Page 41

Chapter 40

Scuba

I t was weird how different the owners could be with each organization. The Cleveland Sound’s ownership was never around as it was some sort of corporation with a bunch of rich people in it, but it was different in Vancouver.

Hell, I wouldn’t be waiting outside the owner’s office right now if it weren’t.

I tapped my fingers on my knee, trying to pretend I wasn’t nervous. The fact that I wasn’t allowed to just go into his office sucked. It made me worry that he wouldn’t say yes to my proposal.

After about twenty minutes, the door opened, and the ex-professional hockey player walked out.

“Scuba, what can I do for you?”

I flashed a smile and said, “Well, I was hoping you could do me a favor or two.”

Petey led the way into his office, and I couldn’t help but notice the family photos that lined the wall.

His wall included shots of my ex-teammates, Colton Weber and Lily Petersen. It still seemed weird that he was practically the father-in-law to one of my close friends of mine on the Sound and was the father to Lily.

Granted, his kids were amazing. I was better friends with Lily since she was on the Sound with me. Not many girls were good enough to play in the NHL, and with the way she stepped in as an EBUG, she had balls of stone. Logan was a smooth-talker, and he always brought the coolest hockey gear.

As he sat down, he said, “Why do I hate the sound of this?”

I wasn’t asking for much—just for him to ask for an official team day off, talk to my old coach for the same, and possibly officiate things.

Okay, so it was a lot, but I wasn’t asking for money or a new contract. That had to count for something.

“I haven’t even asked anything yet,” I pointed out.

He pulled out a folder and said, “Okay, before we talk about whatever you want to talk about, I need a favor from you.”

I leaned forward and planted my elbows on his desk. That was unexpected. The Petersens have more money than dirt. What could I provide that he couldn’t buy himself?

“Okay, what do you need?”

Petey answered, “I need you to find out what’s going on with Coop.”

Okay, that made sense. I was part of the team, and it was clear something was bothering my new teammate. He drank a lot while we were on the road and was a loner. It wasn’t the personality that I expected from an ex-team captain.

“I can try, but he hasn’t exactly been one to join in on things.”

Petey sighed. “Just try. We’re so close to having the perfect team, and if he just becomes a fraction of the player my son says he is, we will have it. But thus far, it seems like he’s struggling here, and we can’t help him if we don’t know why. Please do what you can. If a guy needs help, I’d rather give him that.”

It was nice to hear him mention his son. I hadn’t seen Logan in a while. Not since he tried to convince the Sound to play with those weird ass sticks with no tape and a hole in the blade. Sure, they played well enough, but I still preferred to tape my stick.

“Of course. I will do my best,” I said with a nod. Then, I leaned on his desk and continued, “So, speaking of team dynamics, I wanted to see if we can have a day off so I can get married.”

Petey laughed. “Is that all? Do you even have a date?”

“I’m thinking April 19 th . And consider this your invitation to join and even officiate if you want to.”

I didn’t want to force him into officiating, but I thought it would be cool. He was a good guy, and he was less likely to deny me if he was the officiant, right? Plus, he always seemed like a sincere guy willing to help out his friends when he did press or even the various hockey podcasts.

Petey shook his head and looked at the calendar. “If the league says you have to play, you have to play.”

That wasn’t too unexpected. The league dictated the playoff schedule, and there was very little we could do to change that unless there was an event in the arena. Even then, things could only get pushed by a day or two if there was a concert or something in the arena.

“Got it.” I nodded again.

Petey wrote the date down, so that didn’t seem too bad. It meant he was only a step away from saying yes.

He said nothing about officiating it, but that’s okay. I can always have Natalie follow up with him. Besides, that was more of a way to sweet talk him to get him to agree to the day off. It seemed like it was going to happen, and all it took was to get a grumpy, loner player to be part of the team.

Petey looked up at me. “Anything else on your mind?”

Looking at the photo of Petey lifting the Stanley Cup, I saw that it showed my old coach behind him, along with Gavin and Klaus’ dads. And it reminded me of the hardest part of what I came to do.

I pushed my hair back, trying to be really chill.

“I was hoping you might talk to my old coach and convince him to let a bunch of the Sound guys come out for the wedding.”

He snorted and leaned back. “You do realize you want this during the start of playoffs? Why can’t you wait until the end of the season like a normal person?”

I chuckled. I knew it was coming. If it were anyone else, I wouldn’t tell him the truth. But I respected Petey too much. He was a die-hard hockey fan who supported his team and the Sound. He played hard as a player.

“Honestly, it’s a mixture of two things. Mostly, I adore my fiancée, and I don’t want to wait any longer. But there’s also a custody case out there. I’m the kid’s biological dad, and she’s the mom, but it looks better in a court of law if we’re married than just playing house.”

Petey relaxed and seemed to like that answer. He nodded.

“All right. I’ll let it happen, but I make no promises about what happens with Scotty. He runs a tight ship, but I’ll ask him after you do. I can’t fight your battles for you, but I will assist.”