Page 35 of The Hockey Contract

The simple statement, delivered so naturally, caught me off guard. For a moment, I almost believed him myself.

"And now here we are," I finished lamely, suddenly flustered.

"It's adorable," Willow declared. "And refreshing to see Jax with someone who humanizes him. Before you, he was basically a hockey-playing robot."

"He still is," Finn joked, earning a light punch in the arm from Jax.

The conversation flowed easily after that, with Jax's teammates sharing embarrassing stories about him while I collected them like ammunition for future use. To my surprise, I found myself genuinely enjoying the company. These people were welcoming, funny, and remarkably normal despite their extraordinary lives.

As I watched Jax interact with his teammates—laughing at their jokes, joining their banter—I glimpsed a side of him I hadn't seen before. Here, surrounded by his hockey family, he seemed more relaxed, more authentic somehow.

And when his hand casually settled on the back of my chair, thumb occasionally brushing my shoulder, I didn't pull away. It was just part of the performance, I told myself. Just maintaining our cover.

But the warmth that spread through me at his touch felt alarmingly real.

Chapter 12: Jax

I'd never been much for team family events. Usually, I made an appearance, chatted with teammates, and left early, avoiding the prolonged socializing that many players seemed to enjoy. Today was different. With Sienna beside me, I found myself lingering at the barbecue, watching her charm my teammates and their families with her quick wit and genuine warmth.

"Your wife is delightful," Anders' girlfriend Sarah told me quietly as we stood getting drinks. "Much livelier than I expected for you."

I raised an eyebrow. "What does that mean?"

She smiled. "Just that you tend to be... reserved. Sienna is a breath of fresh air."

Across the room, Sienna was deep in conversation with Coach Miller's wife, gesturing animatedly as she described something that had the older woman laughing. Despite her initial awkwardness on the ice, she'd integrated seamlessly into the gathering, remembering names, asking thoughtful questions, making people feel at ease.

"She is," I agreed, surprised by the sincerity in my voice.

On the ice, Sienna had been a different story. Teaching her to skate had required a level of patience I rarely needed to exercise, but her determination had impressed me. Despite her obvious fear, she'd trusted me to guide her, her small hand gripping mine with surprising strength.

I'd noticed Marco's comments had rattled her, though she'd tried to hide it. Something protective had surged within me—an unexpected reaction I'd had to consciously suppress. Marco was always a dick, but usually, I ignored his comments. Today, I'd found myself wanting to check him into the boards for making Sienna feel self-conscious.

"Ready to head out?" I asked, returning to where Sienna sat with Willow and Finn. "We've got an early morning tomorrow."

"Oh?" Willow looked intrigued. "Special plans for the newlyweds?"

Sienna's eyes widened slightly in alarm. We hadn't discussed any cover story for tomorrow.

"Just some house organizing," I improvised. "Still getting settled."

We said our goodbyes, with Willow extracting a promise from Sienna to meet for coffee next week. The easy way she'd bonded with the team's significant others surprised me—I'd expected her to feel like an outsider, as I often did despite being on the team.

"That wasn't so bad," Sienna said as we walked to the car. She still moved gingerly, her legs sore from the unaccustomed skating. "Your teammates are nice. Well, most of them."

"Marco's had a chip on his shoulder since he got demoted to the second line." I opened the passenger door for her. "Don't take it personally."

"Oh, I didn't. Not much." She buckled her seatbelt, then looked at me curiously. "You're different with them than I expected."

"Different how?" I started the car, keeping my eyes on the road.

"Less... icy." She smiled at her own joke. "You actually laughed at Finn's terrible dad jokes. I didn't know your face could do that."

"I laugh," I defended.

"Name three times you've laughed in the past week that didn't involve someone falling down."

I opened my mouth to respond, then closed it again, realizing I couldn't actually answer her challenge.

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