Page 1 of The Breaking Point

GRACE

Are you still in the office?

I glanced at the text from my best friend Kelly Wright and rolled my eyes. Kelly was obsessed with hockey, and she’d burst my eardrums squealing when she’d heard I’d gotten an internship with the LA Blades.

Because you should go find some hockey players already,was Kelly’s follow-up message.

I typed back that I was still busy working and that she should maybe finish her work, too. I could just see Kelly scoffing and telling me I was boring as fuck, but in a good-natured way.

I had a lot to prove with getting this internship. Everyone assumed that I’d gotten it because my dad coached the Blades. Sure, nobody had said that to my face, but I felt it in the air when I’d first come into the office a week ago.

My supervisor, Julia, had also seemed hesitant to give me any real work. Where the other marketing interns were being given assignments and coffee runs, I was relegated to liking positive comments on Facebook.

“Only likes,” Julia had reminded me for the millionth time. “No sad or angry reactions. And no replies. Got it?”

I’d nodded, annoyed but knowing I couldn’t complain. I’d done the assignment within a half hour and then had tried my best to find something to occupy my time.

Now I was the last one in the office. Even Julia had gone home, considering it was a Friday. She’d told me to lock up when I was done.

She might not trust me with the work, but I guess she’s not worried about security,I thought wryly.

I’d decided to write up a few different social media posts and present them to Julia on Monday. Maybe she’d see that I was serious about giving this internship my all.

My phone sang again, and I stuffed it into my bag. But it kept ringing, and ringing, and ringing.

I finally picked up, exasperated. “Kelly, seriously? What is it?”

“You have to tell me everything,” she said.

“Tell youwhat? I’m going home. There’s nothing exciting to report.”

“You’re telling me you were in the stadium all day and didn’t run into one hockey player? Your dad is the coach. Come on, now.”

Kelly was about to start grad school, so she told me she needed the 411 on my internship before she got too busy to demand daily updates.

“My dad might be the coach, but that doesn’t mean he has anything to do with marketing or PR,” I pointed out.

“Ugh, you’re boring. At least tell me you’ll go to the rink tomorrow and watch them practice.”

“If I have time, maybe.”

Kelly just sighed like I’d told her I was about to die of an incurable disease. “You really need to have more fun. When’s the last time you went out on a date?”

“I told you about Will, right?” Will and I had just started dating. We’d only gone on two dates, but he was a nice guy.

“That guy? Has he even tried to kiss you yet?”

“No,” I spoke over Kelly’s interjection, adding, “Because he’s a gentleman.”

“Or he’s just not that into you.”

Okay, Will wasn’t the most exciting guy ever. I knew that. He tended to talk aboutMinecrafta lot, and the one time I’d tried to hug him, he’d acted like I’d tried to put a bug in his shirt.

“I need to finish up here and head home,” I said before saying goodbye.

At the end of the day, I didn’t need Kelly distracting me—or tempting me with finding some of those hockey players she was obsessed with.

Because I was all too aware that there were sexy hockey players not far from me. The offices were within the stadium, and I’d heard the guys practicing when I’d gone to the bathroom. It’d taken every ounce of my self-control not to go watch.

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