Attacking Zone (Utah Fury Hockey Book 4)

by Brittney Mulliner

  “Do you mind balancing the register?” I asked Matt while rinsing out a blender.

  “Sure.”

  I had everything else cleaned up, but before I turned everything off, I made a cup of caramel hot cocoa and peppermint hot cocoa, so Wyatt would have a choice.

  “Both for you?”

  Matt looked at the cups with a raised brow. I felt myself blush.

  “I was actually going to stop by Wyatt’s and apologize.”

  He watched me silently for a moment. “You know where he lives?”

  Crap. I hadn’t thought about Matt knowing that. What would he think of me?

  “It’s a long story.”

  He shrugged. “Whatever. See you later.”

  “Bye.”

  I followed him out and locked up. With a cup in each hand, it would probably be easier to walk a few blocks than try to drive. I didn’t trust my cup holders with hot beverages.

  The doorman opened the doors for me and let me in with a smile. I took that as a good sign and headed to the elevators.

  Either he remembered me coming in with Wyatt, or robbers didn’t come in with hot chocolate very often.

  When I got to Wyatt’s floor, I stepped out expecting to be met with bodyguards or staff blocking me, but the hall was empty. I went to his door and took a deep breath before awkwardly knocking while trying not to let anything fall.

  The door opened a minute later revealing a half-naked Wyatt.

  “Oh.”

  Brain Gone.

  Tan. Skin. Muscles.

  So. Many. Muscles.

  My eyes drifted from his rippled stomach to his well-defined chest.

  Oh, good grief.

  I took in his sculpted shoulders and drifted up to his smooth jaw. He’d shaven recently. I was a little disappointed his scruff was missing.

  I blinked and met his eyes.

  Oh no.

  I’d been staring. Full-blown checking him out. And he watched. Amused.

  “I umm…I brought you.” I shoved both hands out and nearly threw them at him and ran. I couldn’t believe I’d just looked at his body like I was memorizing a sculpture. Although, if there was a quiz later I’d ace it for sure.

  “You brought me two drinks?”

  His easy smile was making this worse. Him not calling me out actually made me feel like a creep or a fan girl. He was probably used to it. Not okay. I didn’t want to be one of those girls.

  I shook my head. “I brought you two options. Caramel or peppermint hot chocolate.”

  He looked at me like he was a bit concerned about my sanity and I couldn’t even blame him.

  “You can have either.” I raised them up closer to him.

  “Caramel.”

  I dropped my right hand and took a sip of the peppermint. Mmm, it was the perfect temperature.

  He reached for the other one and took a drink. “This is good. Thanks.”

  I nodded.

  He smiled lazily. “Are you going to stand there staring at me or is there another reason for this visit?”

  I should have smacked him to wipe that obnoxious smirk of his face. I wanted to, but that would be counterproductive for what I was here for.

  “This is a peace offering. An apology.”

  He raised an eyebrow. “It is?”

  I nodded. “I haven’t been very nice since we first met. I projected my expectations onto you rather than getting to know who you really are. You’ve been nothing but kind to me and I’ve been a bit of a brat.”

  “A bit?” He smirked, and I ignored him.

  “I hope we can start over.”

  He nodded slowly, as if he was considering it. “Okay. I think I can do that.” He extended his hand. “Hi, I’m Wyatt.”

  I rolled my eyes. “I don’t mean like that.”

  He pulled his hand back and laughed. “Do you want to come in? I can put on a shirt and we can watch a movie or get dinner?”

  It was tempting. Really, really tempting. “I need to get home.”

  He nodded. “Then will you come to practice tomorrow?”

  What? That was out of the blue. “Why?”

  He shrugged. “I want you to see that we’re not all that bad. You might even start to like the Fury just a little bit.”

  I wanted to tell him no. I wasn’t a traitor, but it would be cool to see any NHL team practice. And he’d done so much for me. If that was all he wanted, I guess I could do that.

  I nodded. “Okay.”

  A smile slowly spread across his lips. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  “Wait, I don’t know when.”

  “I’ll text you the details.”

  “You don’t have my number.”

  He smirked. “Only one way to fix that.”

  I narrowed my eyes for a second before laughing. “That was smooth.”

  He looked pretty proud of himself with his cocky smile. “I thought so.” He stepped back and grabbed his phone off a table and handed it to me. “Don’t give me a bad number. I know where you work.”

  I rolled my eyes and saved my number. “I would never.”

  He chuckled and shook his head.

  “Hey, we’re starting over remember. So far, I’ve done nothing to make you think I would do that.”

  He sobered. “You’re right.” He took his phone from me and tapped the screen. My phone started ringing from my back pocket.

  “Really?”

  He smiled. “Just checking.”

  I turned so he couldn’t see my smile. “I’ll see you later.”

  “See you.”

  I heard his door shut before I got to the elevator. That had gone better than expected, even if there were a few surprises.

  I walked back to my car and stopped when I realized my poor, junky baby had been vandalized.

  I crouched down at the back and tried tugging on the corner. The abomination was stuck on there.

  I shook my head and laughed. There was nothing else to do. I would be driving around with Wyatt’s face on the back of my car until I found a chemical that could get the sticker off.

