The Shots On Goal Series Box Set

by Kristen Hope Mazzola

  Chapter 12

  Whistler

  “How was the concert?” Brayden asked when I walked out onto the balcony where he and Gavin were smoking cigars.

  Gavin handed me a Romeo y Julieta. I cut the end and started to light the stogie. Between puffs, I replied, “It was a nice break from the same old routine. I am just so ready to be off of nights already. I don’t know whose Cheerios I pissed in, but I have been on the job for too fucking long to get stuck with nights again.”

  Gavin blew out a plume of woody smoke. “Yeah, but Jess has only been in for a year. Could that be it?”

  I chewed on the end for a second. “I have no earthly idea, but I am fucking over it.”

  “How’s everything going on that front? The you and Jess being partners thing? Is it weird having a chick that hot as a partner?” Leave it to Brayden to ask the blunt, jackass question.

  “She’s awesome. I wouldn’t want another partner. We get along great and she’s one hell of a cop.” It was the truth, simple as that. Even though I couldn’t get the image of her riding my dick only hours before out of my head, first and foremost, Jess was my partner and best friend.

  “Sean? Ready to head out? I’m fucking beat.” Jess popped her head out of the sliding glass door.

  Handing the half-smoked cigar back to Gavin, I turned to McBee. “Yeah, I need to hit the sack too. Duty calls again tomorrow.”

  After we said our goodbyes, I drove Jessica to her apartment building like I had done countless times. This time, though, it felt wrong—I didn’t want her to get out of my car. I didn’t want to drive away from her. I never wanted to spend another second without her right by my side.

  “So, I guess this is good night?” She shifted her weight onto her elbow, which rested on the center console in my car.

  I brushed a lock of hair behind her ear before caressing her cheek. “It doesn’t have to be.”

  She bit her lower lip. “Yes. Yes, it does have to be good night. We can’t jump in with both feet here. We need to be smart about this.”

  I hated how right she was. I hated that she was going to make good decisions for the both of us when every cell in my body was screaming in protest.

  “Fine.” I rolled my head from side to side. “But know that I do not like this one bit.”

  Leaning over, she kissed my cheek. “I couldn’t agree more. Breakfast tomorrow so we can talk about everything?”

  “Yeah, that’s a good idea. Call me when you get up.” I squeezed her hand before she started to climb out of the passenger’s seat.

  “Sounds like a plan. See you in the morning, Whistler.” Her calling me by my last name was normal—we were cops, it was what we did—but right then, the world shifted and it was not all right anymore.

  “Jess?” I grabbed her hand quickly, stopping her as she was halfway out of the car.

  Wide-eyed, she cocked her head to the side. “Yeah?”

  “Please, call me Sean.” Happiness washed over her face at the simple request, and a calm smile played on her lips.

  “You got it, Sean.” She blew me a kiss before climbing out of the car and shutting the door.

  I waited until she was safely behind the security door of her building. I watched as she quickly glanced over her shoulder for one last look at me before the metal door slammed behind her. It was simple but it made my heart skip a little.

  She really does like me.

  I barely slept, replaying the evening over and over in my head.

  What if I completely fucked up?

  What if she regrets it?

  What the fuck was I thinking?

  She’s my partner.

  She’ off limits.

  She’s fucking perfect.

  I tormented myself overthinking the entire situation to death, playing out every damn scenario in my head—what would happen if someone saw us, what the captain would do if he found out, how we would tell the captain we were in love and were going to have to be reassigned.

  My stomach sank. I felt like a total pansy for how fucking wrecked I was over the entire situation. I was a goddamned basket case. The thing that worried me the most was protecting Jessica’s reputation. I would never want someone in the precinct to think she was easy or a slut.

  I tried to think back, and I actually could not remember Jess ever talking about another guy—no past relationships, old boyfriends, or weird sexual conquests. It wasn’t like I was forthcoming on that front either with her, or had much to tell, for that matter.

