Page 7 of Puck You Very Much

“…Otherwise, you will all be briefed in the next few days about what you can post about West’s trade or say in interviews,” Gray said, drawing attention to himself again. Dax reluctantly looked at him.

“Who’s briefing us?” Fox wanted to know.

Matt grimaced. “Please, not the dragon. I swear, every time I talk to Forth, chills run down my spine. That old woman is in league with the real devil. She probably put cameras in the restrooms herself to make sure we wash our hands after we pee, just so that no journalist could ever claim otherwise.”

“Leslie is scary,” Fox agreed, shuddering.

Gray snorted loudly. “Incomprehensible that this group of 200-pound men can be brought to their knees by a sweet old lady.”

Oh, please. Dax had once observed the coach hiding behind his car as the Head of PR marched out of the administration building, clipboard at the ready.

“You can relax. Lucy James oversees the press conference.”

A general sigh of relief made the rounds… but the hairs on the back of Dax’s neck stood on end.

Lucy James.

Just hearing the name made his whole body stiffen. He had given her two weeks before she quit. That was eleven months ago. Everyone liked her. The whole team thought she was this smart, pretty, kind creature who made their lives easier.

Dax knew better. Yes, she was smart and, shit, shewaspretty, way too pretty for his taste, but she wasn’t kind, and she definitely didn’t make his life any easier. On the contrary. As far as he was concerned,hewasn’t the devil around here, no matter what the press said—shewas.

“So, in summary,” Gray continued, “keep quiet until Lucy tells you otherwise; is that clear?”

“Of course, clear as day. We’d do anything for sweet Lucy,” Leon said with a sigh and a hand on his chest. “It’s a shame she has that stupid rule about not messing around with players. Otherwise, I would have already—”

“Hey,” Matt interrupted sharply, giving him a warning look. “Don’t be like that. Otherwise, I’ll tell Lucy you called her ‘sweet,’ and you know what happens then: You wake up tomorrow morning without your favorite body part.”

Dax snorted. Not because Matt was joking, but because it most likely was true. He’d never known a woman who became so infuriated when someone called her ‘sweet’ or anything similar, which was one reason why he still didn’t understand how Matt could befriendswith Lucy—the traitor! Dax couldn’t figure out how anyone could voluntarily spend time with her. Maybe she had a few magic tricks up her sleeve he didn’t knowabout. Maybe she lived with a bevy of underwear models. That would at least explain why Matt hung out with her.

Leon rolled his eyes. “Good gravy, now we can kiss our freedom of speech goodbye.”

“Freedom of speech isn’t always a good thing,” Dax remarked, patting him on the shoulder.

“Ah, of course, now he speaks,” the defender remarked sourly.

Fox sighed heavily. “Okay, I expect you all at eight this evening. Before the season starts, we’ll probably have to engage in a few teambuilding activities. Some of us seem to have forgotten our manners.”

Teambuilding activities meant something like beer, poker, and pool, so fuck yeah, Dax could go for that.

“Leon didn’t forget his manners just today,” Matt murmured, “he lost them with his first seven-figure paycheck.”

“Hey, I heard that!” the defenseman complained loudly, then added more softly, “And could you please not say that in front of my mom when she comes to the opening game? She’d never forgive me if I showed she’d failed in my upbringing.”

Dax chuckled softly and closed his eyes while Matt wondered if Leon ever considered thinking before opening his mouth. Fox suggested electroshock therapy. Their coach pointed out that it could potentially affect Leon’s ability as a player—a few well-placed jabs to the ribs would do the trick.

And for the first time in three days, Dax felt relaxed. As usual, the bullshit coming out of his fellow players’ mouths distracted him from his life outside of hockey.

Ice hockey was his home. He wouldn’t let that go, not even for Jack West. He would simply learn to coexist alongside him. That was all. He had survived worse.

“That’s what I wanted to hear,” Gray exclaimed happily. “This is our year, people! With West, we have the best chance in the NHL for the Cup. Oh, yeah, Temple, can I talk to you outside for a sec?” He raised his eyebrows and nodded toward the locker room exit.

Great.

“It’ll be fine, Dax,” Matt murmured over his left shoulder, patting him on the back. “I know the West thing is suboptimal, but…we’re all on your side. Hey, if you want, I’d be happy to trip him during his first practice. With me, people will believe it was an accident.”

Dax smiled weakly before standing with a sigh. That was nice to hear, but it wouldn’t solve his problem. “I’ll think about it. Thank you,” he grunted, knowing it was always good to have a plan B. “See you later.”

Dax raised his hand in farewell before following their coach outside. He had little desire to talk about their new addition, but he knew better than to anger the boss before the season even started.

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