Page 10 of Wild Pucker

Deep down, I knew I could win.I knew I would win. There was no way I was letting this opportunity pass me by, but I still can't believe I just landed a job that's one step short of being my dream job. It's not my own restaurant, but it's a massive step towards making a name for myself, working for one of the most well-known organizations in North America.

"I won the job?" I croak. Holly and Avery nod, massive smiles stretching across their faces.

"You did." Avery laughs, throwing her arms around me.

The next thing I know, everyone is laughing, chatting and congratulating me. Luke grabs me and locks me in a bear hug, rocking me back and forth. "I knew you'd do it, Tater Tot," he says, using one of my nicknames from when we were kids. I get it. I'm shorter than he is, and when I was two, I may have tried shoving a tater tot up my nose and got some of it stuck up there. Mom needed tweezers to get it all out.

"We knew you'd blow this out of the park." Avery beams, grabbing a bottle of champagne and popping it open. "Time to celebrate!"

"Well done," Monica Starling glides over. She is the most polished middle-aged woman I have ever laid eyes on. I've heard from Holly and Avery that the Starlings, despite their wealth and status, are some of the most down-to-earth, friendly people you'll ever meet. "That salad was phenomenal, and the chicken was to die for. I might start travelling with the team more often just so I can eat their food."

I blush at the compliments. Coach McCall says much of the same, and before I know it, I'm surrounded by people praising me and asking for seconds.

"Luke, dude," Ollie Decker grins, slinging an arm around me. "Your sister is a total knockout. She can cook, and she's hot." My cheeks burn at his words. Ollie is a good-looking man, and he's captivating with his unusual eyes, one blue and one brown. "I call dibs."

Luke's eyes narrow, and he growls. Or at least, I thought the sound came from him until I realize Chase is standing, white-knuckled behind him.

"No one is calling dibs on my sister," Luke says coldly, pulling me away from Ollie as Ozzy laughs and joins our group.

"Why not? We let Ryan have our sister," Ozzy jokes.

"Lily is not available," a deep voice interrupts the twins' playful banter. Chase Wilder has entered the chat.

"I'm not?" I glare at him. Who is he to stay if I am or am not available? He certainly hasn't made any effort to take me off the market. "I don't recall saying you could have an opinion on the matter. I am single, after all."

A muscle in Chase's jaw pulses, and seeing it gives me a feeling of satisfaction. I raise an eyebrow as if saying,I'm right here if you want to change your mind and finally make a move.

"No one on the team is dating my sister," Luke seethes. Oh, he's mad, and so is Chase. Good. "She's off limits."

Just as I am about to give Luke a piece of my mind, a new voice joins the conversation. "I hope that rule doesn't extend to the entire organization. Is kitchen staff excluded?"

My eyes follow the voice and land on one of the most stunning men that have ever crossed my path. He's tall—like really tall—making me feel even smaller. I'm not outrageously short at five-five, but this guy is a skyscraper. His shoulders are strong and broad, covered in a well-fitted dress shirt.He's got style. When I meet his eyes, they are a shocking shade of ice blue, especially in contrast to his reddish-brown hair. Paired with his deep voice and maybe just the tiniest hint of an accent, he's sex appeal wrapped up in one hot package. This dude looks like he walked right off the set ofOutlander.

Yes, please!

"Samuel McCrae." He smiles, taking my hand and raising it to his lips. "It's a pleasure to finally meet the chef I'll be working alongside all year. I'm the team's nutritionist."

"Lily Valentine," I stutter. Seriously, Samuel is hot. Nervously, I glance at Chase, who looks like he wants to punch Samuel in the throat. Good. It's about time he had some competition. I don't plan on waiting forever for Chase to decide if I'm good enough for him, and Samuel seems interested. "And, yes, kitchen staff are most definitely excluded from my idiot brother's mandate. Contrary to popular belief, my brother doesn't control my dating life."

"Well then, I think you and I will get along famously. Between your culinary skills and my food science know-how, we'll have the league's best kitchen."

"Or the hottest," Holly mutters under her breath, and I can't help but wonder if she might be right.

3

Kicking and Scheming

Lily

The next three weeks go by in a blur of cooking, finding a place to live, and setting up my life in Toronto. The last few months have been hectic as all hell. Between finishing my final internship, the Northmen making it all the way to game seven of the Stanley Cup Finals, and then immediately jetting off to Turks and Caicos for Avery and Ryan’s surprise wedding this summer, it’s been somewhat of a whirlwind shit show. Not to mention finding a place to live with Riley in the city now that we are both working here.

Initially, Holly had the great idea to let me move into the spare bedroom of the condo that she and Avery share. They pay a ridiculously low amount of rent because it's owned by Avery’s stepbrother, who were playing hockey in New York for the last several seasons. But that idea went down the tubes when Ollie and Ozzy signed with the Northmen and decided to reclaim their condo for the start of the season. Holly is moving in with Luke on the top floor of the same building, which would have eventually happened anyway because they're getting married this weekend and are disgustingly in love.

In another fortunate turn of events, the unit next to Luke went up for sale and was immediately purchased by Ryan for himself and Avery. Everyone's offered me their spare bedroom, but something tells me living with newlyweds won't be my cup of tea. And when Ollie and Ozzy offered to honour the original plan and let me live in their apartment, Luke vetoed that idea before the twins were finished speaking. My intuition makes me think that living with two bachelors in the prime of their NHL careers would be just as tedious as living with newlyweds. A person can only listen to the soundtrack of skin slapping together so much before their ears want to fall off.

Don't get me wrong, Ollie and Ozzy are great. But they're also a little messy and have a habit of bringing women home, or so I'm told. Avery has the inside scoop on her brothers and assures me I never want to find out what living with them is like.

As it turns out, everything worked out for the best because I wasn't the only one who landed their dream job. After spending the last two years as a substitute teacher, Riley finally secured a full-time teaching position at an elementary school downtown, which means I get to live with my best friend.

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