Page 14 of Puck You Very Much

“You have to stop calling me Luna,” came out of her like a shot.

He found it hard to suppress a smile. “Well,” he drawled, “it’s your God-given name, after all, so…”

“Okay, this negotiation is over,” she said flatly and tried to push past him to get to her car.

He laughed. “Okay, okay. Lucy, wait!” He quickly reached out, caught her wrist, and pulled her back. It felt absurdly delicate and fragile between his rough fingers. Sometimes he forgot that he could hurt her rather easily even though she was stronger than most people he knew.

The warmth of her skin transferred to his while the smell of lemon and something else sweet filled his nose…

He quickly let go. No physical contact. That should also be a rule, but it might send the wrong message.

“Lucy,” he repeated loudly so she knew he was serious. “Sorry. Of course, I will stop calling you Luna.”

“Great,” she said with hostility, rubbing the wrist he had grabbed. Had he hurt her? Or was she merely trying to wipe away his touch? “While we’re at it, I can tell you rule two straight away because it’s related.”

He raised his eyebrows. "And that is?”

“You must treat me with respect in front of the other players.” Her chin slid a little higher. “You will no longer embarrass me in front of them, you won’t undermine my authority, and you won’t give me a hard time. When the team or anyone from the organization is around, you’re going to suppress every mean thing that goes swirling through your mind."

“Hm,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck. He guessed it was a fair request on her part…but at the same time, it was a real shame because it was fun to make her cheeks light up. And seeing Lucy open her mouth in embarrassment, lick her full lips, and close them again without saying a word was also something he would miss. Nonetheless, he nodded. “No problem.”

Her expression darkened. “If it’s not a problem, why can’t you ever hold back?”

He grinned. “For the same reason you can’t: because it’s too damn funny.”

Her cheeks turned pink, and she quickly averted her face.

Yep, he was right. She enjoyed making him look like a fool, too. “Okay,” she said after a while, her expression once again nothing but professional. “What’s your second rule?”

“My sister.”

“What about her?”

“When I spend time with Anna, you won’t be within a ten-mile radius.”

Dissatisfied, she frowned. “But you can just as easily get drunk, pick up women, and run amok while your sister is around.”

He snorted loudly and his shoulders stiffened. What kind of asshole did she think he was? There wasn’t much in life that was important to him besides ice hockey and Anna. Even Lucy should know he wasn’t that big of a bastard.

“Do you know what my sister looks like, Lun…” He cleared his throat. “Lucy?”

She opened her mouth in surprise. “Uh, no.”

“Exactly,” he answered curtly. “And why is that? Because I would never bring her into my damn press circus.”

She nodded slowly. “Understood. Okay. If you’re with your sister, I’ll leave you alone.”

“Wonderful.” He breathed out in relief. “My final rule: Jack West.”

“Yeah, I know the name. Why does he get his own rule?”

“Because I don’t want you to use him to improve my image. I don’t want to go out to dinner with him so that the press believes we’re friends. I don’t want to pose for photos with him at parties, I will not answer interview questions that include his name, I won’t hug him, and I won’t pretend to be amazed by his talent or his sparkling personality. No matter how you plan to make me seem like an angel, he will not be a part of that plan.”

He could tell from her disgruntled expression that she had intended to do just that.

“Well,” she said slowly, taking a deep breath, “to be honest, that could be a problem, especially since Leslie is expecting you tomorrow at ten for the press conference where his trade to the Hawks will be announced. Jack West will also be attending and there will definitely be photos taken of you two, and I bet you will be expected to at least say something like;I have always respected him as a worthy opponent. I can’t possibly protect you from that.”

Fuck.

---