Page 22 of Conner

“Uh oh, that sigh and a long pause…it can’t be good.”

“No… It’s good. There is just a work issue…maybe…I don’t even know.”

“What’s going on?” Evie asked with curiosity in her eyes.

It struck Sasha, Evie was someone she could talk to about this. She couldn’t talk about Conner to anyone because he’s a beloved figure to their community, but she didn’t seem to care much about hockey.

“So, you know Conner McPhee right?”

Evie’s eyebrows flew up and a smile fell across her face. “Of course, everyone in this city knows him.”

“Yeah…that’s part of what had been so hard.”

“Is there something going on between you guys?”

“No.” That answer came out fast, but she knew it wasn’t quite true and Evie’s raised eyebrow told her she didn’t quite believe it either. “It’s weird.”

The waitress stopped by, “Can I get you anything?”

“Yeah, I’ll have a white wine,” Sasha answered.

“And a basket of fries,” Evie added. “I feel like this is about to get good.”

The waitress left and Evie turned back to her. “Okay, what’s going on?”

“I’m not sure if anything is going on. Everyone told me what an amazing guy he was, but then whenever I talked to him, he kept being a jerk. I needed him to make this video series I was planning for the team, but he was just being a giant pain in my ass. I was just about ready to write him off but…” She trailed off remembering some of their more recent interactions. Remembering the feel of his arms around her as he steadied her on the ice. Remembering the look on his face when he stopped by her office this morning. Conner McPhee was infuriating but she also could not get him out of her mind.

“But?” Evie asked, sensing there was more.

“I don’t know. The past couple times I’ve talked to him, it’s been different. I see why everyone loves him, and I mean you’ve seen him. He’s gorgeous.”

“Is there something going on with you two?”

“No.”

“Do you want there to be?”

“No… maybe… I don’t know. We work together, so it’s a bad idea.”

“Is it though?” Evie asked with a smirk.

“Yes. It is.” Sasha answered with firmness, but she knew she was just trying to convince herself.

“If you say so. How are you liking the rest of the job?”

After too many glasses of wine and another basket of fries they finally called it a night. Sasha went home to make sure she was packed for tomorrow and check her email one last time before climbing into bed. She wished he wasn’t, but Conner was on her mind as she fell asleep.

The next day the plane was taking off early in the morning because they had a game in Seattle that night. They guys were mostly boarded by the time Sasha was boarding. She had been running late today because drinks with Evie had gotten a little out of hand, but she really enjoyed her company. She could sleep on the plane once she checked all the accounts.

They were getting ready for lift off, so Sasha pulled out her phone to turn it off, only to find her screen full of notifications. That was odd because there wasn't a scheduled post until the next few hours.

The announcement to set their phone to airplane mode sounded as everyone was in their seats and the plane got ready to take off. She turned it off and slipped it into her pocket. She would check what that was all about once they were in the air. This was her first flight without another member of the pr team. Hillary had always come in the past, but today it was just her. Knowing Hillary trusted her like that felt good.

Once they were in the air, she checked to see what post was getting so much traffic right now, and her heart stopped. There was a meet the staff post, and it wasn't one she had done. Right there was her face and post about her with a kind message about how she was revamping the team's social media presence. It was a really flattering post, but this is not the public face she needed.

She was just starting to feel comfortable in Glendale. There had been one weird email over a month ago and then nothing. She thought she was good, but this was a loudly tempting fate. She went in and turned the post private. She was just about to text Hillary to see if she was behind the post when someone slid in beside her. Conner McPhee.

“We need to talk,” he said glaring at her.

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