Page 157 of Puck Me Secretly

“Yes!”

“We’ll be weaning him off most of the pain meds in the next couple days and he will seem more like himself.”

I let out a sigh of relief. “Okay. That sounds good.”

He studied me. “Are you okay?”

His concern made tears claw up my throat which I had to work to swallow back down. “I’m fine. I’m heading to work.”

“Your father has made a remarkable recovery so far. We’re confident he’ll be himself in short order.”

“Thank you.”

On my wayto the stadium, I tried calling Max again, but his voicemail was so full, I wasn't able to leave a message.

Me: Max. Please call me

Me: It will be okay. I’m handling everything

Me: Even if you don’t want to date me, I’m going to fix your career. I have your back

Me: I miss you. I hope you are okay

I waited impatiently, but he never responded.

When the car pulled up to the stadium, I sat stunned, taking in the huge crowd gathered on the front steps. Standing in front of a podium, stood Baxter. He wore a suit and a flashy tie and he was giving a speech like he was running for mayor. He was holding a press conference, like he owned the place.

I approached, but no one paid me any attention. They only had eyes and ears for Baxter.

“We will make some significant changes to our lineups. As you know, I terminated Max Logan’s contract this morning, for breach of contract. We do not stand behind players who break the law. In his place, we are in talks with Minnesota’s left winger, Joseph Flanynk. We know that the deadline for trades is looming, but everyone wants this, so we will make this happen and we will make this team the success it deserves to be.”

I rolled my eyes and walked around the side to another door.

FuckBaxter.

I made my way up to my office, but someone had already moved into my space.

“Julie,” I yelled.

She appeared at the doorway. “Yes?”

“Want to tell me what is going on with my office.”

“Baxter asked me to move your stuff out and he moved his stuff in.”

“Excuse me?”

“I have your belongings in boxes at my desk.” She sounded scared. “I didn’t know what to do.”

I didn’t give a fuck about my office. “Don’t worry about it. You did the right thing.”

“None of the staff know what to do. He’s making all these demands.”

“Tell no one to stick their necks out. Right now, Baxter is in charge, so everyone should do what he says and keep your head down.”

Her eyes filled with tears. “Is your Dad okay? Is he going to come back soon?”

“He’s fine. But he will be out of commission for a while.”

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