"Where is this coming from?" I crack my neck. "And how do you know I’m not doing what I want right now?"
"You mean babysitting Hollywood stars—"
"It’s called being a bodyguard," I snap.
"And not that I don’t love our resident silver screen icons,"—He nods to where Solene, the biggest popstar since Taylor Swift and her fiancé Declan, the leading superstar of Hollywood, are currently sucking face in an armchair across the room—"but you have to admit, it doesn’t hold a candle up to the feeling you get when you mow down the opposition and you swing the puck home."
Images of the last time I was on ice at the final of the Cup, as the centerman of my team, controlling the pace of the game, impacting the offensive and defensive positions, helping the players on my team, winning face-offs, leading breakouts, throwing that final puck towards the goal… Then, walking off the ice and never looking back. What happened that day is something I don’t like to revisit. It’s the reason I’ve avoided the ice since. Am I ready to go back and face the ghost of what happened that day? I’m not sure, to be honest.
I open my mouth, but Knight claps my shoulder. "Don’t answer yet. Also, there’s one more thing you should know—" He breaks off to look over my shoulder. "Giorgina, you’re just in time."
Giorgina
"In time for what?" I strut over to them—because that’s the only way I can walk in these heels, which seemed to be a good idea when I spent half a month’s salary on them, but which I’m now wondering was a good idea, but I have them on, so might as well as make the most of them, right? "What are you gentleman conferring about?"
Cade flashes me a smile. "Heard so much about you from Abby, but we’ve never been formally introduced. I’m Cade."
"Giorgina." I hold out my hand. "You can call me—"
"—Giorgina," Rick snaps.
I shoot him a shocked glance. What’s wrong with the man? He’s more angry than usual.
"Gio, is it?" Cade’s grin widens. He reaches for my hand, but Rick snaps his fingers, and the Great Dane lumbers to his feet and steps between me and Cade.
"What the—？" I gape.
Cade laughs. "Sending a mutt to do your dirty work, hmm?" He shoots Rick an amused glance. "I’m off to kiss my wife. Haven’t done so in nearly ten minutes; need to remedy that." He tips his head in my direction. "Nice to meet you, Giorgina. Don’t let Rick’s bad attitude color your opinion about the rest of us."
Rick glowers.
Knight chuckles.
Cade swaggers off, and I follow his progress. He reaches Abby, draws her in, then bends her over in a theatrical move and kisses her. By the time he straightens, Abby’s laughing, as are their friends. Then Michael and Karma approach them and the four begin an earnest conversation. There’s an ease among this group of people, one which hints at shared experiences. One I’m not part of and might never be.
I’ve never had the time to focus on building friendships. I’ve been too focused on my career. And the one time I did let my guard down and trust someone… Well, let's just say, that didn't turn out well. Nope, those warm, fuzzy feelings are not for me. Besides I don’t need friends. I’m here to focus on building my new career and developing a healthy relationship with my new boss. I turn to Knight, the owner of the London Ice Kings. "I can’t wait to start work on the marketing and PR for the team."
Knight smiles. "We’re very lucky to have you on board, Giorgina."
Rick mutters something under his breath that sounds suspiciously like, "That makes one of us."
I shoot him a glance. "What was that?"
"Who, me?" He stabs a thumb into his chest. "I didn’t say anything."
"Hmm," I firm my lips.
"I’m glad the two of you already know one another; you'll be working closely together."
"We will?" Rick scowls.
"He’s not yet the captain of the team," I remind Knight.
"That’s true," Knight slowly nods. "If Rick doesn’t accept the position, you’ll work in close proximity with whoever replaces him."
That draws a low growl from Rick. His nostrils flare. A vein pulses at his temple.
"Something you want to say, Mitchell?" Knight murmurs.
Rick scowls at him. "I know what you’re doing."
Knight chuckles. "Is it working?"
Something passes between the two men. "What am I missing, someone care to fill me in?" I burst out.
"Just that you’ll have a dotted line reporting into the captain. This being a new team, a lot of the attention will fall on him, so you’ll need to not only work closely with him but also take your cues from him in terms of building up his image." Knight interjects in a smooth voice.
"O-k-a-y," I nod. It’s unusual but not unheard of.
"Also, Priest has agreed to take on the role of the General Manager—"
"Edward has?" Rick arches an eyebrow.
"Given his background and the challenges he’s overcome, he was the perfect choice for the role. I have to admit, I was surprised when he accepted, but he has his reasons," Knight cuts the air with his hand. "All in all, things are shaping up well. But it’s going to take a lot of effort on the part of everyone to pull things together. This means the captain will need to not only get the team working together as a unit, but he’ll also have to pull his share when it comes to the marketing and publicity."
"Makes sense." I nod.
"As the PR manager you’ll need to have daily meetings with the captain, and work intimately with him on crafting the details of the publicity strategy for the team."
"That’s what I do best." I square my shoulders. "In no time at all, I’ll have whipped the image of the captain and the team into shape."
"In the initial days, you’ll have to work in very close quarters with the captain."
I frown. "I understand. I’m not one to shirk from hard-work, and since Rick is not the captain"—thank god—"things should run smoothly, and—"
"I accept the role," Rick interjects.
"What?" I slingshot my head in his direction. "You’re doing it to get on my nerves."
"I’m doing it because Knight needs me."
I slap my hand on my hip. "Until a few seconds ago, you were positive the role wasn’t for you."
"That was then."
"So, what changed?"
"I realized Knight was right all along; I’m the man for the job."
"You are." Knight nods.
"I don’t want to work with you," I snap.
"Are you saying you’re not accepting the role?" Knight frowns.
"Umm…" I turn to him. "That’s not what I’m saying." I need this job. I ran out of L.A., breaking the lease on my place, without any savings—which means, my cashflow is almost non-existent at the moment. And the Ice Kings’ salary is more than generous. To be honest, I don’t have an option. But if it means I’m going to be working closely with this asshole, well… Do I have a choice?