Page 81 of Offside and Off-Limits
She leans back in her chair, her fingers steepled, regarding me through narrowed eyes. “So, the rumors are true?”
My mind instantly darts to Mary-Ellen McCluskey.
“Rumors?”
“I overheard an older woman talking about you and Cade Lennox with her friends after the Drench for Defense on Saturday. A petite woman with short cropped grey hair and glasses. She was convinced you two were a thing. I dismissed it in my mind of course.”
“That would be Mrs. McCluskey. She just questioned me at the bakery. She loves to gossip.”
“But you’re telling me in this case it's not gossip.”
“It’s not. I want to be transparent with you, Veronica. I don’t want to hide anything from you.”
She stares at me, her features unreadable. After a beat, she says, “Clara, you do know we have a non-fraternization policy at the Ice Breakers? Having any form of romantic relationship with someone employed here would be a breach of that policy.”
“I do know that, and I want you to know that I never set out for this to happen. The truth of the matter is, Veronica, I fell in love.”
Her eyes widen. “Love? You're inlove?”
I nod my head slowly. “That's why I wanted to talk to you. This isn't just some fling. What Cade and I have is real.”
“What Cade and you have goes against policy,” she says pointedly, and my anxiety peaks.
“I know and I am so sorry for that. I love this job, and I would never willingly do anything to compromise it. I didn't go looking for love, but I found it anyway.” I pull my laptop from my purse and open it onto the spreadsheet I prepared yesterday. “The team’s social media engagement has improved significantly under my management. In fact, as you'll see here, there has been over a 400% increase in views on my most recent five videos alone, with comments and re-posting more than tripling. Veronica, I believe this shows that my relationship doesn't in any way compromise my ability to do my job, and to do it well. In fact, you were the one who encouraged me to work with Cade, and those videos have been especially popular with our fans.”
She twists her mouth, her eyes still trained on me. “Yourperformance to date has been commendable, and you're right, yours and Cade’s campaigns have been particularly successful.”
“I believe our dynamic on camera is a unique marketing asset to the Ice Breakers. Your encouragement to put myself in the frame proves my point.”
“I did encourage you, it’s true.”
The “but” dangles in the air between us—and so do my chances.
She leans her elbows on her desk. “Clara, we have this policy for a reason.”
Her words are like a pin prick to my balloon of hope.
“Do you remember the story I told you about Cade and the Blades team owner’s daughter?”
I open my mouth to reply when there’s a rap on the door, making me jump in surprise.
“I’m in a meeting,” Veronica calls out, but whoever it is at the door isn’t listening as it’s nudged open, revealing the very topic of our conversation.
Cade.
He’s in his practice gear, fresh from the ice, his hair damp with sweat, his bulk more than filling the doorway. As his soft eyes land on mine, my heart squeezes.Hard.
He’s looking exactly like my fantasy of a knight in shining armor, except his armor is sweaty post-practice gear and that ever confident smile of his that suggests he's about to charm his way through my work crisis.
Part of me wants to sink through the floor in utter mortification.
Another part of me, the part that's been falling harder for this man every day, is beyond relieved that he disregarded my instruction to stay away. Facing Veronica's disappointment in me on my own was terrifying but facing it with Cade somehow makes it feel less something to fear and more something to simply try to navigate.
“I’m sorry to interrupt, Ms. Reynolds, but I could see you hadClara in here with you, and I wanted to say something, if I may?” he asks.
Veronica sits up straighter in her chair, her eyes darting between us as her eyebrows climb toward her hairline. “Mr. Lennox, I wasn't aware this meeting was expanding to include additional participants.”
Cade shrugs. “I figured you were talking about something close to my heart.” His eyes dart to mine, his brows pulling together. “You were already talking about it, right, Triple?”
