Page 30 of No Rhyme or Roughing (The Golden Guardians Hockey Hearts #1)

CHAPTER THIRTY

RYDER

I didn’t see Sydney after she posted the video. She spent the night in her room, and every time I went to talk to her, I heard her on the phone and turned back.

Whoever it was, she sounded happy. Part of me wondered if Jameson had called again. If it was him, I had to let her be happy. We’d only hooked up once, and I’d known plenty of people who preferred the one-night thing—Teddy being one of them.

That wasn’t me. I’d only ever been with one woman. Sam. For most of my adult life, it was her body I knew as well as my own, but I’d buried those memories as best I could. Because it wasn’t her I wanted now.

The next morning, the first thing I did was open social media to check the video. Two thousand views. Better than the last one, but still not enough to make a difference.

Teddy crashed onto the couch, milk sloshing over the edges of his bowl of Fruit Loops. “Bite?” he asked, holding a dripping spoon toward me.

I stared at him. “You realize this is practically my bedroom right now, right?”

He shrugged.

“Because your sister’s here.”

“Want me to kick her out?”

No, I really didn’t. “That’s not what I mean. She can stay as long as she wants, but what if I’d still been sleeping when you plopped your giant ass down on my legs?”

He shrugged again. “Are you ordering me back to my room, Captain ?”

“No.” I slid my legs out from under him. We didn’t have practice today, but I’d already sent a text to the team. If we were going to be sold and possibly relocated, we had to make the most of our time here. Work harder. Be honest with each other. It was time I started acting like their captain.

“Hurry and eat. I want to stop by Starbucks on the way to the rink.”

“The rink?” That got his attention. “We don’t have practice today. I was planning to lounge in my dad’s hot tub while he’s at work.”

“Sorry, bro.” I stood and patted his shoulder. “This isn’t optional.”

By the time we got to the rink, about half the team had already taken the ice. We weren’t late; they were early. That was a good sign .

Griff stood in the center of the locker room when we entered, arms crossed. I dropped my gym bag on the bench in front of my locker and turned to face him. “Coach.”

“Coach.” Teddy added a dramatic bow.

Griff raised a single brow. “Valentine, the visitors’ locker room is a perfectly good place to don your skates, wouldn’t you say?”

Teddy saluted and sauntered out the door, bag slung over one shoulder. The guy had a death wish.

Griff turned back to me, his expression stern. “Care to explain why my team is out on the ice right now? I seem to remember giving you shits the day off to rest.”

Jules and Gonzo both cursed when they walked in, caught sight of the showdown, and pivoted right back out.

Griff waited.

Maybe it was the whole dancing-on-the-ice thing the last few games, or maybe something else, but for once, he didn’t scare me. I lifted my chin, meeting his gaze. “Coach, I’m the captain of this team. If I think we need an extra skate, then I can call for one.”

His lips quirked upward—an expression I didn’t recognize on his face. “Damn right you are, Cassidy. I’m glad you’re finally deciding to lead this team.” He paused. “Just… practice actual hockey. Not…” He winced. “…dancing.”

I barely managed not to laugh. “Yes, sir.”

He looked like he wanted to say something else but thought better of it. He turned and disappeared into his office.

I let out a long breath and sank onto the bench to lace up my skates. This was going to be a no-contact, no-puck skate—we were all banged up already. That meant no heavy pads, no ankle guards, no helmets. Not even a cup.

When was the last time I’d skated without being wrapped head-to-toe in protective gear? It felt weird walking down the tunnel like this, stepping onto the ice in just my skates.

The guys were gathered at center ice, watching Teddy re-enact some of his dance moves. He and Gonzo were currently practicing a dip.

“Listen up,” I yelled.

They ignored me.

“The next person to utter a word has to skate figure eights until I tell them to stop.”

That got their attention. Everyone except Teddy. He kept yammering, so I skated toward him. “I’m running this practice, Valentine. You know what to do.”

He stared at me like I’d lost my mind, but I was serious. If we were going to save the Guardians, it was time to act like a team.

I pointed to the far end of the ice. Teddy hesitated, shoulders hunched, then skated off. His first figure eight was slow and sloppy.

“Sharpen it up,” I ordered.

He flipped me off but did as I said.

I turned back to the team. “We need to talk.”

I told them about Mr. Mac’s problems with the investors and minority owners, about how the idea to dance on the ice had come about. Filling the arena was the key to keeping us in San Francisco.