  I grabbed my phone. Took a deep breath. Typed out a text and read it over and over before I hit the send button.

  Me: There are over eight million people in this city and you are the only one I truly see.

  Cheesy—totally cheesy—but it was true, and right then I needed Jess to wake up to a message showing her how in this I was. I wasn’t going to half-ass it. I was going to jump in with both feet even if it wasn’t what we were allowed to do. I was going to show her that we had not made a mistake—we were supposed to be together. In all of the scenarios that I had played out, not one involved us being apart or not pursuing a relationship—that was one thing I knew for sure, I was at least going to try.

  My phone vibrated with a call, and I jumped thinking it was going to be Jess calling me right away, but Gavin’s name scrolled across my screen.

  “Hey, man. What the fuck are you doing up at six in the morning?” I groaned as I answered the call and stretched.

  “Get Jess and get the fuck over to my place right now. I don’t know what to fucking do. We need you guys’ help.” Gavin’s voice was low and panicky.

  “Be there in a few minutes.” I grabbed my clothes off the of floor from the night before, got dressed as fast as I could and rushed down the three flights of stairs to my car parked in its spot.

  Chapter 13

  McBee

  My phone buzzed on my nightstand with an extremely sweet text that melted my heart immediately. It was relieving to say the least that Sean felt the way he did. I needed to know that his feelings mirrored mine, and there it was, plain as day.

  As I was about to type out a reply, he called me.

  “Sean?” I answered right away.

  “Get dressed. I’m on my way to pick you up,” he barked into the phone breathlessly.

  “What’s wrong?” I jumped out of bed, grabbing a pair of jeans out of my bottom dresser drawer.

  “I don’t know, but Gavin and Myla need us right now.”

  Myla and Gavin were standing in the middle of their living room when Sean and I hurried into their penthouse. Myla’s cheeks were puffy and her eyes were bloodshot. Gavin looked like he was about to rip someone limb from limb.

  “What’s going on?” I asked, pulling Myla’s shaking body into a bear hug.

  “Someone threatened to kill Myla.” Gavin slammed his fist against the wall as he roared.

  “Wait—what?” Sean ripped a piece of paper out of Gavin’s hand.

  I pulled at one side of the handwritten note as I read the death threat, still holding Myla with one arm. She was lightly sobbing into my shoulder as her entire body shuddered.

  You can’t hide. You can’t always be protected. I will get you one way or another. You do not deserve him. He should be with me. It is only a matter of time until you’re out of the way for good.

  “Was this delivered by mail?” I asked as Myla shook her head against the crook of my shoulder.

  “Our doorman had it waiting for us this morning, said the nightshift guy had gotten it from a courier right before his shift ended at four in the morning,” Gavin responded.

  “Have any crazy fans been lurking lately?” Sean asked, putting the note back down on the coffee table.

  Gavin threw his hands in the air. “Fuck, I haven’t had to deal with a crazy fan since I was a damn rookie. I’m no Tyler Seguin or any other pretty boy women fawn over constantly.”

  “Well, you have one now.” I grabbed my cell. “I’m going to call this in.
Myla, put this in a Ziploc baggie so we can run it for prints.”

  Hovering over the page, Sean rubbed the back of his head. “I feel like I’ve seen this handwriting before, but I can’t place it.”

  “It’s definitely a woman’s script, but I can’t place it,” Myla remarked as she slid the page into the protective plastic.

  “We’re going to need to get both of you out of here. This chick obviously knows where you live and that worries the shit out of me.”

  We waited in the foyer as Myla and Gavin packed bags to head for Brayden and Karla’s house.

  “What are we going to do?” I asked Sean. “It’s not like we’re going to be assigned to them—we’re too close.”

  Running his hand over his face, he sighed. “Fuck, I know, but it won’t be hard for Gavin to get bodyguards for them, and we can be with them as much as possible.”

