Page 17 of Power Plays & Proposals

Penelope smiled, oblivious to the people around us.

"Did she say yes?" Someone asked, and then there were flashes from the other side of the window.

I looked at Nate, my eyes wide, and saw his were just as big as he knelt in front of me. He stood up quickly, placing a handful of bills on the table, before taking my left hand in his as he helped me from my chair.

"We're going." He said quietly. Smiling and nodding politely at people around us.

Penelope opened her mouth to argue, but one look at her dad had her putting her pencils and sketchbook back in their case as fast as she could and reaching for his free hand. He hurried us through the restaurant, ignoring the congratulations people offered. A man with dark hair and brown eyes fiddled with the button on his suit jacket where he stood next to the hostess by the front door. The hostess was already holding my coat and scarf.

Nate only let go of my hand so I could pull on my coat and scarf.

The man looked at us apologetically. "I'm so sorry Nate. I've sent the valet to get your truck. It's bad out there, we had a celebrity in the back room for lunch who people wanted a shot of."

"It's not your fault Charlie," Nate said as he looked outside.

Our server rushed towards us with a take-out bag in hand. "Your desserts."

Charlie grabbed the bag. "I'll help walk you out."

Nate gave his thanks, as we saw his truck pull up just outside the door. The moment Charlie opened the door and held up the food I was blinded by the flash of the cameras. The press was furiously taking our photo and I heard people yelling over each other, but there were too many and I wasn’t sure what they were asking.

Nate helped Penelope into the truck before lifting me in. He ignored the reporters around us, and handed me the bag that was in Charlie's hand. He rounded the front of his truck and didn’t hesitate to take off through the gap Charlie and his staff created for us.

"I'll fix this," He told me.

Chapter 8

When we arrived at the arena a media frenzy had swarmed the doors. Each flash of a camera made me more twitchy. I loved a lot of things about hockey, the publicity not so much. Thankfully security had traffic blocked off to the private parking area. Jeff recognized me and waved me through. It was only after I pulled into my parking spot, and shut off my truck that I let out a sigh of relief.

"Dad," Penelope's voice was small as she sat next to me, "did I do something wrong?"

I shook my head vehemently and put my arm around her and she seemed to shrink under it. "No Sweet Pea. This is all a misunderstanding. I'll get it taken care of."

Penelope nodded, but her voice was still quieter than I'd like as she responded. "Okay."

I'd tried to shield her from the worst of the press as she grew up. Hard to do when Erin lived her life in front of a camera and didn’t seem to understand the need for personal space or boundaries. My lawyer had a vacation home thanks to the amount I'd paid him to get Erin to finally understand that Penelope was off limits when it came to the spotlight.

Lia patted Penelope's knee with her hand. "Don't blame yourself for a thing. People are just interested in knowing what your dad is up to."

My stomach twisted at her words. Thanks to me, there was a press nightmare outside the arena, and I'd managed to drag Lia into it too. When I'd walked into that salon earlier and seen the same woman I’d spent months flirting with, standing up for Penelope it had made my gut twist in a not entirely unpleasant manner. If things had been different, if I'd maybe run into her under less stressful circumstances...no point letting my thoughts go down that path. I'd learned long ago to not dwell on what ifs. The reality of everything hit me hard.

This mess better not impact negotiations my agent was working on. No doubt he wouldn't be thrilled to get the call from the Glacier Bay PR team. I picked up my phone and sent a quick text to Hannah.

My phone buzzed almost immediately. Hannah must have been waiting for me, but then again the woman always seemed to know what was happening when it came to the players on the team. Lou liked to groan that it cramped his style to have his little sister monitoring the team’s PR, but then he’d turn around and brag about her to anyone who would listen. She really was good at her job.

Of all the players I would have bet on causing a media circus, I wouldn't have bet on you.

Another person I owed an apology to, and I texted her back.

Sorry.

The dots showing she was typing disappeared and reappeared.

It's fine Nate. This is my job. Coach approved us meeting as soon as you get to the arena. Head to my office with the woman, I promise I'll have you in the locker room in time to get ready for the puck drop.

With one hand I pinched the bridge of my nose and let out a long sigh. If Coach wanted me to meet with Hannah now, this whole thing would be worse than a puck to the ankle.

A warm hand gently squeezed my arm around Penelope. I dropped the hand from my nose and saw Lia offering a soft smile with worry in her green eyes.

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