  If only I had a Harbor sticker to cover it. I had a feeling if I did that, another sticker would mysteriously appear. This was a war I didn’t think I was going to win, and I would never, ever admit it aloud, but I didn’t mind losing.

  Chapter Nine

  Wyatt

  I expected her to bail. Not only because of her track record, which I needed to forget, but the idea of her coming to support the team seemed ridiculous.

  She hated the Fury, but I think she liked me. At least a little bit. After all, she brought me a drink and apologized. She wouldn’t have done that if she didn’t care. If her manager had made her apologize she would have waited until I came back in. She went out of her way to make things right. That meant something. We may not have started out on smooth ground, but we were getting there.

  I was alone in the weight room before practice getting in an extra session when the doors opened behind me.

  Brassard and Olli walked in together talking but stopped when they saw me. I pulled off my headphones and greeted them.

  “Well, well, well what are the odds?” Olli dropped his bag near the door and sat on a bench next to me. “Captain getting in extra training. Even when Coach told us to take it easy.”

  I ignored him and finished my set. I dropped the dumbbells and took a sip of water. “What are you guys doing here?”

  Brassard sat on another bench and began bicep curls. “We’re just making sure you don’t show us up.”

  “It’s going to take a lot more than one day of lifting weights to get on my level.”

  They both laughed and got to work. I put my headphones back on and tried to focus, but between them and Kendall, I was having a hard time.

  “You’re slacking off, Captain.”

  I ignored Brassard’s taunt and focused on finishing my set.

  “What’s on your mind, Cap?”

  I swear this place was more of a ther
apy office than a gym. Guys were always having deep conversations when they should be working out. I was tempted to turn up the volume and drown them out, but I knew they wouldn’t give up.

  I pulled my headphones off and answered them. “Just tomorrow’s game.”

  They made eye contact in the mirror while I pretended not to notice.

  “You know, Brassard, I’ve been thinking I need to find a new place to get my coffee. My barista has been getting a little too friendly lately. Do you have any recommendations?”

  “Gee, Olli. I don’t know. Maybe Cap has an idea.”

  I narrowed my eyes. “Who told you?”

  Olli cracked a smile first. “First Noah, then Colby confirmed.”

  I clenched my jaw and started in on shoulder presses.

  Olli’s grin grew. “Oh, come on. Don’t get mad. You’re the one that brought her back to your place. That’s asking for it to spread.”

  “How did you know that?” I asked.

  Brassard laughed. “Colby has that place wired. She also has the staff keeping eyes out and reporting back to her. She knew before you even texted Noah to hang out.”

  I shouldn’t be surprised. I guess I really wasn’t. Colby took her job as Noah’s assistant and girlfriend very seriously. Since he was the hottest rookie in the league there was a lot of press covering him. It was a security issue. I’m sure she knew all of the people that came in and out of the building.

  “Why didn’t you tell us you have a girl?” Olli pouted while I rolled my eyes.

  “There’s nothing to tell.”

  “She’s the first girl you’ve ever taken back to your place, Cap, don’t lie.”

  Brassard had a point, but he was under the impression something happened. It didn’t.

  “I just had her come to wait out the storm. Her car wouldn’t start, and I didn’t want her waiting in the cold.”

  “So, she didn’t sleep over?”

  I stood and exchanged my weights for a higher set. “She did, but I was in my room and she was in the living room.”

  I wanted to drop it. Talking about the disaster that night turned out to be wasn’t a high priority.

  The guys looked at each other and Olli smiled. “So, nothing happened?”

  “Nope. When I woke up she was gone.”

  “Wow. That bad, huh?” Brassard laughed and I nearly threw the weight at him.

  “It wasn’t like that. I was a gentleman. I made her dinner, we watched a movie, then I went to my room. I told her I’d help with her car in the morning, but she was gone.”

  Olli narrowed his eyes. “Why?”

  I shrugged. “Honestly. I have no idea. She came by and apologized last night.”

  “Yeah, she did.” Brassard whooped, and I leaned over to punch him.

  “She said she was sorry and wanted to start over.”

  Olli chuckled. “Seems like a good idea.”

  I shrugged. “I invited her to come today, but we’ll see if she actually shows.”

  Brassard was staring at me in the mirror. “I don’t get it.”

  “Get what?” I asked as I started my next set.

  “You’re putting in a lot of work and effort for a girl that seems…” He paused mid curl. “She doesn’t seem to like you.”

  I laughed while Olli looked at Brassard like he’d just grown another head.

  “I’ve asked myself the same thing. She hated me the first time she met me. She hates the team. She ditched me, ran away after I helped her. She was almost rude to me after I donated money to this kid’s fundraiser. Then she showed up at my house with hot cocoa. I’m not really sure what to think of her.”

  “Then why invite her? Why waste your time?” Brassard looked as confused as I felt about the situation.

  Olli interrupted before I could respond. “This is the first girl you’ve ever hung out with as long as I’ve known you. She might be a little rough around the edges, but there must be something about her that you like if you’re putting in any effort at all.”

