Page 16 of Playing to Win

Jayna’s blonde hair was curly, twisting over her ears and forehead. Her eyes were a warm chocolate brown, and she had a short nose and a pointed chin below surprisingly lush lips. She was cute, but not tiny. When I’d walked behind her, I’d had six inches on her, so that would make her about five-eight. I’d played with guys her size, and something told me she’d be hard to get off the puck. What position did she play? Not goalie. Didn’t give off those vibes—we tended to be different from the skaters. I could see her as one of those fast and sneaky forwards, buzzing around the crease and making a goalie’s life miserable.

The way she talked and handled herself—she had her shit together much better than me. I didn’t know how long she’d been on IR, but she was fit, and had a good body. She wasn’t so short that I’d have to bend over to kiss her?—

I was staring at her lips, which she was currently chewing with even white teeth while she worked on the problem I’d created. I pulled my gaze off her mouth. She didn’t know me, and I didn’t need to stare at her mouth like a creeper. She was only doing this for her job. Kissing wouldn’t be part of that.

Her brown eyes were focused on me again. “Can I ask you some questions?”

I nodded.

“Who else knows?”

“My parents. They told me last night.”

Her eyes bugged. “Seriously? That was the news you got after the game?”

Fuck.If they’d told me before… “Yeah. They asked if Faith’s family was there, and then my mom got weird when I said her dad showed up at the end. And after that, she told me. In case I met Frank. I looked them up while I was still in the parking lot, and…”

“And?”

“I was angry. He could have helped me, but he didn’t bother. I was jealous of the sister I didn’t even know existed. And with enough alcohol, it all blurted out. At least I didn’t tell anyone why.”

“Wow.” Jayna shook her head again. “Wow. That must have been…something.”

That was as good a way to describe it as any I’d come up with.

“You’d never met Faith, not till the game last night?”

“Nope.” I didn’t know much about women’s hockey. I’d been at a small conservative college that didn’t have a women’s hockey team, so I’d ignored it. Now I felt like an asshole about that. But I’d ignored other men’s athletic teams as well. Total tunnel vision.

She rested her chin on her hands. “Are you adopted?”

“Yes and no.”

Her eyebrows rose.

“My mom is my mom. My biological mom. She kept me, after he gave her money for an abortion, and never told him. She met my dad later, and he adopted me legally, so I guess you could say I’m half adopted.”

She smiled at that. “Your bio didn’t mention anything about adoption, and I don’t think it needs to come up. We’ll work with the story Kira and I made up. The only thing we have to worry about is how you’re going to get along with Faith. And Frank.”

Before last night I wouldn’t even have noticed him. I had an agent, Stacy Chu, and she’d done well by me. I wasn’t looking to change, and agents hadn’t been asking me to. I wasn’t one of the prospects they’d been fighting over. “I have no idea how I’m going to act around them.”

Jayna chewed on her lips again and I tried to ignore it. “Let’s make sure I’m with you, at least at first. I planned to set up something with Faith, to show the two of you getting along, but I’ll try to find an opportunity for you to meet in private first. With me, and maybe Hunter or Cooper around. Small, contained, and people we can work with if they figure out something.”

Figure out what?That we were related, or that Jayna and I weren’t really dating?

I’d have to apologize to Faith. I couldn’t explain to her the real reason I’d been upset. But she deserved the apology.

Jayna cocked her head. “I don’t know if this helps, but I know Faith isn’t close to her parents. Her dad isn’t her agent and she rarely sees him. I don’t think he was a great dad for her either.”

Maybe not. But he had hockey connections that had played a part in Faith’s career. Things I’d missed. It was easy to say I might have been better off without him, but my messed-up thoughts didn’t agree with that.

“You’re close to her?”

Jayna nodded. “We’ve played on the same teams. The Bonfire, Nationals—we bunked together for a while and talked. In fact…”

She was chewing her lip again. What problem did she have?

“I was the one who suggested Faith play last night. Both that they call her as the EBUG and to start the third period.”

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