Page 3

Chapter 3

I’m a hockey player, not a WAG

Jayna

What a great fucking day.

I limped to the players’ entrance to meet Faith. Game days were always exhausting. I tried to be at the Bonfire practices, and since the women’s team had to have regular jobs to afford living in Toronto, those practices were early. Then rehab before starting my jobs for the Bonfire and Blaze.

Most of the guys had gone, just the players who’d been tied up with the media still in the building. Cooper paused on his way out. “You had something to do with this, didn’t you?”

I grinned, excitement pushing out the fatigue. “I knew Faith was here with her gear for a photo op. She was the obvious choice for EBUG.”

“And the third period?”

I shrugged. “I might have suggested it.”

He shook his head. “I knew they wouldn’t have come up with that on their own. You joining us at Faith’s place?”

“I wouldn’t miss it. I’m calling it part of my job so I can take some time off later in the week.”

“Did you see Mitchell, the new guy? I told him to come as well.”

“Great idea. I can get some shots of him and Faith together. He’ll be okay with that, won’t he? He’s not pissed that Faith got to start?”

Cooper looked out over the parking lot. “I think he’ll be good. He didn’t say anything. Was just kind of quiet after the game.”

Great. Just great. If his nose was out of joint because he’d had to share the spotlight with Faith, it was going to feed the trolls.

Cooper opened the arena door to head out. “I’ll see you there.”

“No puck bunnies tonight?”

“I put them off for a bit.”

I watched him walk to his…yeah, it was the Ferrari tonight. Must be nice to have that kind of money. Not that the guy wasn’t good, but Faith and I were also good and didn’t make a fraction of what he did.

I heard footsteps behind me. Faith approached, face glowing. “Tell me, Jayna, how did you convince them to let me play tonight?”

I laughed. “I just pointed out all the incredible publicity and goodwill they’d get.”

She pulled me into a hug. “Thank you. Thank you so much.”

I hugged her back. She didn’t need to thank me. I was grateful my job had given me the opportunity to push one of my girls onto that ice tonight.

We headed out to her car, me leaning on my cane. “Isn’t Hailey with you?” I’d seen her on the Jumbotron with Faith’s husband, Seb.

“Seb took her back to the condo. It’s a late night for someone not yet two.”

“But a big night. A momentous night. A fucking brilliant night.”

“Thanks to you.” Faith unlocked the doors, and I slid into the car.

“I’m not the one who shut out Edmonton for a period,” I reminded her as I did up my seat belt.

“No, you just made sure I had that opportunity.”

“Come on. We have a party waiting. I messaged the team, and they all want to celebrate.”

“They’re going to be exhausted for practice.”

I grinned at her. “Coach is coming too.”

“You’re brilliant, Tempo.” I didn’t argue. I kind of was.

I caught sight of an older pickup truck pulled off to the side as we headed out. There was an Inferno sticker on the window and the blond head looked familiar. Was that Mitchell? I’d looked up photos of him, but none of them were of the back of his head.

He’d better show up at Faith’s. Getting photos of the two of them celebrating would make a good narrative.

“We did it, Tempo. We fucking did it. No one can say women can’t play with men.”

Faith might have been on the ice, but all of us had a part in this story. Years of women fighting to get their chance, and tonight we’d had a payoff.

No place I’d rather be than celebrating with my teammates.

* * *

Two hours later, I leaned against the wall at the back of Faith’s living room, resting my cane on my hip. Faith was across the crowded room, face lit up like Christmas, and my own smile hurt my cheeks. A huge day. A fantastic day.

Megan, my roommate and teammate, jostled into me as she returned from the kitchen with a couple more beers. She misjudged her distance and spilled some from the bottle.

“Sorry, Tempo!” She raised her voice to be heard over the noise of many people excited and talking. Not crazy loud. Presumably Hailey was trying to sleep down the hallway behind me, but every player on the Bonfire was here. Some of the Blaze players had shown up as well.

“Don’t drink too much—Coach might have canceled practice, but I know you have clients pretty early.” Megan worked with Faith as a skating coach, and they were booked steadily.

“What about you?”

“I’m working.” I held up my phone and took another shot of Faith surrounded by Seb, Cooper and some of our teammates.

There were no shots with Braydon Mitchell though. Cooper was wrong about the guy—he hadn’t bothered to show. Probably pissed that his debut was overshadowed by Faith. Hopefully I wouldn’t have to deal with him. How long would De Vries be out? While I’d been lucky to get the paid position working as social media manager for the Bonfire, a position earmarked for someone on the team, I was also filling in for the person doing the same for the Blaze while she was on maternity leave. While I couldn’t play on Injured Reserve—IR—after my knee was injured in a game, I had the time and could use the extra money.

Speaking of…Penny, the woman I was temporarily replacing, bounced over our way. She was petite and easy to miss in the crowd.

In spite of the dark circles under her eyes she was vibrating with excitement. “Jayna! This is so awesome!”

I grinned back at her. “It is!”

“Hey, Megan,” Penny greeted her. “Aren’t you thrilled!”

“Absolutely! Any chance they’ll play her again?”

Penny’s face fell. “I don’t think so. Taranis messaged me that they were keeping the Inferno guy up because De Vries is out for the rest of the season. He didn’t tell me why.”

Penny’s eyes widened and Megan looked at my knee. Everyone knew I was out for the Bonfire playoffs. I braced myself. Not only was I in hockey-playing withdrawal, but I was also over and done with the pity.

