Skating on Thin Ice: Seattle Sockeyes (Game On in Seattle Book 1) (11 page)

Once back at the hotel, they headed straight for the almost empty restaurant. Cedric waved them over to the large table where six of the guys sat poring over menus. Lauren hesitated, but Ethan didn’t. With a sigh, Lauren followed him. The man had major balls, which he’d need if he was going to attempt a buddy session with Cooper.

The team captain sat at the table, arms crossed over his chest, and his chin jutting out in a masterful display of belligerent arrogance. Ethan ignored him, obviously deciding it was wiser to focus on Coop’s teammates, who didn’t look nearly so annoyed and unapproachable.

The boys scooted over, leaving room for Lauren and Ethan to squeeze in between Cedric and Cooper. Lauren took the seat next to Coop to mitigate any possible bloodshed.

Ethan sat next to Cedric. It was a tight squeeze, and Lauren didn’t relish being thigh-to-thigh with this sexy businessman in threadbare blue jeans. The heat from his body mingled with hers, and she gulped down a glass of water. Swallowing, she folded her napkin in her lap with a shaking hand and glanced around the table to see if anyone else had noticed.

The guys were oblivious, except for Cooper. He rubbed his jaw thoughtfully and raised one black brow. Mortified, Lauren ducked her head, while the heat rose from under her collar to her neck and face. Good thing it was dark in this corner. She chanced a second glance at Cooper. He frowned at her, his blue eyes angry and uncompromising. The man noticed everything, and he definitely noticed her reaction.

Cooper leaned over toward her and whispered in her ear. “I thought you were smarter than that.”

“Smarter than what?” She played coy about as badly as Coop played nice.

Cooper rolled his eyes. “Honey, that guy’s bad news. He’s not what he appears to be, and you’re going to get burned if you put your hand in that fire.”

Boy, didn’t she know it, but Coop couldn’t know she knew. She smiled sweetly at him, glad Ethan was in an animated conversation with Cedric about skiing in Sweden.

“He’s just doing his job, like you and I are.” She defended Ethan with a completely straight face even as she perpetuated unspeakable acts on the napkin under the table.

Cooper didn’t respond, just tossed her another of his calling-bullshit-on-you looks.

“Nice game, Brick,” she said, turning to the goalie. He grinned at her. Martin Bricker was hell on the opposing team’s offense, and off the ice, he was one crazy bastard, though behind the crazy persona lived a very sharp mind and savvy businessman. Brick hated wearing a lot of clothes, and tonight despite the cold weather, he wore shorts, a tank, and flip flops.

“Thanks, Lauren. I aim to please.” He said with his Canadian accent, as he tipped an imaginary hat.

Ethan turned his head toward Brick and nodded. “Yeah, great save on that one play. You snatched that puck out of thin air and stopped a sure goal.”

Brick grinned at Ethan until he caught Cooper’s scowl out of the corner of his eye. The smile dropped off his face, and he stared down at the table. Ethan aimed an accusing glare at Cooper, shooting him squarely between the eyes, but Cooper didn’t flinch. If anything, he smirked.

“We’ve won the first one, boys. Three to go boys. We can do this.” Cooper addressed his teammates. They nodded and murmured agreement as the waitress served their food and everyone dug in, the conversation completely dying as the guys ate ravenously after burning all those calories in a hard-fought game.

Feeling eyes on her, Lauren glanced up. The goalie watched her with hungry eyes, only it wasn’t for her that he was hungry. He’d eaten everything on his plate and zeroed in on her just toying with her food. “You gonna finish that?”

Lauren pushed her plate full of food across the table to Brick.

“Hey, don’t get your hand too close to him. He’ll eat that too.” Cedric joked.

The table erupted in laughter, except for Coop and Ethan. They eyed each other like two dogs sizing the other up before a big fight. Ethan matched Coop glare for glare, and not many people had the guts to do that.

Pride for Ethan surged through her, and she had no right to that particular emotion or the ones that made her panties wet and palms sweat.

Chapter 8—Delayed Offside

The next week and a half was a wild ride, and Lauren hung on for all she was worth. After trading wins with New York in New York, winning two at home, and losing another in New York, the Giants squeaked out a win in game six at home and advanced to the semi-finals against Boston. Four wins stood between this unlikely team of misfits and rejects and playing for the Cup.

