Page 12 of My Brother's Enemy
“What does this mean moving forward and how will this impact you? I’ll be here. I’ll be hanging out. Sometimes I might watch your practices. Sometimes I might ask a few questions. I’ll have a few conversations. That’s it. If you want to have a conversation, I’m here.”
With that, she inclined her head a little and stepped back, but not before looking around the room at every single guy once more.
She saved me for last.
9
RAIN
Iwanted to curl up in a ball.
The team thought I was their shrink. They thought I wanted to crawl in their heads and mess them up. I could see it. They were already closing off. I hadn’t had to deal with this since the beginning of my career. Word had gotten around in American football circles, and those guys were more open to strategic meetings. But these guys? Fuck. I knew what I’d need to do to earn their respect, and my legs were shaking.
I hadn’t been on the ice in almost two decades, but there was one area, one lane, where I could still go head-to-head with them. Even NHL players. I just didn’t want to do it. But I needed to prove myself to these guys. They weren’t going to listen to a word I said otherwise. I knew the fastest way to get them to shut up would be to actually shut them up.
And the other reason I wanted to escape? Tyler Griffin.
He was gorgeous. Seriously gorgeous.
I’d told myself I was ready for it, that I could forget the crush I’d had on him in high school when his team played against my brothers. But it hadn’t gone away. And the reaction he caused in me now was very physical and very adult.
He made my core throb. I hadn’t felt the need to slide down on someone like this, ever.
I didn’t like it. It wasn’t professional, but it was also unfamiliar to me. The sensations and emotions were too much. Combined with the repressed memories and feelings, all of it was overwhelming.
Once I was done with my spiel and Benoit had taken over, I’d slanted a sideways glance at Griffin.
He’d been watching me with unfiltered hunger.
Electricity jolted through me, because he’d been looking at me exactly the way I was feeling toward him. I had all of those unwelcome, lusty sensations locked up behind a wall, but he let me see that he had no problem with me pulling him into the nearest janitors’ closet and have my way with him.
Heat spread through me. I muffled a curse, shifting because this was uncomfortable. And again—unprofessional. I had never,everhad a reaction like this to a player.
This was the opposite of what I strove for. Men came on to me. Sometimes women. If I ran across them in workplace environments, I never reciprocated. I shut that down. It was hard enough to be taken seriously, and if I had sex with one of the players, all that credibility would be gone.
“...I believe I’ve covered everything.” Mal turned to me. “Anything I missed?”
I blinked, remembering where I was. “If you did, I’ll cover it as I go.” I cocked my head to the side, meeting the coach’s gaze. “Mind if I shadow for the day?”
I almost smiled because it was clear he very much minded, but he wasn’t going to go against Benoit. He held out a hand toward the team. “Not at all.” Now his mouth lifted into a curve, and I readied myself, knowing something not great was probably coming. “We can just pretend you’re another one of the equipment managers,” he said, attempting a joke.
“Sorry, Coach. I’m a psychologist. My deep appreciation to those who handle the equipment, because generally it’s a thankless job, but that’s not what I’m getting paid to do.”
He jerked back a bit.
I’d put him in his place, but it was his fault. He didn’t understand my job. Another strike against me however I would not be considered below the players, not if I wanted them to listen to me.
I was a woman. I was a stranger. I was not here to handle their equipment—even if one player made me want to do just that in a very unprofessional manner.
Coach dipped his head, a flash of apology in his eyes before they all headed out to start their usual Monday morning practice.
I couldn’t shake this sense of dread as I followed. There were a lot of strikes against me after just the first meeting. I’d have to hit the ice with them sooner than I wanted.
I wasn’t ready now, but I’d get there.
10
RAIN
