Page 157 of Tangled up in You

“Hate to break it to you, girl, you’re wide awake.” Trent chuckled. “I’ve been waiting for this moment for the last ten years.”

CHAPTER 2

“The four of you are in room 771,” Coach Jones said, handing Archer the envelope with the keycards. “I want you to unpack, shower and get your gear ready. We’re going to practice tonight while we don’t have to share the ice with the figure skaters.” The disdain in his voice rubbed Archer the wrong way.

“Understood, Coach,” Archer said, taking the envelope. “We’ll be ready.”

“Let’s hope so. I don’t want to lose any of these international friendlies.” With that, he pivoted and started for another group of four players.

“What the fuck was that all about?” Brody muttered, taking one of the key cards. “Did something crawl up his ass and die on the bus?”

Cam snickered as they hoofed it toward the entrance to the hotel resort. “Maybe he needs to get laid. Though if his wife is a frigid bitch, I can see why. Poor woman probably hasn’t had a day's peace with that man.”

If they’d learned anything about their coach, it was this; he might be a brilliant tactician on the ice but off the ice, the guy gave off tons of small dick energy. Unfortunately for them,if they wanted to make it to the Olympics, they had to deal with Coach for the foreseeable future. It was also their last ride together for the games.

“Look,” Cam said, smacking Archer in the chest with the back of his hand, “I say, we drop our bags and hit the hot tub for an hour.”

Fuck, that sounded good to Archer. Between the traffic and being stuck in those tiny ass seats on the travel bus, he could use the jacuzzi to ease his aching joints and muscles. Afterward, they could order some room service, then meet the team in the gym for a couple of practice sessions. Tomorrow, they played Japan, their biggest rival. Saturday was Canada. As much as they knew Japan would be an easy win, they still had to prepare.

“Yes,” Archer said. “Let’s go.”

As they stepped into the lobby of the hotel, the cacophony of noise erupted around them, surprising him with how many people stood in lines waiting to check in. Phones rang behind the counter and even with four people working through the throng of people in the lobby, the main area of the ground floor was packed.

“What the hell happened here?” Cam muttered, staring at everyone.

“Probably the computers went down,” Brody replied. “Happens. Plus, the weather’s getting gnarly out there.”

Archer glanced up at one of the flat screens in the sitting area off to the right. A weatherman stood near their resort. He was talking about the approaching storm from what Archer could read on the subtitles. Conditions calling for twenty inches or more of fresh snow over the next twenty-four hours. Too bad they weren’t snowboarders. “Shit. Let’s get to our room before the rush.”

“They’re already closing down the roads into Telluride,” a person said as they passed them.

“Bomb storm? You sure?” another questioned.

“Fuck,” Body muttered. “Looks like we’re stuck here.”

“Good thing we have a room. Can’t imagine those without one right about now.” Cam frowned, punching the up arrow on the elevator.

“Do you think Coach knows?” Brody asked when the doors slid open.

“If he does, I don’t think he cares. Asshole already told us what he wants and expects. Weather doesn’t mean a damn thing to him. Besides, a little snow isn’t going to stop him from working our asses off.” Archer frowned at his reflection in the mirrored metal, when he saw the hole between him and Cam where Sasha used to stand.

Their lucky charm.

Their ace in the hole.

The girl who started out as their little sister on the ice and somehow infiltrated all their dreams, driving them crazy. He missed her something fierce. They all did. After the accident, coach told them she wasn’t coming back. The damage was too extensive. That day, the team lost their spark. Had it not been for their hard work and stats, Archer knew without a shadow of a doubt, their careers would have gone down the shitter too.

Somehow, they kept the hope alive and dedicated everything to Sasha. Then they found out about her PTSD. Her parents refused to bring her back to the ice. There’d been rumors about that day all over town. Some stuck up for Sasha. Others called her all kinds of names including liar. Deep down, Archer knew the truth. Trent did something to her and Archer knew who told Trent to hurt her. He was sure of it, but without being able to talk to Sasha, he never learned the full extent of that fateful day.

“I miss her too,” Cam said, placing his hand on Archer’s shoulder. “Just not the same anymore.”

He grunted.

“Too bad she couldn’t be here with us,” Brody muttered. “She’d have gotten a kick out of the whole thing.”

They talked like she’d died. Sasha was alive and well somewhere in the country. From what he overheard; her parents moved not long after the incident on the ice. They didn’t leave any forwarding address or a way for Archer or the guys to keep in contact with her. Probably was for the best. If things were as bad as her mom said, Sasha deserved a redo. Fuck knew no one in their small community was about to give her that. Not when all of them saw Trent as their golden boy could-do-no-wrong.

“Yeah, man.”Fuck...Why had Sasha popped up suddenly in his mind? It’d been a couple of years since he’d even thought about her.

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