Page 106 of Pucking Tangled
He ached for every tear that fell.
“I’ve got you,” he murmured, his own feelings heavy in his heart. “We’ve all got you.”
She didn’t speak again until her tears finally slowed and her hands unclenched from his shirt.
“What do we do now?” she asked, looking up at him with a mixture of hope and fear in her red-rimmed eyes.
“Now we rally the troops.”
Her lips tilted up faintly. “Is this one of those ‘might need bail money’ things?”
“It’s a ‘protect Mia with everything we’ve got’ thing.”
A quiet knock sounded at the door.
Owen’s voice was low. “Is she okay?”
Casey looked at her, waiting for the nod. She gave it. Barely.
He opened the door, and the others filed in slowly, instinctively forming a wall around her.
Luca reached for her hand. Waylon sat at the foot of the bed and kicked off his shoes. Owen stepped in close and pressed a kiss to her temple.
And when Mia sank down to sit on the edge of the bed, they all sank down with her.
“I’ve already spoken to someone in the front office,” Owen told them. “They’re just as shocked by the story as we are. They have no idea who this ‘source’ from the team is.” He snorted and shook his head. “They also said to make sure that everyone knows theyfullysupport our relationship. They’ll be releasing an official statement soon.”
Waylon blew out a breath and ran his hand through his hair. “We’re all going to have to.”
“Brooke’s digging to see if she can find out who the supposed source is,” Owen continued.
“We’re doing everything we can to get to the bottom of this, Mia,” Luca assured her.
THIRTY-SEVEN
Luca
Mia had finally fallen asleep.
The four of them sat in separate rooms, their eyes glued to separate screens, but still united in purpose.
Their approach wasn’t planned. Not in the way things like this usually happened. They had no strategy.
No PR coaching.
Just a deep, abiding love for one woman that would see them through this.
Luca sat by the window in his room, the camera on his laptop pointing slightly off center, but he didn’t care. This wasn’t about optics or perfection. It was about taking initiative. It was about taking back control and protecting what was his.
Theirs.
“Hey. It’s Luca Blackford. You all know me as the rookie defenseman for the Lancaster Barn Raisers. What you might not know about me though is I’ve always been aquiet person. I’ve never liked the spotlight, or noise, or complicated conversations.
But there’s nothing complicated about what I’m going to say to you now. In fact, it’s really simple.
I love Mia Abbott, and I don’t care how unconventional that is.
I don’t care what that love costs me.
