Page 160 of Pucking Sweet

“Yeah, that’s great,” I say, tugging him off the table. “Tell your story walking. We’ll let you know when we’re done talking.”

He wanders off, muttering under his breath. I’ll apologize to him later.

Rachel looks to me. “Poppy, what—”

“Not here,” I say, shooing her backward into her little office. As soon as the door shuts, I spin around, dropping my heavy bag to the floor. “My phone has been ringing off the hook all morning.”

Rachel glances up to the clock on the wall, “Pop, it’s barely 7:30—”

“You don’t think I know that? The calls started coming in at 5 a.m. It was all I could do to make myself presentable and get in here and find you.” I pull my phone from the pocket of my coral pink yoga pants. Flicking with my finger, I show her my missed call history.

She looks mortified. “Just tell me.”

“They’re all about you,” I say. “Asking about last night.”

She lets out a deep breath. “Show me.”

I step over and show her the phone. The headlines just get more ridiculous:

Rachel Price in Secret Tryst with NHL Player(s)

Rachel Price’s Love Triangle Explained

Fire on the Ice: Inside the Secret Love Affair of Rachel Price

Rachel Price: Too Horny for Hockey?

She’s currently the trending topic on most of the celebrity gossip sites, as well as the Ferrymen fan sites, and some of the hockey gossipsites. The footage is on all the social media channels. Videos from several different angles show the moment Jake came skating up to the glass, pounding his fists and telling her to take Ilmari’s jersey off.

“And these are just the short video clips that went viral,” I explain. “People have questions, Rachel. They think they know what they’re seeing. I’m trying to stay ahead of it for you, but I need to know if what I know is the thing I think I know.”

She hands me back my phone with a confused frown. “The thing you—what?”

I toss my phone down on the counter. Hands on my hips, I glare at her. “Rachel Price, did you spurn Jake Compton and take Caleb Sanford as your lover?”

“What—no,” she cries, “No spurning—”

I raise a brow. “Did you spurn Jake Compton and take Mars Kinnunen as your lover?”

She sighs, shaking her head. “I haven’t spurned Jake, Poppy.”

I do her the courtesy of faking my own surprise. “So, youarewith Jake Compton. Why, you sneaky little minx. I didn’t suspect a darn thing. How long?”

She sighs again. “Poppy…”

“Well, what was this then?” I cry, frustrated that she won’t just let me in. “You’re just teasing him? Wearing Kinnunen’s jersey to get a rise out of him? And what was Caleb doing involved? I thought they were friends.”

“Theyarefriends, Pop. It’s—god, it’s complicated.”

“Oh, my good gravy, is it a love triangle? Is Caleb the spurned lover? Are they trying to make you choose? Have you decided—”

Rachel grabs me by the shoulders. “Girl, pull yourself together. No one, and I meanno oneis getting spurned here. I wouldn’t even know how to spurn something.” She drops her hands away from me. “Last night was an inside joke between friends, okay? We all work together, and it was a joke. That’s the official story, alright? No romance, no spurning, no broken hearts.”

I search her face and the realization hits: she’s scared. I was trying to rile her up with my crazy line of questioning, but I know what I saw last night. And I know the look in her eyes now. She’s hiding. I think she has reason to hide. This isn’t just about keeping her andJake a secret. She’s with all of them. Rachel is dating multiple players too. What we’re doing may be socially unacceptable, but for her, as their treating physician, it even crosses the line into unethical.

Oh, this is a disaster. This is going to blow up in spectacular fashion. How long can I sit on this lid?

“An inside joke between friends?” I repeat.

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