  I nodded and set down my weights. “I like that she treats me like a normal person. She might not necessarily like me, at least not when we first met, but she doesn’t act like other women. She doesn’t suck up or ask for things from me. She doesn’t expect anything.”

  Olli seemed to understand, but Brassard didn’t look convinced. “Man, I’m telling you it’s not worth it. You’ll get sucked into their drama and crazy. It’s better to just stay out of things like this until the season is over. Or until you’re retired.”

  I laughed. “I’m not dating her. We’re just getting to know each other, maybe we’ll be friends.”

  Olli laughed this time. “Oh yeah, cause that happens.”

  I glared at him. “It can. I’m not going to let any distractions in. We’re closing in on the playoffs, and that’s the most important thing in my life.”

  Brassard nodded. “Good to hear.”

  His worry was unfounded. I’d never let a woman come between me and winning before, and that wouldn’t change. I wasn’t the type to get swept up in things. They knew that. I’m sure they were just happy to finally have something to tease me about.

  “How’s Emma doing?” I decided changing the subject was my best hope of keeping my sanity.

  Olli instantly smiled. “She’s great.”

  “And the baby?”

  “Getting big.” He looked so proud.

  “Still going to wait on the gender?”

  He nodded. “She wants the surprise, but I just wanted to get out of having to do one of those gender reveals.”

  I laughed, and Brassard shook his head. “I can’t believe you’re going to be a dad.”

  I had to agree with that. I’d known Olli for five years, and yeah, we’d gotten older, but it still felt like we were kids sometimes. Now he was having a kid.

  “What about you Brassard? Seeing anyone?”

  He made a sour face. “You know I stay away from all women. They’re monsters.”

  Olli rolled his eyes. “Lucy was the only bad experience you had. You can’t let her ruin every other woman for you.”

  Yikes. I watched Brassard for his reaction. We didn’t speak of Lucy. His college girlfriend was off limits.

  He clenched his jaw and paused before responding. “That was more than enough for me to know I want nothing to do with them. No dating for me.”

  I laughed. “You can’t live alone forever.”

  He smirked. “I don’t plan on it. But I’m never going to get married like you guys. Once I’m out of the league, I’ll travel. Or coach. Or whatever I want. I’ll get a dog and date around. No commitment. No heartbreak.”

  I shook my head and started another set. He said that now, but I knew all it would take was the right woman to change his mind.

  “Don’t hang around Schultz, Malkin, or Murray. They’ll try to convert you to their ways.”

  Brassard rolled his eyes. “Those three are such saps. Schultz is a completely different person now.”

  “In a good way.” I might have been the one to point it out, but I knew Olli agreed.

  “I just don’t see the point. It’s just going to end in heartbreak.”

  Olli shook his head. “It doesn’t have to.”

  I smiled and thought of him and Emma. They were really perfect together. They were exactly what I wanted, one day. In the distant future.

  “You’re the exception, Olli. Not all of us can be that lucky.”

  I really hoped Brassard wasn’t right. I didn’t want to think that one day I’d end up alone, broken hearted, and bitter. It just took the right person. The right woman and you could have it all, like Olli did.

  I wouldn’t let myself think of either possibility. Finding the right woman or not, that didn’t affect me right now. All I could focus on was today. Training then practice. Then the next game. Those were the things that mattered. Sitting here analyzing whether or not Kendall was interested in me or why she brought me hot chocolate was a waste of
time. It was irrelevant to what I needed to be doing.

  I finished the rest of my work out then stood. “Practice starts in ten, so hurry up.”

  They began putting back their weights as I left the room. I changed into my pads and skates and went out to the ice. A few of the guys were already out so I caught up with them, but my focus was on the Pride. Chloe and Emma were there. I looked for Kendall’s blonde curls but didn’t see her yet.

  That was fine. She had a few minutes before we started. I’d made sure to have a pass waiting for her, so there should be no problem about her getting in. I even warned Chloe, so she wouldn’t try to kick Kendall out.

  All she needed to do was show up.

  “Who are you looking for?” Noah stopped next to me and waved to Colby sitting in the stands.

  “No one.”

  Noah smiled. “Sure.”

  He pushed off the boards and started skating away before I could ask him what he meant.

  The rest of the guys flowed out of the locker room followed by Coach, so I didn’t have any more time to look for Kendall. If she showed up great, if not. Well, then I was done trying.

  Chapter Ten

  Kendall

  I was running late. I thought I’d have plenty of time, but my doctor’s office was busy. She was late seeing me then the lab was backed up and I had to wait almost an hour to get my blood drawn.

  I had no idea how long practices lasted, but I was already thirty minutes behind. Luckily, parking wasn’t an issue and I was able to get in without waiting, but I didn’t know where to go from here.

  There was no one around which felt strange in an arena this large. None of the food stands or stores were open either. It didn’t help that I’d never been here before. There were no portals to the seating, so I had no idea where to go.

  I walked down the hall hoping to run into someone. There was a sign hanging above a staircase with a sign for portals A-L, so I followed it up. There were a few people on this level, so I took that as a good sign. A security guard stood at the entrance to portals, so I approached him.

  “Hi?”

  He turned to me and nodded. “Yes?”