Page 95 of Playing to Win

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Jayna

The city was hockey mad.Our crosstown rivals had gone out in the second round, and the Blaze were in the finals. They were playing Minnesota, which might not be as big a market as, say, LA, but it had rabid fans. Minnesota had been playing exceptionally these playoffs, overcoming the favored Edmonton team in the Western conference finals, and everyone expected a good Cup series.

The team had a few days off before the finals started. Braydon had gone into the optional practice, since he was rested and wanted to help however he could. I got a call from Cooper, asking me to meet him for lunch. Surprising, since he’d been busting his ass throughout the playoffs leading the team and it wasn’t like him to skip even an optional skate. I agreed. He might have some leads for work, but I would make it very clear that I wasn’t going to abuse my connections. What they’d done already, Cooper and Faith and Braydon, was enough. I was ready to take this on by myself.

We met in a little hole-in-the-wall I’d never heard of. The owners were some of the few non-hockey-crazy people in the city. Nothing hockey-related was on display in the restaurant, and they didn’t react to Cooper’s presence. No one did.

We ordered our food at the counter and sat at a table while we waited for it to be brought to us. I cracked open my water bottle and grinned at the guy across the table. “This a soccer hangout?”

He looked around and shrugged. “Yeah, that or rugby. Nice to have a place where no one wants a selfie.”

“I promise not to ask you for one. What’s up?”

His smile dropped. “I’m going to tell you something in strict confidence. There will be a release coming from the team, but you deserve to know the truth.”

My stomach twisted. Was this about Braydon? Were they telling everyone about the fake dating?

“Radner is retiring.”

My jaw dropped. “What?”

He nodded. “After the playoffs. I talked to some people about what happened with you and Braydon. Let’s just say that’s not the kind of behavior the team supports.”

I rolled my eyes. “Right.”

Cooper shook his head. “I get it. They’re a corporation, they’re all about the bottom line, and they don’t support the Bonfire the way they should and could. But they did something wrong here. I called them on it, and they’re doing something about it instead of sweeping it under the rug.”

“They’re going to tell everyone about the fake dating, the proposed breakup—all of that?”

“No. That would hurt you and Braydon more than Radner. But internally, people know. They won’t do anything like that again.”

I huffed a breath. It was something. If this meant no one else would be sacrificed that way for a player’s reputation, it was a step anyway. “Okay. Thanks.”

He shrugged. “I have standards myself, and I don’t want to be the face of an organization that does that. As their face, I have clout. You’re going to get an offer from them.”

My eyes widened. “They want me to work there again?” Even with Radner gone, I didn’t want that. I wasn’t desperate now—I was done with that job.

His lips twisted. “No. They’ve got the Inferno guy working on it full-time, since the Inferno playoff run ended last week. But they’re offering you a better severance package, and some counseling.”

“Counseling?”

“When a player has to retire prematurely, because of an injury or illness, it’s the right thing to do.”

Cooper had arranged that. “Thank you. Truthfully, I don’t want to talk to anyone, but I know I should.”

“No shame in it. It helped Hunts.”

I shook my head. “It’s not a shame thing. I just don’t want to dig into those feelings.”

There was no trace of his smirk now. “It’s your call.”

I sighed and looked away. “I’ll do it. Maybe not right away, but I know it’s important. What about Kira?”

“She’s gone.”

My feelings were conflicted when it came to her. She’d been doing what Radner told her, but it hadn’t been her idea. Pretty sure I knew who got the better sendoff between those two.

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