Page 24 of An Irresistible Force (Vancouver Vice)

“We should go to a game together,” Amanda declared.

“No.” Her corporate personality could put a damper on any occasion, especially a game I didn’t even want to attend.

“It’s work related. You can explain the team’s weaknesses to me.”

I snorted. “I can list them without going. No offence, no defence, and a boring style.”

“It’ll be good. We can sit in the stands and check out the full game experience.” Her eyes widened, and her pink lips parted. I’d seen this look before, and it meant she was getting some crazy idea. “In fact, we should disguise ourselves so nobody knows it’s us. It’ll be likeUndercover Boss!”

“Whatever that is.”

“It’s that TV show where the president of the company gets disguised and works with the frontline staff.”

“I hate to break this to you, Amanda, but most of the staff here would have trouble identifying you with a name tag on.”

“But everyone knows you! You’re famous around Vancouver.”

“All the more reason I’ll look like an idiot if I try to disguise myself.”

“Don’t be a wet blanket. It’s like being secret agents or something. And this way we’ll find out exactly what kind of experience our regular fans are having.”

“Again, I can tell you without even going. Our regular fans are having a terrible time, unless they’re masochists. They see their team lose night after night, and the hockey itself sucks.”

She scowled at me. “The person in charge of hockey operations should be going to every game anyway.”

“I’ll let Greg know.”

“Good idea! I’ll get Gregory to come too. We’ll meet here at 7:00, so we can see the warm-up too. You can give us a rundown on every player.”

I sighed. I knew there was going to be a ton of work in this for me. I’d have to research the backgrounds of every player on this shitty team now. Maybe it would turn out to be useful later when we had to cut them all.

After a long day of research,I went home and got changed. Despite Amanda’s pleas, I wasn’t going to disguise myself. When you’re my height and build, it’s tough to go unnoticed anyway. But just in case she showed up with a fake moustache and trench coat, I pulled on a ball cap and an old jacket. It was as anonymous as I was getting.

We were supposed to meet at one of the gates. Traffic was bad, and I was about ten minutes late. From behind, I saw Greg—in normal clothes—and an attractive brunette. He’d mentioned his girlfriend a few times, so I figured it must be her. She had a very nice ass in her tight jeans, and boots.

“Hey, Greg. Sorry I’m late.”

He nodded at me, and I turned to his girlfriend. She had long dark hair and tinted glasses.

“Hi, I’m Chris.”

“Chris! It’s me.”

“Holy crap! Amanda? Are you wearing a wig?” And more importantly, tighter clothes. Was this the body that she had been hiding under those shapeless suits? That was a damn shame.

“Yes. I did my part to be incognito. But you guys didn’t even make an effort.”

“Amanda loved drama class when she was in high school,” Greg explained. “And she still loves getting dressed up.”

She nodded as we began walking to the entrance. “It’s fun. Like trying on a different personality.”

Yeah, she had magically turned into someone I felt like hitting on. Except that she was still a ballbuster, which negated her fine ass. Her excitement made her a little more human, so I played along. “We should call you something different too. Hmmm, how about Mandy?”

“Ugh. I hate that nickname.” Amanda made a face, and then Greg started humming. She shushed him. “Don’t start singing Barry Manilow either, little bro. This is why you never let a hockey player choose your nickname. It’s bound to be lame.”

I laughed. But what Amanda didn’t know was that you never admitted to hockey players that you hated your nickname. Once guys knew that, you were going to hear it forever.

Greg pulled out a Vice ball cap and seemed to think he was disguised enough. Certainly the people who took our tickets barely paid any attention to us.

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