Page 121 of The Maxwell Brothers

She looked away quickly, but I caught her smile.

Ahh, so she isn’t immune to me.

“Maybe I should ask your niece for references too, just in case.”

I laughed at her snarky comment. “Feel free to do that. You can ask my whole family. I’m sure they’ll sing my praises.”

My family was very close. I’d gotten into this clusterfuck of a problem because of a family issue. My cousin Reese had an altercation with her ex-fiancé, Malcolm, and I stepped in. I wasn't happy with the outcome, but I sure as hell didn't mind punching that moron. He'd hurt Reese so deeply that I wasn't sure my cousin would ever trust anyone who wasn't part of the family again. He cheated on her with her best friend, and Reese had discovered it shortly before they were supposed to get married. I had no clue how someone could come back from that.

Even though that moron filmed our fight and posted it on YouTube, I didn’t regret standing up for Reese. My family always stuck together. We had each other’s back no matter what. I hadfive brothers and two cousins, Reese and Kimberly. There wasn’t much I wouldn’t do for my family.

"Okay, are you ready to meet the kids?" Kendra asked, sounding anxious. It was just so damn cute.

"Sure. I didn't know I was going to meet them today, but yeah, that works.”

"It's only a meet and greet. It’ll be very short because they’re about to start their tae kwon do class, but it’ll give them something to look forward to."

She led me into a small room with mattresses on the floor. The second I stepped inside, the crowd of kids seemed to erupt in cheers. They were all wearing uniforms.

"Oh my God, Tyler Maxwell is here. I can't believe it. Can I get your autograph? You're the best, best, best goalie ever," one of them exclaimed.

I looked at the kids, grinning widely. They were a group of boys around twelve years old.

"If you give me pen and paper, I can sign autographs for all of you. I've got time." I looked at Kendra, whose smile widened. “But Kendra here has some good news for you, so you might want to listen to that first.”

"Thanks, Tyler. Kids, can you be silent for a few minutes?"

"Yes," all of them chorused.

The room went quiet a few seconds later. "So, I promised I'd get someone to train you to play hockey this season. And I'm proud to say that Tyler here will do the job."

"Holy shit," a kid exclaimed.

Kendra glared at him. "Tim, what did we say about swearing?"

"Sorry, Kendra." He turned my way. "You’re going to be our coach? That's so awesome." Tim was taller than the rest by at least a head, with dark blond hair sticking out in all directions.

"Yeah, I will, buddy. So, I can sign any autographs you want today, but we'll be seeing each other twice a week, I think. Right, Kendra?"

She smiled. "Exactly, twice a week."

I turned back to the kids. "So I’ll have plenty of time to sign whatever you want."

"Can you also sign my T-shirt?" another boy asked.

I nodded.

"Do you have pics to sign?" a third chimed in.

"Not on hand, but I can bring some," I assured them.

Kendra laughed nervously. Did she think this was an imposition on me? Because it wasn't. I hadn't lied when I told her I liked being around kids. Granted, my limited experience was with my niece, but I couldn't see how spending time with a bunch of kids who shared my passion for hockey could be anything but fun. I liked new challenges and opportunities, and while it was bittersweet that I only had time to coach because I was injured and my team had benched me, I chose to focus on the positive. I could share all I knew—both technique and passion—with their young minds and maybe even play a small part in helping shape the next generation of hockey players.

The kids threw question after question at me, but I didn't mind. Most of them were about when I would play again, and more than a few looked surprised when I said I didn't know.

"Yeah, I know, it's shocking to me too," I said, unable to keep the gloom out of my voice, but why hide how I felt about it? Hockey was my life. Obviously I wasn't pleased with this development.

Kendra clapped her hands. "Okay, guys, I think we've had enough of Tyler's time today."