She’d stayed out of trouble where Ethan was concerned. Even though she couldn’t very well avoid him since she’d been tasked to assist him, she minimized private interactions and made sure others were around when she was with him to reduce temptation. And the man was way too tempting.

During the day she concentrated on team matters, but at night she succumbed to fantasies filled with sparkling blue eyes, a sexy half smile, and a hard muscular body. Not that she’d seen him naked, but she could imagine. Thank God, the team’s recent success had distracted her somewhat.

Lauren pinched herself several times over the course of the last twenty-four hours as she realized how close this team was to achieving the impossible. They deserved this—every one of them, including the staff and coaches who’d worked so hard, slept little, and given it all to reach this point. They’d ride this ride however far it took them.

The team played beyond their abilities, believing in themselves. And Cooper, who’d stuck with the team through all the adversity and losing seasons, had never once given up hope or sold out to the highest bidder. That type of loyalty didn’t exist in pro sports anymore. Cooper said once in a rare interview that you could only spend so much money, and the extra dollars didn’t come close to making up for the team and community relationships he’d built over the years.

And Cooper
had
built relationships. He worked tirelessly on his different causes, especially children’s cancer, faithfully spending one day a week at the Children’s Hospital. He’d rarely missed a week in all the years he’d been with the team.

Ethan needed to see that side of Cooper, understand where he was coming from, and appreciate him for the man he was off the ice as well as on the ice.

The team had a few days before the next series began, and Lauren suspected Coop would be heading to the hospital with some teammates. Playing the stalker, she hung out until he finished practice and ambushed him as he walked off the ice.

Usually happy to see her, Cooper pursed his lips, his eyes wary, as if her association with Ethan branded her as a possible traitor. Cooper didn’t like change. He liked everything exactly the way it should be, all lined up, neat and tidy. It served him well on the ice, where his precision counted big time. Off the ice, she wished the Giants’ star player would be a little more flexible, more open-minded to the possibilities of life without the Sleezers.

“Are you going to see your kids this afternoon after practice?” She asked him.

He stiffened and lifted his chin, setting his jaw and regarding her with a hooded gaze, as if he were trying to decipher her ulterior motives. “Yeah, Ced and I are.”

“Good. Mind if Ethan and I tag along?” Lauren clutched her hands behind her back to hide her fidgeting.

Cooper frowned. Oh, yeah, he minded, really minded, but he sighed, as if he knew arguing would get him nowhere. “If that’s what you want.”

“What time and where should we meet you?”

“We’ll be at the hospital around two
PM
. You can meet us there.” He slipped past her as if he couldn’t get away fast enough.

So much for travelling in the same car, but Lauren would take what she got. Cooper was the easy part. Now to convince Ethan and to keep the two men from killing each other.

* * * *

Ethan didn’t see the point in invading Cooper’s private time, but Lauren wouldn’t back down. She wanted him to see a different side of Cooper. Feeling cranky and unsure why, Ethan tagged along.

Lauren pulled her piece-of-crap car into the visitor parking at the University of Florida hospital. He rubbed the back of his neck and stared out the passenger window, not certain it was a good idea for him to be here.

“I don’t think Cooper will appreciate me being here.”

“Hang with me on this.” Lauren turned off the engine and got out, leaving him no choice but to follow or sit inside a car with the blistering sun beating down. He hurried to catch up to her, still annoyed at being kept in the dark. She punched the button for the fourth floor.

“We shouldn’t be here.” Ethan spoke quietly as they got off the elevator. At the end of the hall, a commotion caught his attention.

Lauren’s genuine smile melted his irritation a bit. She touched his arm, and the contact did weird shit to him, reminding him of the very reason he’d been trying his damnedest to avoid her. Impossible that, but he’d given it a shot. She’d done the same, and for that, he’d been grateful. Nothing good would come of a physical relationship with her no matter how hard his dick wanted in the game.