As the coach of the Inferno, Penny’s husband Taranis would know what they planned for Mitchell. If that guy was staying up, they wouldn’t have room for Faith.

“But won’t they need Faith until Petrov is back?”

“They said she’s too important to the Bonfire. Petey just had a sprain. He swears he’s good to play the next game.”

Megan’s lip curled up and mine did the same. “At least we’ve got tonight.”

Faith playing, even just one period, was a huge step. It would be a better, bigger step if they let Faith continue playing, but she’d shown she could do it, keep up with the top male players in the world. We’d get there. Probably not in my playing lifetime, but it was coming. Women would play in the NHL.

“How’s the baby?” I asked Penny. Dwelling on the unfairness of the hockey establishment would bring down the mood of the evening, and we deserved to celebrate.

“Oh, she’s great!” Penny had her phone full of photos of a little person with a surprising resemblance to Winston Churchill, but we said she was beautiful, and Penny glowed. She had to leave after that.

Seb had his arm wrapped around Faith’s waist and a big smile on his face. He was proud, and in love. Megan followed my gaze.

“Ever think you’d like what they have?”

I turned to my roommate and saw a wistful expression on her face. “You want that?”

“Who doesn’t?” she asked.

“Not me. Not with a hockey player, and not while I’m playing.”

Megan tilted her head. “Seb has always been supportive, even when he was playing with the Blaze. They’re not all assholes like your brother.”

I shrugged. “The guys get all the attention, all the glory. When we’re with them, it’s like we disappear. I don’t want that. I’m a hockey player, not a WAG.”

“And when you retire some day?” Megan asked.

The buzz of conversation was still filling the condo. “Not a hockey player. I never want to be so-and-so’s girlfriend or wife. Jayna Templin, Olympic medalist, the best right winger in women’s hockey, with so-and-so. Not the other way around.”

I’d grown up in the shadow of my brother. In my family, and in the conservative parts of my hometown, women and girls were supposed to be in the stands, not on the ice. I’d fought to become one of the best female hockey players, and I wasn’t ready to be the little woman.

Megan huffed a breath. “I love to play, and our sport needs more of the spotlight, but as long as the guy was decent I’d be okay with dating a player.” I shot her a glance and she rolled her eyes. “A hockey player, not someone like Cooper.”

Like we’d summoned him, I heard steps and turned to see Cooper coming up the hallway behind us. In his arms was an eighteen-month-old toddler, looking much too awake for almost midnight. The level of noise dropped as people noticed Hailey.

“Look who I found.” Cooper grinned, Hailey pulling at his hair.

“She’s supposed to be sleeping.” Seb crossed over to his friend and his daughter.

“Kook!” the girl chanted. “Kook, Kook, Kook.”

Seb ran a finger down Hailey’s cheek. “You’re never going to fall asleep now, are you?”

Cooper dropped a kiss on her head. “This is a big night. She should remember the day her mother played in the NHL.”

“She’s too young,” Seb protested.

I stepped forward, phone camera ready. “Can I?” Cooper holding the little girl while she called him Kook was swoon-worthy, even if I wasn’t going to swoon over Cooper anytime soon.

Seb frowned, looking between my phone and his daughter.

“I won’t post it,” I promised. “I’ll send you a copy, and you can show her when she grows up. The night her mother made history.”

Faith had reached us by then. “What are you doing still up, Hailey?”

The toddler bit her lip. She pointed her finger at the man holding her. “Kook.” Then she reached her arms out to her mother. Faith took her daughter, who snuggled into her neck and put a thumb in her mouth.

“Jayna was going to take a picture for us to show Hailey when she gets older. Not to post.”

Faith’s smile almost split her face. “That would be great, Tempo. I’d love a photo, but I don’t want her picture out there, especially not after tonight.”

Cooper frowned. “Why not tonight?”

I stepped back, ready to frame a few shots. “There’s going to be a lot of haters out there, especially on socials. Upset that Faith not only played but played better than some of the men out there.”

Faith nodded, and Cooper’s brow pulled lower. “Assholes.”

Like one Braydon Mitchell. But no need to remind anyone. “Let’s forget them for now. We’re celebrating, and we want some pictures to show Hailey.”

I took shots of Hailey and her parents, Hailey and her parents and her godfather Cooper, Hailey with some of the Bonfire players, until eventually everyone had their photo taken with the toddler. Megan posed again with her, but Hailey had reached her limit. She yelled no and started to cry.

Seb took his daughter, hushing her gently as he rubbed her back. “I’ll put her down now.”

Cooper passed a hand over the blonde hair of the little girl and it was like a silent whistle blew. People headed to the door. It had been a momentous night, but life continued tomorrow.

I quickly checked the engagement on social media. Lots of positive support, along with the expected backlash. Most of that from either men who were threatened by women having athletic success, especially playing with men, or from women who felt sport was unfeminine.

Some days my job was daunting. People were too comfortable being nasty behind the anonymity of the internet. Other days, it was almost unfair to take money for what I did.

“The trolls out?” Faith asked.

“Haters gotta hate, you know.”

“They’re not going to stop us though.” Faith’s confidence came through in her voice and words. “You get your knee healthy and we’ll show the haters how good we can be.”

I hugged Faith, her belief in what we could do just what I needed then. My knee wasn’t improving as quickly as I wanted, but I was impatient. I wanted to play.

I congratulated her again and followed Megan out the door. A small step today, maybe, but it was a giant leap for women hockey players.

Who knew what tomorrow might bring?