Page 58 of Between the Blue
She’s here.
fourteen
HER
I’m here.
I spent my morning ignoring James completely at the gym, which he seemed happy to allow. Because I’m sure he thought he had gotten through to me.
Jokes on him.
Or maybe it’s on me.
I guess we’ll see.
I finished up my last class for the day and drove straight to the Texas Storm’s headquarters. Tiffany already let them know that I accepted the position, but now that I’m walking through the front doors, there’s really no turning back.
I enter the building to find myself in a long empty hallway. The lights are somewhat dim, but I can spot a directory on the wall about halfway down the hall. I’m looking for Rick Nilsen’s office. He’s the marketing manager for the team and who will essentially be my boss.
I begin to make my way towards the directory when I suddenly feel a slight drop in temperature at the same moment movement catches my attention from the corner of my eye. I turn my head, realizing the wall to my right now contains large windows, and it takes three long seconds for my brain to processthe random indoor ice rink I am seeing behind the glass and to remember that the Storm’s headquarters also doubles as their practice center.
It only takes one more second for my eyes to land on Ben.
I’ve gotten to know the back of his head well by now, and I know for a fact that’s him flying down the ice in a green practice jersey with the number twenty-four on the back of his helmet.
He comes to a stop, and then, as if he can somehow sense me watching him, he spins around on his skates in the matter of a millisecond.
Involuntary, I let out a yelp, practically throwing myself to the floor as I duck out of his view through the windows.
“Excuse me?” a voice sounds, making me gasp all over again.
I look up, seeing a man above me who looks to be in his early forties wearing business casual attire and a Texas Storm lanyard and ID badge around his neck.
“Is everything okay?” the man asks me.
“Oh, yes!” I sputter. “Fine! I just–uh…” I hold up my car keys that are still in my hand in a desperate attempt to not look crazy. “Just dropped my keys.” The man continues to look down at me with raised brows, so I have to ask, “You wouldn’t happen to be Mr. Nilsen, would you?”
“I would.”
Oh.I lower my gaze, now noticing his name on his ID badge.
Great.
“Would you happen to be Addison?” Mr. Nilsen asks.
I force a smile on my face, nodding. “Addie, yes.” And with no further choice, I have to stand up to accept his hand shake. I make sure to keep my back entirely to the windows as I do so. “It’s great to meet you,” I tell him.
We’re off to a lovely start here.
“You as well, Addie,” Mr. Nilsen replies, his voice kind yet hesitant.Can’t say I blame him.“And just Rick is fine. How about you follow me to my office?”
“Sounds like a plan, Rick,” I agree, following after him.
And, I swear, I feel eyes burning into my back until the moment we pass the final window.
Despite our less than ideal introduction, my meeting with Rick actually went over surprisingly well.
He gave me a run down of my duties and expectations as the Storm’s photography and social media intern, explaining that their main goals are to be more active and creative on social media, to show more behind-the-scenes content of the team, to get fans more engaged, and to build their overall following.
