Page 37 of How to Puck Your Boss (L.A. Hawks Hockey #3)

“Oh, please! When is anything ever certain?” she said with a sigh.

“And honestly, Jack, I’ve missed so much of your life because I was being considerate of Dax’s feelings…

and now that you’re on good terms again, I have a lot of catching up to do.

So, whenever you ask yourself if I care about anything that’s going on in your life right now — you can assume the answer is yes. Is that clear?”

His throat tightened and his stomach clenched. Was it that simple? Anna was interested in everything that had to do with him? Was that how it was with siblings? Not all of them, right? But maybe with them? God, he didn’t know. He felt like he was starting from scratch.

He swallowed and nodded slowly. “Okay. I understand,” he murmured.

And for the first time, he thought that maybe he should tell Dax and Anna about his father.

Maybe Penny was right. Maybe they would be happy to care about him and his crap.

Although, that was hard to imagine. If his parents hadn’t shown him any sympathy… who would?

“So, what about the maybe-girlfriend? Do you like her?”

He lowered his gaze as the elevator pinged his floor and smiled. “Yes. A lot.”

“That’s good.”

“I think so, too.”

“Is that all you have to say?”

“Yeah, over the phone.” And especially in a public hallway that could be full of hockey players.

“Fine.” She sighed in disappointment. “Then tell me next time I see you.”

“Gladly.” He stepped into the elevator and was about to hang up when something else occurred to him. “Oh, Anna, if Moreau ever asks: There’s nothing going on between us. We’re just friends.”

Silence. Then: “Why would he ask that?”

“No reason. Just a little misunderstanding.”

“What kind of misunderstanding?” Her voice went up an octave. “Why would I have anything to do with you ? Aside from the fact that you’re my brother, you’re an idiot and you cheat at Settlers of Catan. I don’t know how, but you do!”

He snorted, amused. “Thanks for that. I just wanted to make sure we were both on the same page. He asked…”

“Why would you even dignify such a ridiculous question with an answer? Jack, what… Argh.” He heard a muffled groan as if she had pressed her hand over her mouth. “Fine. What’s the point?! I have to go now. But next time I’m going to hear all about Penelope Clark, is that clear?”

The corners of his mouth twitched. “No, I didn’t get that.”

“See? You’re an idiot,” she replied curtly and hung up.

He grinned and put the phone away before pressing the button for the lobby. Yes, it was good to have his family back.

The elevator started moving. When he arrived at the lobby, the entire team was already there.

The players formed a solid wall that no guest could pass through.

No one would have dared to ask. Most of them didn’t even notice that he had joined them because they were engrossed in heated discussions about what in God’s name Darron Clark could possibly want from them.

Jack rubbed his forearm and narrowed his eyes.

He had no idea what his colleagues would say to Mr. Clark when it came to deciding between Penny or Gareth , but he hoped fervently that they would simply refuse to take sides.

“You’re too conspicuous,” someone muttered beside him. It was Dax, who was looking at him grimly. “They’ve already asked three times where Penny is and three times where you are. It’s your luck that no one can put two and two together!”

Yes, thank God the players were only hockey geniuses, not math geniuses. “How was I supposed to know I was needed down here?” he replied angrily.

“By coming to breakfast! You always said it was the most important meal of the day.”

Yes, because they usually didn’t eat anything for lunch. It was to save money. “It doesn’t matter,” he replied gruffly. “Nobody cares that I…”

“West,” the coach snapped, and Jack spun around. Gray was standing at the edge of the group and was now pointing a sinister finger at him. “Where the hell have you been?”

“Um…in bed.” That wasn’t a lie.

“ What? Don’t tell me you’re sick!” Panic flashed across his face.

“No, no, I was just…mentally preparing for tonight.”

Dax snorted barely audibly. “ Saint my ass. They should rename you liar .”

“It’s unacceptable not to show up for breakfast,” the coach continued angrily. “When the big boss shows up! Clark wants to speak to you first!”

“Uh oh,” Dax muttered. “Well, let’s hope he’s as bad at math as the rest of them.”

Yes, Jack hoped so too.

Gray waved for him to follow before disappearing down a corridor to his right that must lead to the hotel conference rooms. Jack heard Matt mutter, “He looks like a pig on the way to slaughter, doesn’t he?” Then he was in the hotel corridor and out of earshot of his teammates.

“Um, Coach?” he asked, hurrying to catch up with Gray. “What exactly is this about?”

