Page 85 of On the Power Play

Delia sighed. "I have alternate lyrics for all my songs, but I think it's going to be a while before I get to use them."

Jack cocked his head. “Do you know them?”

“Know what?”

“Your lyrics.” Curiosity itched at his throat. He could hear the melody in his head and wanted to know what words she would’ve chosen to come out of her mouth.

“Yeah.” Delia pursed her lips.

“Ooh, what are they?” Jenna leaned forward on the desk. Jack silently thanked her for jumping in so he didn’t have to ask.

Delia shifted in her seat. “I’m not going to bore you by reciting the whole thing.”

Jack grinned. “Just a stanza?”

“How do you know what a stanza is?” Delia’s eyes narrowed, and Jack’s skin heated. He might have been searching up more than just her lyrics.

He threw an arm over the back of his chair. “I was doing research.”

“On what?”

“On music. You researched hockey rules, so I thought I should probably know something about what you do.”

Delia’s expression was unreadable. He liked that he could surprise her. Put her off balance. Again, a little too much.

Country leaned over the desk. “You two are doing homework on each other? Adorable.” Jenna smacked his arm.

Jack’s heart sped as Delia’s shoulders curved inward. Was he embarrassing her? “Delia, you don’t have to?—”

She cleared her throat and started to recite. “Shiny people, gleam so hollow, Draped in smiles they barely swallow, Mirrored hearts, so thinly veiled, In their glow, the truth impaled.” Delia drew a breath. “There. One stanza.” She gave him a pointed look.

Jack’s stomach flipped as her words built images in his head. It was his laughing face staring back at him with cold eyes, his chest with a hole plunged through the center, and his heart on a spike. Shiny people. Those lyrics were ten thousand times better than the ones he’d found online.

Jenna's expression hardened. "They wouldn’t let you use those?” Delia shook her head. “Let me guess, 'you've got so much to offer and you just need to put in your time until you're more experienced?' Or, my personal favorite, 'what you have to offer isn't right for our target audience.'"

Delia's eyes widened. She didn’t have to answer for Jack to know Jenna hit it right on the head. Thinking of Delia hearing those things from her record company made his throat burn like he’d struck a match and swallowed it. It was wrong. Delia’s songs were popular, but if even he, an emotionally castrated, testosterone fueled, mitt dropping player, could see it, how could a music producer be so blind?

Jenna put a hand on Country's arm and clicked her tongue. "She's like I was ten years ago. Just so sweet and naive."

"When were you ever sweet and naive?" Country raised an eyebrow.

Jenna smiled with knives. "Delia, just remember they don't own you. Even if you think they do." She shook her head. “I know how easy it is to forget.”

Delia's smile slipped a bit. The urge to reach out for her hand rose like a tidal wave, but then Jack remembered they didn't have to keep up any ruse here. Good. That was good. He drew a breath, and the moment passed.

“What am I thinking? We should’ve saved all of this for the livestream. You two, get over here.” Jenna moved her chair.

Since they were all there, Country had suggested they do a fifteen minute rapid fire session before the training, and Jack knew Lisa would love the idea. Delia and Jack pulled their chairs over and squished in behind the web cams, and when they wouldn’t fit, Jenna got them a small bench. They sat down and both almost fell off the ends.

Jenna pointed. “Put your arm around her, Jack. Create more space.”

Delia’s eyes flicked to his, then she sat and leaned in. As Jack’s arm settled around her, something flipped in his chest. He thought about what Country had said. There was something here that told me it wasn’t finished. Jack’s heart had laid dormant for so long, he didn’t know if it had anything left to say.

Delia clapped her hands over her mouth. “I can’t believe we’re doing this. I’m going to be on your channel!”

Jenna adjusted the camera. “Trust me, this is a symbiotic relationship.”

The feed went live and, thankfully, Jack didn’t have to do much work. Jenna and Country were permanently riffing off each other, and any questions they sent his way had to do with hockey which was so second nature, he didn’t have to think. Especially because he trusted them not to ask him anything controversial.

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