Page 122 of The Maxwell Brothers

"Can we train now?" Tim asked, standing tall and looking straight at me.

"You don't have hockey today," Kendra said gently. "It's on Monday, remember?"

I saw the disappointment immediately take over their faces and quickly added, "I'll be here on Monday, buddy."

Tim pursed his lower lip, the way my niece used to do when she was four.

"Hey, I'll make you all a deal. Everyone who wants autographs can get one today, but that's only on paper, okay? And we can do stuff like sign pictures or shirts during our sessions."

"Awesome! I knew you would be cool," Tim said, making me smile as the other kids laughed and cheered.

For the next five minutes, I just signed random slips of paper, laughing when the kids carefully folded theirs like it was a prized possession. Kendra watched me silently, jutting out her hip. That woman was just too sexy. The way she was standing made her curves stand out even more, and I liked them far too much.

Once I was done signing, I ordered an Uber. Kendra walked outside with me, and I had to make a concerted effort not to check her out. For the foreseeable future, I would focus on one thing only: getting back on the ice. I couldn’t allow myself any distractions, not even one as tempting as Kendra Douglas.

CHAPTER 2

KENDRA

"That went great,”Tyler said as we walked out of the building.

"You were a hit. I don't know anyone else who's been so well received."

"Singing my praises. I like it." He winked.

The man was sex on a stick, no question, but I’d heard rumors about him that he was not a one-woman man.

I looked at him with narrowed eyes. "You have a reputation for being cocky and self-confident.”

Totally unfazed, he said, “You can add stubborn to that list. Doesn't always get me what I want, but I can't change who I am."

Something told me Tyler Maxwell didn't like to pretend to be anyone else other than who he was, and that was the part I thought was refreshing. But judging by his reply, the rumors were true. Hewasa tad full of himself.

Since I started this job, I’d met many people who were guests at the Chicago Sports Center volunteering for various reasons, and most did it for PR purposes, not because they cared about what they were doing. And to be completely honest, I'd expected the same from Tyler. I knew he came from a wealthy family. The Maxwells were a fixture in Chicago, and they’d owned theMaxwell Bookstores chain years ago before selling the business. I wasn’t sure what the rest of his family was doing, only that one brother was involved in the wine business. Maxwell Wines were my favorite.

Tyler was the hockey world’s darling, so I sort of jumped to conclusions about his intentions. Besides, the exact words of his team’s management were "He needs to clean up his image for the sponsors."

But he'd been so open and fun with the kids. It was unexpected and made his hotness score skyrocket in my book, which was problematic for me. His smile was a littletoosexy, and let's not even talk about that body. It was so sinful and perfect that it was hard to look away.

Thank heavens he was cocky, because that was a turn-off for me.

Whew. I’m safe.

"Okay, then, so what's the schedule?" he asked while we approached the Uber he’d ordered a few minutes ago. I tried not to focus on how sexy his ass was. The rest of him was just as delicious. He was really tall, and his muscles were so defined that I could see the contours through his shirt. The jacket he put on only highlighted how broad his shoulders were.

Oh, Kendra, get yourself together.

"They have hockey training twice a week in the afternoon. Are you sure you're going to be able to do it for the whole season?" I asked warily.

His face darkened, and he looked away. "I'm not sure. It all depends on when I'm allowed back on the team. But I do want to be prepared if that happens. I want us to have a plan so I don't leave the kids high and dry, okay? During the season, the training program is pretty much full time, so once I'm back on the team, we either have to move training to the mornings?—”

I shook my head. I loved that he was trying to accommodate the kids, but mornings wouldn’t work. "That's not possible. They have school."

"I thought you might say that. Anyway, we're going to need a plan for that at some point."

"Sure, that's no problem. Let me think about what might work and talk with the center’s staff.”

“I'm going to make this clear to them next time, so they're prepared and aren’t disappointed further down the road."