Power Play - Brittney Mulliner Page 0,24

women paired off with their husbands and boyfriends. Jason glanced at me, but stayed with the guys. This wasn’t what anyone planned or hoped for. Especially losing the game. I knew they did everything they could to vindicate their captain.

It wasn’t until Hartman was in a room after tests and exams and scans that Kendall was able to see him. Hours after the game ended. I watched her disappear behind the doors and sighed. Jason took the seat across from me, saying nothing. Our eyes met, and I saw more pain than I expected. He had an angry bruise on his right cheekbone. I wanted to reach out and see if he was okay, but it didn’t feel like the right moment. Or something that I had permission to do. Not like I once did.

A coach and a few players from the Storm stopped by. I expected a fight to break out, but their arrival was treated like a peace offering. At the end of the day, these were all just people who loved hockey. People with lives outside the arena. Fellow athletes that wanted to go home to their families and loved ones. Maybe in the heat of the moment, a hit was intentional, but I had a hard time believing anyone wished to severely injure another player. At least, I hoped.

A while later, Coach Romney told everyone to head back to the hotel and rest, but no one moved. Jason’s eyes flickered to mine, and he nodded toward the exit. He stood and I followed him out. Was this his way of getting rid of me? He wasn’t there when Kendall grabbed my hand. I wasn’t there for him. I was waiting to make sure she was okay.

Once we were outside, he fell against a pillar. It was like his last reserve of strength disappeared. “This is a nightmare.”

I moved to his side, our shoulders close enough that I felt his warmth on my skin. “I’m so sorry. I can’t believe it.”

“I can’t say this in front of the guys.” His voice was so low, so drained. I tilted my head so I could see his face. “I don’t think we’ll make it. Nikolai’s loss was felt tonight. It put a strain on us, but we were pulling it off. This ... this is too much.”

Without looking down, I slid my hand over until our pinkies touched. I froze, waiting for him to make the next move. It was more than an impulse to touch him. It was like my body was drawn to him. An ancient habit. Okay, four years wasn’t ancient but it might as well have been for how distant the memory of his body was.

His finger twitched. Paused. Then wrapped around mine. Only about an inch or two of our skin made contact, but it filled me with as much excitement and uncertainty as if we were tangled up in each other.

We stood like that as minutes or hours passed. I couldn’t give him more. Not yet. But it seemed to be enough. When his body straightened, and I knew he’d recovered, I stepped away, out of his touch, and rubbed my neck. “I should go.”

He shook his head. “Stay.”

One word. A simple plea. That was all it took. I nodded and followed him back into the lobby and resumed my position next to Colby. She raised her head off Noah’s shoulder and smiled before going back to resting.

I didn’t wake up until noon, but it didn’t matter. We hadn’t gotten back to the hotel until three that morning. It took that long to clear Hartman and release him. Kendall was flying back to Salt Lake with him so he could recover at home. She hugged me and told me to stay in touch before I left the hospital, and it didn’t feel like she was just saying what was expected. The women I’d met were amazing and caring, and for some reason, they let me into their circle.

But they were all leaving later today and I would be alone.

I rolled out of bed and took a quick shower before doing my hair and makeup. I had two interviews, both over video, today so I needed to look like I didn’t spend all night in the hospital waiting room.

By one, I was sitting in front of my laptop with a professional smile.

“Hello, Ms. Klein.” A bored man greeted me with little to no enthusiasm. Great. He couldn’t even muster some excitement. Why would I