Match Penalty (Utah Fury Hockey Book 2)

by Brittney Mulliner

  I could text her.

  Like a coward.

  What scenario would least likely lead to rejection?

  In person.

  That wasn’t an option. Not without asking someone for help.

  Maybe Reese knew where she lived. Chloe told him everything. But that went both ways. If I asked Reese, he would turn around and tell Chloe before our call was done.

  Nope. I was on my own. Which left me with the choice between a call or a text.

  Text left too much opportunity for her to ignore it or turn me down.

  Old fashioned phone call then.

  I checked the time. She should be off work by now, right? Six was late enough.

  Before I could talk myself out of it I hit her name and held the phone to my ear as it rang. And rang. And went to voicemail.

  I hadn’t considered this. Hang up? Leave a message? No one checks their messages. But would not leaving one be weird?

  BEEP.

  “Uh, hey Madeline. Uh…it’s Erik. Uh…call me back.” I hung up and threw my phone across the room before I could make myself seem like a bigger idiot. If that was even possible.

  Ugh. I was disgusted with myself.

  Two Stanley Cup Championships. Countless interviews. Meetings with powerful and influential people. I’ve never fumbled over my words. I’ve never been nervous. One stupid call and I lose my mind.

  What was wrong with me?

  A vibrating sound came from near my closet. I looked over and saw the screen of my phone illuminated.

  Should I?

  I was up. Reflexes kicked in before I could question myself into paralysis.

  “Hello?” I sounded like I’d just finished running a half marathon. Get it together man!

  “Hi, Erik?”

  It was her. I cleared my throat and reminded myself to breathe. “Hi, Madeline.”

  “Sorry I missed your call. I was driving.”

  Of course. She was being safe. Not ignoring me. “Good idea.”

  She laughed a little and I realized I wasn’t making sense. “How are you?”

  There was a pause. “I’m fine. How are you?”

  I’m losing my mind. “Fine. Good.”

  “Good.” She laughed again. This wasn’t going well. Girls laughed at me all the time. After a well-timed comment or joke. Not when I was stammering like an idiot.

  “Right, so I know that I told you I would wait until you were ready. And it’s only been a week since I last asked.” I sounded like a complete creep. I dropped my head in my free hand. What was wrong with me? I’ve never struggled this much with a woman. I’ve also never tried this hard. “But I was just wondering if you would be interested in getting dinner sometime.”

  I closed my eyes and accepted my future as an eternal bachelor. And not a cool one that chose that life.

  “Oh. Erik, I don’t know.”

  “It wouldn’t even have to be like a date date. I just want to get to know you better.” I was scrambling. Holding on to anything I could. This was me sinking ladies and gents.

  Silence.

  I almost opened my mouth to spew more garbage when she finally spoke.

  “I guess that would be okay.”

  “Really?” Ah. The desperation in my voice made me cringe.

  She laughed. “Yeah, I’m free tomorrow. You don’t have a game, right?”

  “No. Tomorrow works.”

  “Okay, pick me up at seven?”

  “Sure, where do you live?” I looked around for a pen and paper, but there was nothing. Maybe I’d have her text it to me.

  “With my parents.”

  My heart stopped beating. “With your dad?”

  She laughed again. “He is one of my parents.”

  I was going to die. If this conversation didn’t put me in the grave, Coach would. He sort of gave me his blessing, but I didn’t trust that yet. It could be a set up. I knew what could happen to people, especially players, on his bad side and I did not want to end up there.

  “Can we maybe not share this with him?”

  “You don’t want me to tell my dad?”

  I swallowed. “Not really.”

  “Um. Okay. I won’t tell him.”

  I may live to play another game.

  “Thanks. Perfect. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  “Sounds good.”

  I hung up and threw my phone across the room again. I should never allow myself use it again. That entire call was a train wreck. I may have secured the non-date, but I had a bad feeling about how it was going to go. And I had to hope I’d understood Coach the night of Madeline’s birthday. It sounded like he was giving me permission. But you never know. He could kill me instead.

  Oh boy.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Madeline

  I was distracted all day at work. Luckily, my patients knew the routine well enough to guide me along. I followed their lead through exercises and therapy treatments. It was horrible. I tried to pull my head from the clouds, but I was nervous.

  Not so much about a date. Although, this would be my first first date in over four years. That was intimidating enough. Plus, it was with Erik. A man that was completely out of my league and a player. He had the power to break my heart in ways Clark never could. That was scary. Plus, I didn’t know where we were going, so I didn’t know what to expect. That made me nervous. I liked planning ahead. I liked knowing what was coming.

  I had a feeling Erik was the opposite, and life with him would lead to a lot of days like this.

  Another reason this was a bad idea.

  He wasn’t stable or predictable. He was the exact opposite.

  He was everything I didn’t want.

  Then why couldn’t I stop thinking about him? Why had my heart stopped when I saw his name on my phont? Why had I frozen for so long it went to voicemail? Erik was dangerous.

  But I said yes.

  Not because the Pride tried to convince me he was a good guy. He’d proven that to me on his own.

