Page 16

The morning of the interviews, Astrid was buzzing.

This time she knew what to expect and couldn’t be blindsided by her body’s reaction to Blake. There was no man on this planet worthy of losing one’s head over.

Never had been, never would be. That first day had been a blip. A mind-bending, tummy turning, foo foo fluttering blip. All because she couldn’t engage her head for her hormones.

And speaking of losing one’s head, the heels had to go. As much as they were supposed to make a man lose theirs, she valued hers too much to risk another tumble. Today, she was dressing for her and ensuring her confidence and her control came with.

She’d stuck with the no-nonsense ponytail, kept her makeup on point but opted for layers – all the layers. A cami, white shirt, checkered blue waistcoat and matching blazer paired with her favourite jeans and trainers. The sophisticated rebel and her in every way.

She snapped a selfie and sent it to the karma crew:

Just Desserts WhatsApp Group. 08.15 EST.

Astrid

[image]

Suited and booted and ready to kick some hockey butt!

Bella

Loving the waistcoat! x

Sissi

Wow, that is some outfit

Paige

Hot stuff! I *almost* feel sorry for him xx

Astrid

Cheers my loves

Bella

PS Finished Book One yet?

Astrid pulled a face. Yes, she may have used Delia’s book to distract herself from the hotness that was Blake over the last few nights… and had the dreams to match.

Astrid

Nearly

She slotted her phone away, shook out her hands, shrugged on her long cashmere coat and looked in the mirror.

She was Astrid Sinclair, Journalist of the Year twice over, capable of winning anyone over, from the most meretricious of models to the most sullen of celebs. She would get to the truth.

And if she could extract a little karma vindication while she was at it, all the better.

Striding for the door, she snatched Paige’s glasses off the console table. These she would keep. More as a lucky charm than a necessary accessory and a way to take the girls with her.

Her phone pinged again and swapping the glasses for the device in her bag, she checked the screen expecting Bella, only…

Aiden

Bring something you can skate in. I’ll take you out later.

What?!

Astrid

Today?

Aiden

If you’re going to put me through my paces, it’s only fair I put you through yours

Astrid

Funny

Aiden

I’m serious.

Her fingers hovered over the phone. Her? Freaking Twinkle Toes, on ice ?!

She could pretend she had some place else to be. But to bail on extra time with the Ice King, especially after their eventful dinner date… she couldn’t risk giving the wrong impression. A disinterested impression.

Astrid

You’re on!

She did an about-turn as her phone started to ring – bleeding Nora , she was popular this morning. Then she saw who it was and swiftly answered, ‘Hey Mum.’

‘Darling, are you okay? You didn’t text this morning.’

Bugger . She’d been so distracted by the twins she hadn’t sent her daily greeting.

‘Sorry…’ She put the phone in the crook of her neck as she slid open her wardrobe. ‘All’s good.’

‘How’s the new article going? Are those ice hockey players really as huge as they appear on the TV?’

She laughed. ‘It’s going, and yes.’

‘And the dating pool?’

‘Mum!’

‘What, darling? You’re working in a male-dominated environment, you can’t blame a mother for hoping her daughter might meet her match.’

‘I’m working,’ she said, shoving her exercise gear into a bag. ‘Not hunting down a husband!’

‘Well, you know, I was working when I met John and?—’

‘Yeah yeah, I know, and John’s a wonder.’

A wonder that he’s still around after a few months, Astrid couldn’t help thinking.

‘He is a wonder.’

Astrid was being sarcastic, her mother wasn’t.

‘And I’m not giving up hope that one day you’ll bring someone home. I really thought that Chase?—’

‘ Mum! We had this conversation at Christmas.’

She’d only mentioned Chase to get her mother to quit nagging and it had backfired spectacularly because months down the line she was still bringing him up.

She would quit if she knew the full horror of that relationship, but there was no way Astrid was going to tell her.

Far better to let her think her daughter had ‘self-sabotaged’ yet another relationship…

‘And we’ll have it forever more because I’m worried about you. I’m worried that it’s my fault you?—’

‘It’s not your fault!’ She zipped the bag closed and straightened. ‘You don’t need to worry about me. And I don’t need a man to make me happy.’

‘What about a woman then, because I’m?—’

‘Mum!’

‘Okay, okay, I’m shutting up. I’m just glad you’re alive.’

And tomorrow, Astrid would make doubly sure she messaged before her mother could ring if this was how it would go.

