Page 67 of Playmaker

“Don’t say it.”

I laughed. Such a Callie way to greet someone. “Don’t say what?”

She rolled her eyes. “You want to gloat about these clothes.”

It wasn’t just the clothes. It was the whole look. “I was going to say you looked good.”

“I knew it. I feel like a Stepford wife.”

I couldn’t imagine anyone less like a Stepford wife. “Are you uncomfortable?”

She squirmed. “Not exactly.”

“I’m sorry, what was that?”

“I’m not saying it again.”

“But I didn’t hear.”

She gave me a sharp-edged smile. “I said, how different is it flying commercial as opposed to flying on your team jet?”

“I don’t think that’s what you said.”

She shrugged. I let it go. She’d said it, I heard it, that would do.

“It’s a bit more of a hassle with lineups and security, but I thought you’d be freaked out if I chartered a private jet for this.”

Her eyes rounded. “You wouldn’t.”

“Ididn’t.”

“Is your family all rich?”

“Rich is relative. They don’t normally charter a private jet, but they could if they needed to.”

“This is going to be an interesting trip.” It didn’t sound like she meant that in a good way. She was at least partly prepared.

When I steered her to first class to check in, she gave me some side-eye but otherwise didn’t react. I was disappointed, but part of what I liked about Callie was the way she could surprise me.

Security was the usual pain. I had a trusted traveler card, but Callie did not, so I stayed with her. For passengers flying from Toronto to the US, there was Customs in Toronto, so we cleared through before boarding—the agent recognized me and that helped smooth things.

Fans also recognized me. Some wanted selfies, some to tell me I’d fucked up the finals, but we eventually found a corner in a bar to wait for our flight to be called.

Callie looked around at the other travelers, frowning at a guy staring at me. “People continually tell you how to do your job.”

“Yep.”

“You’re a lot more patient than I would be.”

I laughed. “I can only imagine what you’d do if someone tried to correct your tax opinions.”

Her brow furrowed. “Why pay me if they don’t trust me to do the work properly?”

“People don’t think they know tax, but they do hockey.”

“Does it bother you?”

“I don’t get endorsement deals because I’m a private person.” The publicity was another way to annoy my family, so I was patient with the public.

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