  It was because there was something about him that drew me. Every time I saw him, I should have run. But I never did. I let him approach. I let him get close. He made me realize I could have more than boring and routine. I deserved more. I deserved passion and laughter. Excitement. I felt sparks of all of those with Erik.

  I never did with Clark.

  That’s what scared me. It made me nervous.

  “Are we all set, Ms. Madeline?”

  I nodded to Chris and moved so he could stand. “Have a nice night.”

  I waved to him and walked to my office. Chris was a nice guy, so he’d never tell me to my face that I’d blown off his session, but I knew I had.

  I couldn’t have any more days like this. We’d go out tonight, we’d see we didn’t belong together, and we’d be done.

  I could get through one night.

  All I had to do was go home and get ready. Without letting Dad know I was going out with Erik because that was evidently a deal breaker. I was sure he had warned the team to stay away, but Erik didn’t really think Dad would do anything to him. Did he?

  It felt like I was in high school, having to sneak around. I would let it slide tonight, but that was it. Dating me wasn’t something he should hide.

  I pulled on jeans and a sweater. Hopefully I wasn’t underdressed, but I had no guess what we were doing, so I planned on staying warm. At least it wasn’t snowing tonight.

  Mom was in the kitchen, so I said bye to her and went outside to wait on the porch for Erik. He arrived right on time in his ludicrous Lamborghini. Chloe told me how much Erik loves his car, so I knew better than to tell him how ridiculous I thought it was. He worked incredibly hard his entire life. If he wanted to buy a car that could feed an entire third world country, then fine. That was his prerogative.

  He jumped out and walked up the path to me. “Hi.” He sounded breathless. It wasn’t that cold.

  “Hi.”

  “You look great.”

  “Thanks.�
�� I took in his jeans and coat and felt better.

  “Are you ready?” I nodded and he took my hand, leading me to the passenger door. I slid into the nicest car I’ve ever seen in person. It looked more like a spaceship inside that a car. I glanced over at my little Corolla and smiled. I would pick that car over this every day. I had a feeling I wouldn’t even be able to turn it on if I was left on my own.

  He got in and we were off. He drove in the direction of downtown.

  “Where are we going?”

  He glanced at me and smiled. “I hope you don’t think it’s dumb.”

  Well, now I was curious. What did he have planned? “Try me.”

  “There’s an ice rink set up. So I was thinking we could do that. Then get some hot chocolate and food…”

  His voice trailed off. “What’s wrong?”

  “Saying it out loud made me realize how dumb it is. I should have made reservations at a restaurant or something.”

  I shook my head but he was looking at the road. “It sounds perfect.”

  He pulled up to a red light and looked at me. “Really?”

  I nodded. “I actually haven’t ice skatied the entire time I lived in Chicago.”

  He raised a brow like he didn’t believe me.

  “Now in a few weeks I’ve been twice. My parents will be happy I’m using my years of lessons.”

  “It’s something that comes back to you. Don’t worry” He continued driving until we were in the heart of the city. He parked on the street, which surprised me. I’d seen the ice rink a few blocks from the arena. I assumed he would have parked his baby in the private garage and walked over. Maybe he wasn’t as obsessed as Chloe let on.

  He offered his hand as I got out and slipped on a piece of ice on the sidewalk. “Careful.”

  “Thanks.” Being this close to him was a problem. He smelled like teakwood and man. It was intoxicating.

  He led me to the front of the car and opened the hood. Only there was no engine. It was empty except for a duffle bag he picked up and slung over his shoulder. He must have seen my confusion because he clucked and shut it. “The engine’s in the back.”

  “Oh right.” Of course. Fancy pants cars have to be different. Heaven forbid an engine just go where it belongs.

  He took my hand again and led us across the street. He waved to the woman sitting in the ticket booth and walked on.

  “Don’t we need a ticket or a wristband?” I looked around and everyone else seemed to have one on.

  “Nah. Karen works in the front office. She’s volunteering here for the week.”

  “So, we don’t have to pay? Isn’t that a little weird? This is set up for charity.”

  I didn’t mean to sound so judgmental, but it didn’t make sense. He of all people could afford it.

  He smirked and seemed to hesitate. “She said that my ten-thousand-dollar contribution last week would cover an entrance or two.”

  My jaw dropped. I know I looked ridiculous. I was probably drawing attention. “Ten thousand?”

  He nodded and sat down on an empty bench. He waited a moment before patting the area next to him. I sat, simply following his direction. Who drops cash like that? I mean, I did just fine for myself and my parents have always been well off, but this was another kind of wealth.

  Two white skates appeared in my lap. I stared down at them wondering where they came from. He didn’t buy me a pair, right?

  “Chloe said you guys wore the same size, so I grabbed hers, so you wouldn’t have to wear rentals.”

  I nodded. That was very considerate.

  Kind of like donating more than I make in months.

  He was bent over, tying his skates. Like everything was completely fine. He glanced over his shoulder and frowned.

  “is something wrong? Do they not fit? I can go get you a different pair.”