  “This is some crazy shit.” I leaned against the doorjamb.

  Sean ran his hand over my shoulder, looking down at me. “Yeah, it really is. We’ve been lucky in the past but I don’t like that this could put you in danger.”

  He kissed my forehead. Right as my eyes shut, I heard Gavin clear his throat. “Am I interrupting something?” A sly simper spread as he pointed a finger at us. “I knew it was only a matter of time before the two of you came to your damn senses.”

  Myla ran into the room. “Yay! Now I have someone other than Karla to talk to about this.”

  Sean glared at me as I shrugged. “They figured it out when we got to the party. You know how much lying makes me uncomfortable.”

  He kissed my forehead again before turning to Gavin and Myla. “We can talk about this later, we have bigger fish to fry. Ready to get the heck out of here?”

  First, we took Myla and Gavin to the station to file a report.

  “Tomlinson is going to take your statement and process the letter as evidence. Sean and I will be waiting right over here for you guys.” I put my hand on Myla’s arm as she wiped a few tears from her cheeks.

  “Is everything going to be okay? Are we going to be all right?” I could see the fear building in her eyes as Gavin protectively tucked her into his side.

  “We’re not going to let anything happen to you, baby, promise.” His voice was soft as he tried his best to comfort his wife.

  My heart broke for them. Myla and Gavin were two of the nicest people I had ever known, and seeing them stressed and worried was not sitting well with me.

  “McBee, Whistler,” our captain called out from his office.

  I sucked in a deep breath, following Sean into the small room.

  “Sir?” Sean asked as we both took a seat across the desk from him.

  “What is going on with Gavin Hayes?” Captain MacDonnell knew Sean and I were close with most of the hockey players so seeing us walk in with the captain of the team was not totally out of character, but I could tell his radar was on high alert.

  “Gavin’s wife, Myla, got a disturbing letter this morning, threatening her,” I answered staring down at the piles of files on the captain’s desk. I couldn’t believe the words that were coming out of my mouth.

  He leaned back in his chair, stroking his short graying beard that covered his rosy cheeks. “I want the two of you to stay with them for the next couple of days. They are comfortable with you, and you guys know their habits and who they associate with. If anyone can keep them safe, it’s you. We’ll figure out how to work it around your shifts. Also, have Gavin get a protective detail for when he is out of town on away games until we figure out who this person is. We don’t know if he is a target too or the actual target.”

  I sighed with relief as Sean replied, “Aye, Cap. Thank you. I know Myla and Gavin will truly appreciate this.”

  “Protecting and serving is important, but keeping family safe is at the forefront of our mission.” Captain MacDonnell palmed the desk. “Now get out of here and protect your loved ones.”

  “You know the captain has a gambling problem, don’t you?” Sean asked as we made our way up the front steps to Brayden’s front door.

  Myla, Gavin, and I all looked at Sean questioningly, waiting for him to continue.

  “That’s why he’s so invested in keeping Gavin and Myla safe—I’m sure he has money riding on the Otters’ next game,” Sean continued as he rang the doorbell.

  I rolled my eyes, shoving him a bit. “What if he is just trying to be a nice guy? He did say they are our family.”

  Brayden, still in his sleeping pants and no shirt, rubbed his tired eyes as he opened the door for us.

  Myla hugged her brother as we walked inside. “We’re all family,” she muttered with her face buried in Brayden’s chest.

  “Can someone fill me in on what the heck is going on?” Brayden sank onto the couch, pulling his sister down with him as she started to cry in his arms.

  Gavin explained everything as I texted Tomlinson about picking Seven up from the condo and bringing her to Brayden’s.

  Karla sat on the other side of Myla, rubbing her back. “It’s going to be okay. We’re all in this together.”

  “I just don’t get who would want to threaten Myla after you all have been together for so long. Usually this shit happens right when a player gets a new girl or is wifed up, not a year after he’s taken off the market.” It was very apparent that Brayden was not handling the news well. “Should we tell Coach?”

