Page 90 of Desiring You

Her face softened a bit. “Look, you guys have come a long way since Charleston, but you’re still struggling. You’re sloppy. You half-ass things. And you don’t study your opponents. I ran precision drills this morning because you need to focus on execution. It’s not that you can’t do it. It’s not that you’re lazy. It’s that no one’s expected it of you before. Well, that’s going to change. Now, one morning’s worth of focusing on perfection isn’t going to make it all come together. It’s just a start. But you need to know who you’re playing. So, we’re implementing a new viewing schedule.”

Groans and moans went up from every table.

Molly snickered. “Yeah, how do you think I feel about it? I have to find the footage for you guys to watch. But think of how much better you’ll be when you know what to expect. Then instead of looking like uncoordinated rhinos on skates, you’ll look calculated and precise. You’ll live in the matrix, guys, seeing what’s coming before it happens. You’ll be playing ahead instead of coming from behind. Isn’t that what you want? Or do you want to continue to be mediocre jackasses hacking at a puck and hoping it finds the net?”

Shouts of “Hey!” arose from the men.

Molly shrugged. “Or making Milo look like a walrus flopping around out there.”

Milo harrumphed and crossed his arms.

Molly snickered. “The truth is a bitch, right? You know I’m just saying it how it is.”

We all let out a collective sigh. She was right.

A genuine smile crossed her face. “The coaches are going to have you sit in sections. They’ll point out things to offense, defense, and goalies individually. When I see something significant, Coach or I’ll pause the tape and discuss it.” She turned to the other coaches. “Hey, guys, would you grab the screen and get ready with the lights?” Then she focused back on us. “At the end, we’ll ask for your input. I think we’ll get more out of it this way. Since we’ll have a couple days between games, it won’t always be the day of the game. And as we get to know the teams, we’ll do less of it. Just see what they’ve been up to in the last couple games to make sure you’re prepared. Ready?”

The grunts from the guys told her we were as ready as we would be. For the next hour, we got to know all about our opponents, the Syracuse Stallions. They nearly kicked our asses in October, so it was time to learn about them, get inside their heads, and try to get ahead of it this time. As we watched, it was easy to see why Molly thought this was so important. And with our coaches and Molly narrating what to watch for, most of us were on the edge of our seats. Observing. Analyzing. Seeing what moves to watch out for.

I was so engrossed I almost missed an incoming call from Dominic.

I whispered. “Dom, can I call you back?”

“Not really. Not sure how long I’ll have cell coverage.”

I stood and slipped out to talk in the hallway. “What’s going on?”

Wind roared into the phone before he spoke. “You need to get to Seattle, man, like now.”

Looking back at the room of my teammates, I hissed at him. “What are you talking about? I can’t. I have a game tonight.”

He huffed in frustration. “Then you need to get there tomorrow. Do you ever read company emails?”

I smoothed down my beard. “I checked this morning. I didn’t have any emails.”

Growling, he pushed a few buttons. “Okay, I just sent it to you. Read it.”

I pulled up my email on my phone and scanned through the attachment he sent. No fucking way.

I growled. “Dom, what is this?”

Wind kicked up so I had to focus to hear him. “It’s what Jamarion sent out to staff today. They’re calling you into question in a serious way. You have to fix this. And quick.”

I scrolled through it again. “Half of what they say in this is just not true. I’m not responding to that. My staff know me better than that.”

With the slam of a door, the background noise stopped abruptly. “Do they? Do they know you at all? Because you’re never there. I’m in Iceland, Ransom. I can’t get there to set this right for another few days, so you have to go. Meet with your top employees, call J out on this bullshit, and fire the bastard. Then meet with your Board. You have to make this right or it could ruin you.”

I sighed. “You’re being dramatic. I’m not firing J over this.”

He didn’t sound convinced. “Am I? If the company says you’re all about profits, don’t give a shit about cleaning the ocean, and have been dragging your heels about making key decisions about making new strides in ocean clean-up methods suggested to you by your staff, how long do you think you’ll stay in the CEO’s office?”

I scoffed. “No one would believe any of that. It’s successful because we take so much plastic from the ocean. We wouldn’t have a single dollar in profits if we weren’t also cleaning the ocean!”

He sighed. “I know that. You know that. But the way J is spinning this, he’s making it sound like he’s the one who came up with the idea and they used your popularity as a hockey player to get the thing up and running.”

I shook my head. “He’s just pissed about the microplastics.”

Dominic’s footsteps echoed in the building he was in. “No, man, he’s going on the offensive. He’s basically attacking you, your credibility, your work ethic, your role in the company, and putting the thought in everyone’s mind that they don’t need you to run it.”

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