She stopped just outside a set of open double doors and pointed inside, giddy with excitement. Ethan couldn’t take his eyes off her. God, she was lovely when she lit up from the inside out like that. He swallowed hard and stepped closer to her on the pretense of looking inside the room. Hell, he didn’t even glance at the scene in the room. His eyes locked onto her like a targeting device and refused to move.

“Ethan?” She touched his arm, and he jerked himself to attention.

“Uh, yeah?”

She pointed again, her gaze darting from him to the room and back again. “It’ll be good for you to see Cooper and the guys in action off the ice.”

“Okay.” Reluctantly, he looked away from her, but he could still sense her closeness, almost as if she were still touching him even though she wasn’t.

Beyond them, a large playroom full of kids in various sizes and shapes dressed in hospital gowns, some in wheelchairs, a few running around as if nothing were physically wrong. Except for their predominantly bald heads, most of them could be kids anywhere.

Ethan stared at his star player, the guy with an attitude bigger than Mount Rainier and plenty of opinions, as he joked and played with the kids. Some of the little ones hung on him, others crowded around him. A few of the sicker ones eagerly waited with hope and patience that tugged at Ethan’s heart. Other members of the team worked the room, but Cooper appeared to be the real star in this show and the ringleader of the group.

Ever the businessman, Ethan’s mind raced ahead to the promotional possibilities—Seattle had a children’s hospital. Not to mention, that might be one way to gain Cooper’s cooperation once the truth came out.

Something was missing. Ethan glanced around the room, trying to figure it out. Then it came to him. No TV cameras. No reporters. This was a strictly off-the-record visit. These guys were here because they wanted to be, not for a promo op. That said a lot about their character. A sliver of pride vibrated through Ethan. Maybe he didn’t have the right yet to be proud of this team, but he still was. He’d made the perfect choice in going after them, even if it’d take a while for them to appreciate him as much as he appreciated them.

“Do they do this often?” He lowered his voice not wanting to call attention to himself.

“Every chance they get. They also visit veterans’ homes and nursing homes.”

Ethan nodded as he followed Lauren into the room. They sat in a corner at a small inconspicuous table.

“Cooper is a fixture in this city. He does tons of charity work, much of it anonymously, like working with these kids.”

Ethan said nothing as he watched Coop entertain the dozen or so kids sitting around in wheelchairs and on the couches. He steeled himself against emotions he didn’t want to feel. These kids looked like the sun rose and set on Cooper. They hung on his every word as he talked about enjoying every moment of your life.

Fuck, this was going to be hard. Harder than he’d ever imagined. He’d always thought of this move from Seattle’s point of view. He’d be the hero, the guy who gave Seattle back a winter sport since their beloved Sonics left. Now he was about to steal another city’s team.

He rolled his shoulders, trying to ease some of the tension gripping his body. This was business, and sometimes the tough choices hurt innocent people.

In its current location, this hockey team hemorrhaged money. In Seattle it stood an excellent shot of being a lucrative investment and a Seattle icon for years to come. Ethan’s business dealings had been all about making the hard choices. This project would be no different; while he was making Seattle’s dreams come true, he’d be ripping out the hearts of hockey fans in this area.

“What are you thinking?”

He snapped his head in Lauren’s direction. “Why do you ask?”

“You seem disturbed when you should be anything but. Why, Ethan? What’s bothering you?”

Her concern touched him. No one had worried about him since he’d been a little kid. What Ethan would give for a woman like Lauren with whom he could share all his troubles, wishes, and desires. Like his father shared everything with his mother.

When the truth was revealed, she’d never trust him again. If he was lucky, she’d at least tolerate him as her employer and not bolt out the door and out of his life.

Ethan, my man,
he thought,
you’re skating on thin ice in the middle of a deep lake while it cracks all around you, but the only thing you can do is keep skating for the other side because you’ve come too far to go back now.

Chapter 9—Cross-Checking

The day after the hospital visit, the commissioner called Ethan to an impromptu meeting at a bar near the airport.

The second Ethan walked into the bar, he knew something was up. He took a seat, ordered a whiskey and waded through small talk, when all he wanted to do was scream,
get to the point.

Finally Straus did, and it wasn’t what Ethan wanted to hear. His jaw dropped as he stared at the man. “What do you mean the league has to consider other offers?”