Page 89 of Pucking the Team

Eventually, my sobs subside into hiccupping breaths, and I pull back, swiping at my damp cheeks. “I’m sorry,” I whisper, my voice raw. “I shouldn’t be putting this on you.”

“Hey.” Lukas cups my face, his gaze fierce. “We’re in this together, remember? I love you, Emma. We all do. And we’re going to get through this as a team.”

A team. The word sparks a flicker of warmth in my chest, a tiny flame stubbornly resisting the cold dread that’s taken root. Lukas is right.

For once in my life, I’m not alone in this.

I have him, Ryan, Alex, and Slade. My guys. My loves.

Drawing a shuddering breath, I nod. “Okay. Okay, you’re right. We…we’ll figure something out.” I glance around my cubicle—former cubicle. “I guess I should pack up my stuff…”

“I’ll help you,” Lukas says immediately, grabbing an empty box.

Together, we start gathering my personal belongings. There aren’t many—some photos, a few knick-knacks. Reminders of a life I’d fought so hard to build here.

Loading my pitiful box into Lukas’s car a bit later, I feel numb. Hollow. Like I’m sleepwalking through a bad dream. I keep thinking I’m going to blink and find myself back at my desk, the last hour erased.

But it’s real. The sympathetic looks, the whispers that followed us out of the office—all real.

Alison’s hissed comments about using my father’s connections to catapult me into a job I didn’t deserve. The sneering judgment in the eyes of coworkers I’d thought were my friends.

“Hey.” Lukas takes my hand as he starts the car. “What do you want to do? You want me to take you home? Or I can call the guys, have everyone come over to my place.”

My throat tightens at the sincere concern in his voice, but I shake my head. “No, I think I do need some time to myself. I want to just be alone and process this for a bit,” I tell Lukas quietly. “Maybe take a long bath with a glass of wine and have a good cry.”

Lukas nods in understanding, though I can see the worry lingering in his eyes. “Okay, sweetheart. Whatever you need. I’ll drop you off. But call me if you want company later, alright? Any of us. We’re here for you.”

“I know.” I squeeze his hand. “Thank you.”

The drive to my apartment is mostly silent. Lukas keeps hold of my hand the whole way, his thumb rubbing soothing circles on my skin.

It’s a small comfort, but I’m grateful for it.

When he pulls up outside my building, Lukas shifts to face me. “Emma, listen to me. This isn’t over. We’re going to fight this, okay?”

“Sure, Lukas,” I say, but my heart isn’t in it. I know he wants me to be strong, but the farther we’ve driven from the practice, the farther away I feel from that world.

And the more the cold, hard reality of my situation has settled in.

I came so close to having everything I’d ever wanted.

But I’m Emma Collins. My life is a series of bad luck.

It was foolish of me to hope for anything else.

CHAPTER 40

SLADE

I pace restlessly in the living room of the apartment I share with Lukas and Alex, my mind consumed with worry about Emma. It’s been days since her unjust firing, and despite my numerous attempts to reach out through calls and texts, she’s completely shut me and the other guys out.

“Still no word from her?” Lukas asks, leaning against the kitchen island with his arms crossed, his brow creased with concern.

I shake my head. “Nothing. She won’t return any of my messages.” As the team captain and the one who often takes on the role of the protector, I understand that Emma must be feeling devastated and ashamed. But isolating herself is not the answer. “We need to do something, guys. We can’t let her push us away like this.”

Alex nods in agreement as he emerges from the hallway. “Slade’s right. She needs to know we’ve got her back, no matter what. This situation sucks, but we’ll get through it together, as a family.”

That’s right. Family never abandons one another in times of crisis.

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