Save My Soul (25 page)

“Hello?”

“Tim? It's Jacquelyn Vaughn.”

“Ah, Ms. Vaughn. Did you get my message?”

Jacey took a silent breath and paused in her cleaning. “Yes, that's why I'm calling. Listen, if you could just coach through the next season, it would be an enormous help — ”

“I'm afraid I can't do that; you'll have to find someone else.”

Desperation rolled in a wave from head to toe, her chest tightened, and the wet napkins fell from her grip. “But there's no way that I'll find another coach at this short notice.”

“I'm sorry, Ms. Vaughn, but I'm set on the matter.”

“I understand, but — ”

“I'm sorry.”

Dial tone.

Jacey leaned back against the cupboards and slumped to the floor. She looked at her phone without seeing it and pushed the
off
button. After a few minutes of inaction, she set it on the counter then returned to the mess on the floor, cleaning on autopilot. An unexpected tear slid down her cheek followed by another and another. She sniffled then laughed. “I'm crying over spilled milk.” The laughter mingled with soft sobs and hiccups as she finished the job and wiped her face with the back of her hand.

She stood, kicked off her heels, and belly flopped onto the king-size bed. Face planted in the comforter, arms at her sides, and stocking feet dangling over the edge, she fell fast asleep.

• • •

Carter slid into McMullan's a little before eight. The bar was already busy with tourists and several regulars. A few heads turned, and he waved and smiled as he weaved his way to a booth in the back, where he found his best friend and goalie, Shane Reese.

Reese's baby face had followed him from pre-teen to post adolescence and guaranteed that he'd get carded well into his thirties. It also gave the goalie a female following that could rival Carter's own. Reese eyed him over a tall mug of beer as Carter slid in the opposite side. “So … ?”

Carter slouched back and took a pull from the bottle that had been waiting for him. “I'm staying.”

A half smile curled Reese's mouth before he took a drink. He was one of the few men on the team with all his original teeth. A luxury of being a netminder. “Vaughn Junior bend over and beg?”

“I wish.”

Reese arched his brows, and Carter smiled devilishly like a kid with a good secret. He leaned his forearms on the table and savored it for a beat. “‘Vaughn Junior' wears Chanel Number Five and comes up to my chin in four-inch heels.”

Reese feigned a wince. “I hope to God you're talking about a woman.”

Carter laughed, nodded, and took another drink.

“And she's hot?”

A reflexive smile escaped before Carter could stop it, and Reese whistled low. An image flashed of Jacey sitting behind the desk doing mental math, and he straightened, clearing his throat. “I mean she's smart, too. Business smart, anyway. Has an MBA from Yale. She doesn't seem to know a lot about hockey, though.”

“So how much more are you getting?”

Carter hesitated, shrugged and took a drink. “One point five.”

“But … ” After a few seconds, the light went on in Reese's eyes. “Damn. Curtis must have shit bricks. You might need to find a new agent.”

That could be true. Brad hadn't said a word to him when they left Jacey's office. “Whatever.”

Reese didn't seem ready to let it go, but he did and grunted into his mug. Their plate of chili cheese fries arrived. “Peabo really cracked the whip at practice today, man. Worse than Finley. You think Coach'll show up tomorrow?”

The assistant coach, Mike Peabody, definitely had seemed pleased to take over practice. His particular style had been something like military boot camp meets Medieval torture. “I don't know. Rumor is he quit.”

“You imagine that? Right before we get a new owner.”

Carter only nodded.

“You gotta feel bad for Vaughn Junior too. First day on the job, her coach quits and the team captain threatens to walk.”

“I didn't
threaten
. And I didn't walk. In fact, I'm taking a pay cut to stay.”

Reese's smug expression said he knew why, and Carter ignored it, grabbing a few more chili fries.

“You
like
her.” An accusation.

“You weren't there, okay? She had this face and these big, sad eyes, and … ”

The goalie smiled.

Carter narrowed his eyes and shook his head. “Shut up, man.”

Reese laughed and finished off the fries. “Whatever. We may have been playing together since our Mites days, but you can't tell me you turned down an extra three mil just to see
my
pretty face every day.”

“I'm staying. Get over it. We have bigger problems. If Finley did quit, dealing with a new coach is gonna suck.”

“I hear ya, brother, but all we can do it hope for the best.”

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