Page 22 of The Hockey Contract

Leo's face flushed—something I'd never seen before. "Chloe? Nothing. Just someone I knew in college."

"Right. And I'm just casually getting married." I raised an eyebrow. "The tension between you two was more intense than during playoff season."

"We had a... thing. It didn't end well." He straightened his tie, a nervous tell I recognized from years of friendship. "Can we focus on tomorrow? The ceremony is set for eleven. Just a civil service, but we've arranged for a few strategic leaks to the press."

"Leaks?" I frowned. "I thought we were keeping this low-key."

"Low-key doesn't sell home furnishings, Jax." Leo shuffled the papers together. "Don't worry, just enough to get the narrative going: hockey bad boy finds love with sweet local baker. It's perfect."

My phone rang suddenly—Finn's name lighting up the screen.

"Captain calling," I said, holding up the phone.

Leo stood. "Take it. I need to make some calls anyway." He paused at the door. "Jax? This is going to work. Just... don't overthink it."

I answered as Leo closed the door. "Hey, Finn."

"So it's true?" Finn's voice held a mixture of disbelief and concern. "You're seriously considering marrying the bakery girl?"

I sighed. "News travels fast."

"I'm coming over. This isn't a phone conversation."

Before I could object, he'd hung up. Thirty minutes later, my doorbell rang. When I opened it, I found not just Finn but Anders standing on my doorstep. The expression on our usually stoic goalie's face told me this wasn't a casual visit.

"Come to stage an intervention?" I asked, stepping aside to let them in.

Finn whistled as he entered. "Place looks different. They're really selling this whole domestic bliss thing, huh?"

I led them to the living room, where houseplants I hadn't purchased now sat on my previously bare shelves. "Olivia’s idea. Said the place should look lived-in for tomorrow."

Anders remained silent, his eyes scanning the room as if analyzing game footage. That's what made Anders such a great goalie—he noticed everything, processed constantly, spoke rarely.

"So," Finn dropped onto my couch, "married. To a woman you threw coffee on, what, two weeks ago?"

"She threw coffee on me," I corrected automatically. "And it's a business arrangement. She needs money for her bakery, I need the endorsement deal. We both get what we want, then we quietly divorce in three months."

Finn exchanged a glance with Anders. "And you’re fine with this plan? Sometimes I wonder if I shouldn't have suggested it at all."

"Not at all. The plan is already in motion, we signed the marriage license today." I crossed my arms defensively. "Look, I know it's unorthodox—"

"It's insane," Finn interrupted. "You're marrying a complete stranger to sell furniture."

"When you put it that way—"

"That's exactly what you're doing." Finn leaned forward. "Have you considered what happens when feelings get involved? Because they will, Jax. You're going to be living together, appearing together, pretending to be in love."

I scoffed. "I'm not going to fall for her. This is strictly business."

Anders, who'd been silently observing until now, finally spoke. "I was an actor before hockey." His quiet statement surprised both of us into silence.

"In college," he continued, "I played Romeo. The woman playing Juliet and I had to rehearse the love scenes for weeks. We were both seeing other people, both insisted it was just acting." He met my eyes directly. "Three months later, we were together. Broke up with our partners, couldn't explain it. The lines blurred."

I shifted uncomfortably. "This isn't Shakespeare."

"No," Anders agreed. "It's real life, with real consequences. Just be careful, Jax. The heart doesn't always know what's real and what's pretend."

After they left, my phone lit up with notifications. Teammates sending congratulatory texts, some with suggestive emojis, others with genuine questions about why they hadn't been invited. Coach Miller called, his gruff voice barely concealing his concern.

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