Page 6 of Puck King
“Me? I’m leading the league in scoring.” Other than the sports headlines, I tried to stay away from the news. I didn’t have to read the headlines to see that I was being painted as a bad boy womanizer.
I turned the papers over. “This is garbage. None of it is true, and it’s not distracting me from the game.”
My father lowered his voice. “It’s not all about you, Colton. The media is all over the team and it’s killing morale. Some people in the organization want to get rid of you.”
“This is fucking rich.” I shook my head. “I can play through anything. It’s not my fault if some of the guys on the team don’t have the fortitude that comes with living and breathing hockey. Dad…” I was squeezing the arms of the leather chair so hard it creaked under the pressure. “I put this team first, always have. You’re just going to get rid of me?”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa.” Coach stood and gathered the newspapers. “We’re not getting rid of you. Like I said earlier, we’re switching things up.”
My father smoothed his red tie. “You can thank Coach that you’re still here. Brock wanted to get rid of you.”
That traitor. I kept the thought to myself.
Everleigh interrupted. “Can we stop skating around the net here? What are these changes? And, why am I here?”
“Everleigh.” My father’s deep tone seemed to remind Everleigh that he was the boss. “I’ve fired Brock. I’ve fired the team’s assistants. I’ve fired the trainers. I’ve fired everyone in this organization with the exception of the players and head coach.”
This was big.
My father continued. “And Coach is next if this doesn’t work. We need to shake things up.”
“Sounds good to me.” I was shocked, but as long as I wasn’t directly impacted, I could work with anything. I stood up, thinking that the meeting was over. It wasn’t.
“Well, you might not like this next part.” There was a slight smirk on my dad’s clean-shaven face. “Meet your new general manager.” Dad put his hand on Everleigh’s back.
“What?” Both Everleigh and I shouted at the same time.
“Dad?” Everleigh stepped away from him and turned to look him in the face. “What the hell?”
There was a smile on my father’s face. “If anyone can turn things around, it’s you. And, we need someone who can stand up to the egos in the dressing room.” He cut his eyes at me.
A smile slowly crept across Everleigh’s face. “I’m the new general manager?”
“If you’ll accept the job.” My father’s smile was almost as big as my sister’s.
Everleigh leaned against the desk. “I’ll have to look at the terms.”
This was too much. I launched to my feet and the heavy chair scraped on the concrete floor. “What makes her qualified to manage this team?” The reality of what was happening was slowly settling in. My sister was going to be my boss. She was going to call the shots. “Coach?” I was exasperated. “Are you okay with this?”
Coach didn’t give away any emotion. His job was on the line and he wasn’t going to side with a player when the man who signed his paychecks was standing in front of him. “She grew up in the industry. Mr. King knows what he’s doing and I’m sure that Miss King will do an excellent job.”
I rolled my eyes and balled my hands into fists, wanting to pound them on the table, but holding back. “Very diplomatic, Coach.”
My father patted me on the back. “It’s the shake up this team needs.”
He reached out his hand to shake Everleigh’s, and held it while he spoke. “Everleigh, I give you free reign to do whatever needs to be done to save this team.” Her eyes flickered over my father’s shoulder at me.
“I can do it, Dad. I know exactly how to turn things around.” She kissed his cheek.
“I know you can, Everleigh.”
Dad shook Coach’s hand next. “You know who to take direction from now.” He glanced at his watch. “The jet is waiting. I’m thrilled that you are all on board with the changes.”
I definitely was not on board, but knew that it was pointless to argue. I play hockey. I was going to put my head down and do what I always do – focus on the game.
Everleigh shook Coach’s hand. “I can’t wait to work with you.” Then she pointed at me. “And you, baby brother. I’ve got a plan for you.”
Four
