Page 19 of Gross Misconduct

“Really?” I said with faux confusion. “We just sat through nearly a half hour of your issues with the materials. I could only infer that you wanted all those things changed, right? Otherwise, why would you mention it?”

His jaw clenched. “I was simply pointing out deficiencies.”

“I wonder if it would have been a better idea to have done that with your team first? I’m not sure why we are doing this here. Help me understand that?”

He smiled a toothy grin. “You are new around here. You should know the ropes and what we do when things go wrong. I would like to think that all departments act as a team to make the product we produce as good as possible.”

He really wanted to go head-to-head? He had no idea how much shit I’d dealt with at Richardson’s. He was a blip on the radar compared to anyone there. “And that’s why I suggested bringing in Dave and Coach Anthony, but you seem opposed to that.”

“I don’t think it’s a good idea to waste their valuable time with something like this. I’m simply trying to point out to you where your team went wrong.”

I leaned back in my chair and crossed my arms over my chest. “I see what we’re doing here. You have issues with the final product and want my team to take the fall for it. Let’s get a few things straight: first, my team isn’t taking the fall for it. Second, your people were there for all promotional work. They saw the raw footage. If they didn’t like it then, it’s the failure of the marketing team. If you think me or anyone on my team is going to take the blame because I’m new around here? No, that’s not happening. Ever.”

I was pretty sure I heard Whitney gasp. I guessed no one had ever stood up to Mark before? Whatever the case, Mark’smouth hung open, but he quickly closed it. After recovering quickly, he cleared his throat.

“I wasn’t suggesting your team take the fall,” he said, his voice having lost some of its fight.

“No, but you seemed to be hinting it. I suggest in future meetings you be more direct with your grievances. The PR team is pretty amazing, but we aren’t mind readers. Anything else? We have a lot to do.”

“We’re good,” he said, standing up with his team following suit. They filed out, and I looked over at Whitney and Zane. Both of them seemed a little stunned by what had transpired. Whitney’s wide eyes screamed awe more than anything, while Zane looked more impressed.

“I’m not going to let Mark push us around and let us take the fall for his team’s mistakes. I will always have our backs. Unless you do something reckless or unprofessional. Then you’re on your own,” I said, gathering up my notes.

“I’m a little shocked. John, our old boss, let Mark walk all over him. I guess Mark thought you’d let him do the same.”

Zane stepped closer and nodded. “I often felt like we were working for Mark.”

“Nope. You all work for the Kodiaks, and I’m your supervisor. We should be a team. I’ve known a lot of Marks in my time, and he’s not pushing any of us around.”

“Thank you, Jill,” Zane said, offering his hand to me. “I have a good feeling about you, especially after the way you took care of the Vaughn mess. I’m looking forward to working with you.”

“And I’m looking forward to giving you less work to do.”

Whitney was about to follow him out, but I asked her to stay behind. I’d been thinking of ways to ease the news about me and Jeremy out, and she seemed like a better place to start than Oliver, the gossiper. I motioned for her to sit down, andshe stared at me with trepidation. I had to put her at ease. Why was everyone so scared?

“I’m not advertising this anywhere, but I wanted to let you know that Jeremy Vaughn and I have become friends. Nothing more,” I added quickly. “I’ve been helping him out of this mess, so if you hear anything or any gossip, it’s just that. But if you hear anything more than that, please let me know.”

“Oh, okay.”

Telling her was more of a test of loyalty as well. If this got out, I’d know where it had come from. And if a few days passed and she kept it to herself, then I had an even bigger job for her, and I would make sure Clay gave her a nice bonus for.

Chapter Eleven

Jeremy

Nobody was catching on to the subtle hints Jill was dropping, and honestly, I was okay with that. The thought of more attention didn’t exactly excite me, so I reveled in the quietness. We all had enough going on, with the beginning of the season, and the first time I saw my jersey with a huge empty spot where the C used to be was a kick in the balls. I bristled when I saw Warde’s number 13 with the A on it. Knowing him like I did, the letter would go to his head, and he’d be lecturing the guys about commitment, fitness, nutrition, and everything else they’d likely ignore. How Ethan was going to tolerate him all season was beyond me, but for the team, they needed to be united.

The chill in the room directed at me had thawed a bit, but the guys were still shutting me out. Thankfully, I had Ryan and Ethan still in my corner, and the hulking defenseman came over and patted me on the back.

“I know, it sucks,” he said, looking at Warde’s jersey. “Why couldn’t you have fucked around withhiswife?”

I actually laughed. Maybe I’d be able to laugh more aboutthis one day. Likely not. “He doesn’t have a wife. But I’ll make a note of that.”

We went through our game-day rituals, and when I started to get my gear on, Coach Anthony came in with his pep talk. A few of the guys were goofing off, and my instinct was to say something like I normally would, but that wasn’t my job anymore, so I sat in my stall and said nothing. Warde made brief eye contact with me, and he understood.

“Hey, pay attention to Coach. Show some respect,” he said to the offenders, who immediately shut up. Warde looked back to me and nodded. Damn. I didn’t want to start liking him, but he’d done the right thing and had looked to me for guidance. I had to respect that.

When we hit the ice for warmup, I expected some boobirds, but for the most part, fans were polite. I mean, Taylor had written up a statement where I basically apologized for everything I’d done, and while fans had still eviscerated me, almost a month had passed now, and people had moved on. But people were still gossiping about me and Orla on social media. So many of them couldn’t let it go, coming up with unflattering memes. I supposed I deserved it. Maybe it would all die down when they found out about Jill.

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