Page 90 of Huge Pucking Play

Her breathing evens out, and I watch her sleep, while listening to Carter's soft snuffling breaths from his bassinet.

This is so much better than I ever dreamed it would be.

Later that day, I'm waiting outside the practice facility, Carter strapped to my chest in the carrier Cyn insists makes me look "devastatingly hot," when she bursts through the doors with a huge smile on her face. We’d stopped by because she needed to chat with Adam about a few things.

"There's my boys," she calls, jogging over to us. She kisses Carter's head first then stands on tiptoe to plant one on me.

"What's got you so chipper?" I ask as she takes Carter from me, covering his face with kisses while he gurgles happily.

"The wicked witch is gone," she sing-songs, bouncing our son gently.

"Marjorie?" I raise my eyebrows. "What happened?"

She links her arm through mine as we head toward the parking lot. "She finally messed with the wrong person."

Cyn explains how Marjorie cornered the newest physical therapist—a quiet girl fresh out of school—and berated hertreatment protocols in front of an entire room of players. The girl stood her ground, explaining that her approach was supported by current research. Marjorie lost it, screaming about respect and chain of command.

"Then Adam stepped in," Cyn says, her eyes bright with satisfaction. "Told Marjorie that if she had issues with treatment protocols, she should address them in private, not undermine another therapist's authority with the players."

"Good for Adam," I say, helping her buckle Carter into his car seat. He's distracted by the dangling toys attached to the handle, batting at them with his chubby fists.

"It gets better." Cyn slides into the passenger seat beside me. "Marjorie stormed into Kessler's office to complain about Adam and the new girl. But it turns out the new girl is Kessler's niece."

I let out a low whistle. Kessler is the Blades' GM. "Marjorie didn't know?"

"Nope." Cyn pops the 'p', looking positively gleeful. "She was gone by the end of day. After twenty-one years with the team."

I start the car, thinking back to how things were with Marjorie around. The way Cyn would routinely come home tense and frowning. After George Corso gave our relationship his blessing, things were only worse with Marjorie. She was so pissed off that she was unable to get Cyn fired.

“Well, good riddance. I hope we never see her again,” I say, grinning from ear to ear.

"You know what else happened today?" Cyn turns in her seat to face me. "I found out who told Marjorie about us on the plane."

"Who?" I grip the steering wheel tighter, already guessing.

"Barnesy." She says his name like it's something stuck to the bottom of her shoe. "Adam overheard him bragging to some of the younger guys about how he ‘got the hot PT in trouble' for 'banging the coach.'"

My jaw clenches. Barnesy—Nate Barnes—was talented but cocky, the kind of player who thinks scoring goals entitles him to be an asshole. I'd had words with him more than once regarding his comments about female staff.

"Well, he won't be a problem anymore either," I say, feeling a petty satisfaction. "He’s getting traded to Seattle next week. I just found out earlier today."

"That news is almost as good as Marjorie getting fired!"

"So, who's running the PT department now?" I ask, changing lanes.

"Adam." Her smile couldn't get any wider. "Kessler promoted him on the spot. He's already reorganizing everything. No more of Marjorie's rigid hierarchy, and no more outdated protocols that she refused to update. He's giving everyone more autonomy with their assigned players."

"That's great, babe." I reach over to squeeze her knee. "You deserve to work with people who appreciate you."

"It's not just that." She turns around and plays with Carter's tiny sock-covered feet, making him giggle. "Adam is on board with the whole work-life balance thing. He's already talking about more flexible hours for the PT staff."

I park the car, and she unbuckles her seatbelt and leans over to me. Her kiss is soft, lingering.

"It's just such a relief," she whispers against my lips. "I was starting to think I'd made a mistake, taking the job with the Blades. Even though it’s my dream job, some days it felt like it wasn't worth the stress."

I tuck a strand of hair behind her ear. "And now?"

"Now?" She smiles, and it's the same smile that knocked me sideways the first time I saw it, bright and a little bit wicked. "Now I think we might actually get our happily ever after, coach."

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