  Gavin stopped his pacing midstride. “We are not telling my father about this. He’s already pissed enough that I married your sister—let’s not give either of my parents more reason to be jerks. As far as I am concerned, all of this shit is on a need to know basis. This stays between the six of us and whoever knows at the police station. Once this is handled, we are never going to speak of it again. Is everyone all right with that?”

  Brayden handed a napkin to his sister. “You’re snotting and it’s gross,” he whispered before looking over to his brother-in-law. “If that’s how you want this handled, you got it.”

  We all agreed that it was for the best to follow Gavin’s plan.

  Chapter 14

  Whistler

  “Hey, Myla.” I closed the patio door behind me as I joined Myla out on the desk. She was leaning on the wood railing watching Seven sniff around the yard.

  I handed her a cup of tea as she looked up at me. “Thanks.”

  “How’re you holding up?” I asked.

  She shrugged. “You know, after my mom died and I finally got over the injuries from the accident, I thought that was the worth shit I would ever have to deal with in my life. This is just fucking with me more than I expected it to.”

  I had never talked to Myla about her accident. I never wanted to dredge up those shitty memories for either of us. “I never told you this and I probably should have, but I was one of the responders that night. It was my first really bad accident.”

  Myla’s eye grew ten times as she set the steamy mug down onto the wood ledge. “What? How come you never said anything?”

  “I didn’t know how to bring it up and it is all kind of crazy how small of a world it is. After that night, I never thought I would see you again.”

  “Was it as bad as I think it was?” Her voice was barely audible.

  “It was pretty bad, but your mom didn’t suffer,” I lied. I needed to. I didn’t know how to tell her what I had witnessed.

  “Did you talk to her?” Myla’s fingers gripped my forearm as her eyes watered.

  “She asked me to make sure that you were all right,” I responded. “With her last breath she was making sure that you were taken care of. Myla, I promised her then that you’d be all right and I am keeping that promise for as long as I am alive. I will always do everything in my power to keep you safe.”

  Myla wrapped her arms around my waist, squeezing me with all of her might. “Thank you so much.”

  After running to get the squad car and dealing with a few of Myla’s freak-out moments, I finally was able to sneak away and
get Jess alone for a few minutes.

  “Hey babe.” I walked out onto the back porch where Jess was sitting.

  She smiled up at me, reaching her hand out for mine. “Hey you. I could get used to the sound of that.”

  “Babe?” I asked, leaning over to kiss the top of her head.

  “Yep.”

  “We never got to have that talk this morning.” I sank down onto the chair next to Jess, pulling hers over so we were face to face. I wrapped her cold hands in mine, looking into her bright sapphire eyes.

  She sighed, staring down at our interlocked fingers. “Do we really need to talk it out?”

  Her question took me by surprise. “It was your idea to do so.”

  Leaning back in her chair, she relaxed her shoulders. “This is how I see it: we’re together. That ship sailed when you kissed me the other night. We’ll be as professional as possible, and when it gets to the point that we have to let the captain know, we will. I don’t want to stress. I don’t want drama. I just want you.”

  Relief washed over me as I kissed the back of her hand. “How did I get this lucky?”

  A small smirk perked her cheeks up. “I don’t know babe, but I feel the same.”

  Pulling off my shirt, I threw it over to Jess as she sat on the end of the bed in the guestroom. “You can sleep in that if you want. I’ll take the couch downstairs.”

  Her brow furrowed as she held her hand out for me. “Why wouldn’t you sleep in here with me?”

  I walked over to her, wrapping my arms around her waist. “To be honest, I’m going to be up all night checking this damn house. I don’t want to keep you up.”

  She sighed. “Well, if you’re going to be up, I might as well keep you company.”

  I walked up the side of the bed, pulling the comforter down. “One of us needs to get some sleep, and I would much rather it be you than me.”