  I hadn’t looked. I was sure they were fine. I was still hung up on his donation. It wasn’t just the amount. It was the fact that he did it with no press. No cameras. No photo in the news. He simply made the donation and went on with his day.

  Who was Erik Schultz?

  I was having a really hard time connecting the version of him I’d heard about to the one sitting next to me.

  I finally shook my head. “They’re fine.” I slid off my boots and pulled them on. A perfect fit. Being the same size as Chloe would have its perks.

  He stood and offered me his hand. I took it and stood, not letting go as we stepped onto the slick surface. Last time I’d had Chloe to give me confidence.

  I wanted it to be like riding a bike. I stepped carefully, waiting for muscle memory to kick in. I was leaning into Erik, trusting him to keep me up.

  “You’re doing just fine.” He laughed. I elbowed him in the ribs and tried to release my hand from his, but he tightened his grip.

  “I’m sorry. I’m not trying to tease you.” He spun to face me taking both of my hands and guiding me around the small rink. He skated backward with such ease I wanted to trip him, but I knew that would take me down with him.

  “Just relax. You’re too tense.”

  Yeah, and staring at his face, less than a foot away from mine, was not helping. I rolled my shoulders and tried to loosen up.

  “There. Just take smooth steps.” I felt ridiculous. I knew how to do this. I’d been skating since I could walk. Just a few years without practice and I was back to the beginning?

  Children were passing us.

  Children.

  “Don’t look around, just focus. Take a step and balance on that foot.” I did and he nodded. I stepped to my other foot and we continued gliding around for two full loops.

  I was getting more and more used to the movements, and after maybe five or ten minutes, Erik turned around and skated next to me again. “You got the hang of it.”

  I looked at him and finally smiled. “Took me a minute.”

  “You’re doing great.” I hadn’t fallen, so that was a win.

  “It’s a little cruel to choose what you do professionally as a first date.”

  I looked at him out of the corner of my eye and blushed when he caught me. “We’re not playing hockey, so it doesn’t count.”

  “That’s true. I should be grateful you aren’t making me practice shots.”

  “Did your dad make you?”

  I shook my head. “Not really. If I was interested in it he would let me practice, but it never really stuck.”

  “What did you like to do growing up?”

  “I mostly hung around the arena watching practices. I never played sports or anything though.”

  “Why not?”

  “My parents didn’t have time.” I realized that wasn’t entirely correct. “They would have made time, but I was caught up in all of it. I was there every day after school. Cheering at every game. That was my life.”

  He laughed. “Mine too.”

  That’s true. We had that in common.

  “What was your favorite subject in school?”

  I laughed. I hadn’t thought about that in a long time. “When I was little, I loved math, but in high school it was science.”

  “That makes sense.”

  I shrugged. “It helped that I liked those classes, but I knew I wanted to go into sports medicine since I was young. One of my favorite players, Matt Tampara, got injured during a game and I was devastated. I thought he would be done forever. But he went to therapy and came back a few months later. I thought it was magic.”

  “You fixed my knee, but when it happened I thought I was done. What you do is magic.”

  “Not really.”

  He stopped and turned until we were face to face. “I’m serious, Madeline. What you do is amazing. You’re dedicated, and you care about your patients and their progress as much as they do. That’s rare.”

  I thought it was a part of being human, but maybe not. Some of my colleges are just there for the paycheck. Which was fine, but I worked because I loved it. I admired what athletes do and
how hard they work, so I wanted to do whatever I could to help them get healthy.

  “It helps when my patients are hardworking. They need to want to recover.” I looked into his eyes and felt myself heating up. “Not all of them are as easy to work with as you.”

  He smiled. “You liked working with me?”

  I nodded. “The sessions always went by quickly.”

  “It was the company.”

  “It was.”

  My eyes dropped to his lips. They were so close.

  Wait. What was I thinking? I pushed back from him and took off on my own. It took him a few seconds to catch up to me, but when he did, he was laughing.

  “No cheating.”

  I laughed and raced him. Not that I had a chance. He caught up and held up his arm so I couldn’t pass.

  “You said no cheating.”

  “I lied.” He went straight until we slammed into the wall. He turned to face me and smiled.

  “Nice try.”

  I shrugged. “Coming in second to you isn’t that bad.”

  “Says every other player in the NHL.”

  I rolled my eyes.

  “What?” He was laughing and I eventually joined in.

  “You’re so cocky.”

  “It’s true! I’ve been ranked as the best left wing in the league for the past two years.”

  “I know.”

  “You do?”

  “Of course. You’re one of my dad’s players.”

  His smiled dimmed. “Right.”

  I watched him for a moment. “You’re not just a player to me.”

  His eyes narrowed. “A hockey player or a womanizer player?”

  I considered it. With everything I’d ever seen and read about him in the news, plus what the Pride told me, I knew he had a past. But that didn’t have to define him. He didn’t hold Clark over my head, so how could I hold that against him?

  “Both.”

  His smile finally reached his eyes. “I appreciate that.”

  I took a deep breath. We were on the verge of the heavy stuff and I didn’t know if this was the place to get into it, but I might not have the courage later.

  “As long as that stuff is behind you.”