“I don’t know. I guess it’s about his children,” he replied tersely. “You can’t do anything wrong as long as you behave. And you’ve never had a problem with that. You’re the least of my worries. But God, if he wants to speak to Alvarez…”

Hm. Jack didn’t agree with Gray: He felt he’d already done something wrong by sleeping with Clark’s daughter. Then again, that was a matter of perspective.

“Here we are,” Gray announced, stopping in front of a door. “Go talk to him, and then come to the conference room next door.” He pointed to the door to his left. “I’m going to start the team meeting with the others. That will at least stop them from talking about Darron Clark and his questions.”

The next moment, he knocked on the door in front of them, leaving Jack with no choice but to step into the room behind it. A male voice replied, “Come in.”

Jack walked into a simple conference room with a long wooden table and a dozen chairs. Only two were occupied.

Jack had never met Darron Clark in person, but he knew what he looked like from photos.

However, in real life, he was even more intimidating.

Even though he was sitting, it was clear he was a big man.

And not just physically. He must have been over sixty, his dark hair was streaked with gray, but he still sat with such an upright posture that Jack’s back hurt just watching him.

He had a thick beard and dark, alert eyes creased with wrinkles.

It seemed he laughed a lot, even though his somber mouth didn’t exactly support that conclusion.

Next to him sat a woman of the same age who had to be Penny’s mother. She had the same light brown, almond-shaped eyes as Penny, although she was a little shorter and not quite as slim as her daughter.

Were they fucking serious? They came in pairs to judge their children? What was wrong with them?

Jack’s shoulders stiffened, but he nodded politely at them before pulling out a chair and sitting.

“Good morning, Mr. West,” Clark said with a gentle smile as he opened a folder in front of him.

“Morning,” he replied, glancing at Mrs. Clark, who was eyeing him curiously and leaning back. He felt like he was back in high school, being called to the principal’s office for breaking into his brother’s locker. Again. But Dax had always been losing his keys, so what choice had he had?

“You’re the newest member of the Hawks, aren’t you?” Clark asked, pulling out a pen.

Jack raised his eyebrows in surprise. “Yes. I guess so.”

Darron Clark nodded. “So, how are you enjoying being on the team?”

“It’s good.”

The older man laughed. “Could you be a bit more specific?”

Jack raised the corner of his mouth even though he didn’t really feel like it. He thought of Penny sitting on the bed with her shoulders sagging, her sighing and swallowing, about how she hated the idea of being judged. He just couldn’t bring himself to be more specific .

The coach was right. He was always polite. Always friendly. There was no need to worry about him. But right now…right now, it was incredibly difficult to remain neutral.

He cleared his throat and leaned forward.

“Excuse me, Mr. Clark. I’m not quite sure why I’m here.

I like being on the team — but I get the feeling that you’re merely making small talk before you get to the important stuff.

If you don’t mind, I’d like to fast forward a bit so that I don’t waste your time, and you don’t waste mine. ”

Clark opened his mouth in surprise but then smiled.

“Very well. You like it direct. I respect that. I thought I’d talk to you first because you’re new and weren’t here when I was head of the team.

You have a fresh perspective on things and can perhaps give me a more objective answer as to whether you think my daughter or my son is a better fit for the organization. ”

Jack had to force his jaw from cracking loudly. A tight knot formed in Jack’s chest, and he pulled his hands off the table so that the person opposite him couldn’t see him clenching them. It was exactly as Penny had said.

He said nothing for a few seconds, simply pondering how he could politely get off his chest what he needed to get off his chest. Finally, he replied, “I’m not going to answer that.”

This time it was Mrs. Clark who spoke. And her face was a poster for the word astonishment . “Excuse me?”

“I’m not going to answer,” he repeated matter-of-factly. “Because it’s not right that you are forcing your children to compete against each other. And it’s even more wrong to force us players to choose between them.”

Mr. Clark smiled faintly while his wife looked visibly shocked. Apparently, it was unusual for people to speak to her husband like that.

“Gareth and Penny are two strong personalities, Mr. West,” Clark said calmly. “They can handle the competition. They grow from it.”

“Yes, maybe,” Jack replied stonily. “But what about their relationship with you? Does that grow from this? Do you truly believe that the right way to show your children how much they mean to you is to bureaucratically decide which of them is ‘better’?”

Shocked, Mr. Clark opened his mouth. “I don’t think I understand.”

“You heard me.” Jack rose and nodded at him. “Go ahead and ask the others. I, however, have no desire to be a part of this. I’m here to play hockey and to win for you, not to get involved in your family affairs. Have a nice day.”

Then, he turned and left the room before he said or did anything worse.