, I’d been trying to talk myself out of giving in ever since I realized he played for me. Well, okay, I’d given lip service to all the reasons we shouldn’t do this and why I should back away, but I hadn’t exactly done much to persuade myself.
Between the two of us, Devon was apparently the adult in this equation. He was the one with some functioning professional survival instinct, and he was—with his cell phone silence and on-ice focus—laying down the law.
Honestly, I was relieved. Frustrated and disappointed, sure, but relieved. Maybe now I could focus on the reasons I’d been hired by the Grizzlies organization.
Right now, that meant a post-practice meeting with the team captain inmy office.
“You know this team better than I do.” I sat back in my chair and drummed the armrest. “When Vancouver needs to call someone up, who do you think is ready?” The GMs of both teams made the final decision there, and sometimes they’d ask for a specific player, but the head coach often played a role too. The GMs had already asked me a few times who I thought was ready; the injury fairy had been merciful so far this season, but it was only a matter of time before she showed up and wreaked havoc on Vancouver’s roster. We needed to have a plan for who was going up when players started going down.
Lous shifted in the guest chair, gazing at my desk with unfocused eyes as he pursed his lips. “Well, on the offensive lines, both of my linemates are more than ready. Twos went up twice last season and came back with three points. Arvy was still a rookie, but he’s earned a spot on the top line, so…” He waved his hand.
I nodded as he spoke. “They’re both solid. It’s… I mean, it was hard to tell who really shines when the only game we’ve played so far is…” I grimaced.
The captain chuckled and shrugged. “It wasn’t our best performance.”