They had questions. Of course they did. A few guys patted me on the back. Gonzo gave me what he called a “great Russian bear hug.” He lifted me off my skates, squeezing so tightly I could barely breathe. He wasn’t even Russian.

Jules was the first to say what we needed to hear. “So, the entire team needs to become fucking dancers, right?”

“I don’t think there should be fucking on the ice,” Teddy yelled from the far end, panting hard as he skated closer.

I scrubbed a hand over my face. Why was I friends with him again? “No. We tried the dancing thing. It didn’t work. We need new ideas.”

Jules edged closer. “Seriously, Cap? You tried twice. Do you know what it takes for a video to go viral?” He turned to the others. “I say we try again. But all of us this time.”

Gonzo nodded. “You show us how, Cassidy.”

Could I? I looked at each of my teammates, at their determined nods. These guys were going to dance for our fans?

“What about Coach? He’ll lose it,” someone said.

“I’ll take care of him.”

The feminine voice came from behind the bench. Coach Frankie leaned against the half wall, hands dangling over the edge.

I skated toward her. “How much did you hear?”

“Just the end. But Sullie told me about the danger the team’s in.

I figured relocation was a done deal, but maybe it’s not.

This is a long shot, but if we can get people in here, show the team has a viable base…

” She shrugged. “It could work. I’ll keep Griff from stopping yo u.

Just…” She smirked. “Don’t forget your spirit fingers. ”

Behind me, the team groaned.

“Can I stop now?” Teddy shouted, breathless.

I blinked. “Oh. I forgot about you.” I glanced at the team. No one wanted to skate figure eights for long. “Yeah, take a break.”

I turned back to the guys. “We can’t just go out there and wing it. Not with this many of us. We need a plan.”

A plan.

Good. It was a start.

I taught the team some basic moves, but I knew nothing beyond that. I wasn’t sure how to get us moving in sync or how to avoid looking like a random mob on the ice. This had to be entertaining, and we clearly needed help.

After about an hour, I dismissed the guys, showered, and walked with Teddy and Rowan out to my car.

“Have I told you yet how much I hate you?” Teddy groaned as he slid into the back seat, moving slowly, like every muscle in his body ached.

“Since we were kids.” I threw him a tired smile. Practice was good, but being in charge was exhausting. I didn’t have it in me to ever become a coach.

Traffic was light, and we got home half an hour later. Teddy grabbed his swim trunks and took off to his dad’s house immediately. He might hate the guy, but he sure loved that hot tub.

Rowan and I walked into the kitchen to find Sydney sitting at the dinette, staring down at her phone, tears pooling in her eyes.

I went to her without hesitation, dropping to my knees. “What’s wrong? Is everything okay?”

Her hands shook as she passed me her phone. It took me a moment to realize why she was showing me our video.

“Shit,” I breathed.

“What?” Rowan snatched the phone from me and blew out a curse. “Seriously? This says there are a hundred thousand likes and a million views .” He blinked, watching the screen. “Wait—it just went up again.”

Sydney nodded vigorously, looking straight at me. “You’re officially viral.”

“How?” I took the phone back, staring at it like it might hold all the answers.

Sydney lifted her glass of water and took a long drink.

“I made some calls. I told you I choreographed something similar before, right? It was for a couple of baseball players who now have millions of followers. They both reposted it. Then, I called a few people from a movie I worked on.” She hesitated, her voice soft. “And… I called Jameson.”

“He reposted too?”

She nodded. “That’s not the best part.” She grabbed her phone and typed something in, tapping the screen. Our video played again, but this time it was from the official account of the LA Kings.

“What does this mean?” Rowan asked, taking Sydney’s now-empty glass to refill it.

“I don’t know,” I admitted.

Sydney smiled, bright and triumphant. “Well, if it’s anything like last time, it’ll mean fans flooding into the arena, knowing your names. They’ll be rabid. They’ll want to see you do it again.”

Again. Good thing the team had a plan.

Without thinking, I reached out, my fingers drifting under her chin. She didn’t resist as I pulled her face toward mine, capturing a kiss. It was soft, almost delicate—the sweet taste of her, the quiet sigh she released against my lips.

But it didn’t last long.

Rowan stood frozen, staring at us, eyes wide. He pushed a hand through his hair. “Fuck, Ry.” He shook his head. “This is none of my business… but fuck.” And then, he walked out of the room.

Sydney leaned her forehead against mine. “I think we’re in trouble.”

I didn’t think. I knew I was.

And it had nothing to do with Rowan.