* * *

Blake sensed her enter the rink. He couldn’t see her yet, but her presence rippled down the ice, the guys shifting in their stance, heads turning…

Everyone knew who she was and why she was here. Not that they cared about the latter. She was new and she was hot and the team’s WhatsApp group had blown up with surreptitious pics and lewd banter from the off.

He tightened his grip on the stick. Bunch of damn hornballs, every last one of them.

Even Danny had stirred the pot.

Not Blake though. He wasn’t getting involved. And Aiden had been noticeably quiet too.

He eyed his brother now as they ran through their drills, weaving through the cones and passing the puck down the ice in flawless rhythm.

Matching Ice’s burst of speed, he sent the puck into the crease, and his brother tipped it in with precision.

He broke away, his gaze flicking to the edge of the rink, and there she was, Coach at her side.

‘Distracted?’ Aiden said, spraying ice as he came up to him.

‘I could ask you the same.’

‘I’m not the one with the sloppy stick work.’

‘No, just the sloppy footwork.’

Blake could’ve said something a whole lot worse considering the amount of time his brother had spent in the can these last few days. But there was a line to their banter, and he wasn’t about to cross it. Though the smirk on his brother’s face as he rejoined the line up almost made him reconsider.

Blake set his jaw and caught him up. Just tune her out, tune the hornballs out, get it done and ? —

A low wolf whistle cut through the noise. For the love of…!

He broke rank, seeking out the culprit and cutting across Vincent as he did so.

‘What the fuck, Fury?’

‘Chill, Pidg.’

V’s eyes flashed beneath his helmet. ‘Who the hell you calling Pigeon?’

‘You really want to cause a fight in training, bro?’ Aiden swooshed up, shoulder barging Blake back into the drill.

‘Wasn’t top of my list for the day, no.’

Though V deserved a beating. He was the guy who’d kicked off the Astrid chatter in the group that morning, and had upped his game since she’d walked in, doing his damnedest to impress. But then they were all behaving like preening princesses…

‘I told you having a hot chick around was bad for the game,’ Blake grumbled.

‘Bad for the game or bad for you?’

His brother had a point. He never let anyone outside the rink get inside his head while on it. It had been his safe space since he could skate. A way to block out reality and focus on the game. Nothing else mattered but the puck.

‘It doesn’t have to be as painful as you’re making it out to be.’

‘What?’ He frowned at his brother. ‘Having her watch our every move?’

‘No. The interview. I assume that’s why you got out of bed the wrong side this morning.’

‘Whatever, buddy.’

‘Don’t whatever me. You’ve been pissy ever since you woke up. Or are you still stewing over the fact that she took me to dinner instead of you?’

‘Yeah right, is that the same dinner that gave you the explosive shits?’

Banter line, be damned.

Aiden didn’t answer as Astrid’s laughter tinkled down the rink. It wasn’t like she could hear them across the distance, but his brother was as red as his sweater as he glanced her way and Blake followed suit.

It was Coach who had her laughing, Coach who was never funny. Go figure.

Blake couldn’t see her properly through the glass and the reflection off the ice, just a flash of her camel coat and dark hair, but he could see enough of Coach to know the man was grinning from ear to ear.

‘Hey Coach!’ he hollered. ‘You gonna train us today or stand there gassing?’

The cosy twosome turned his way, and damn if he didn’t pull a Bambi. Nothing to do with her attention and everything to do with a sideswipe from a vengeful V. Honest.

‘Jackass!’ Blake swiftly righted his stride, the team’s laughter carrying his insult down the ice.

‘Yeah, you sure told him,’ Aiden teased, sweeping past him to join Coach at the boards. ‘Good to see you, Astrid.’

‘Good to see you too.’ She beamed at his brother. ‘I hope you’re feeling better; I was worried about you after…’

‘Yeah, I’m all good,’ his brother blustered as Blake skated by.

‘Except when you eat spice, Ice,’ he couldn’t resist saying as he gave Astrid a brief nod of acknowledgement, fearing if he paused any longer, he’d be on his ass.

‘Wait,’ V said, coming up behind Blake. ‘Did you just say the reason Ice almost got caught short against the Hawks was down to a spicy dish?’

Oh dear…

‘Yup,’ said Harry, sweeping past. ‘I heard that too.’

‘Get outta here!’ V chuckled low and slow. ‘Ice is afraid of spice!’

‘Say that again, V,’ Aiden ground out, ‘and I swear I’ll…’

* * *

Astrid didn’t know whether to laugh or beg for Coach’s forgiveness as the phrase took on a life of its own, spreading through the players and making Aiden growl…

‘Ice is afraid of spice.’

It was kinda catchy…

‘I’m so sorry, Coach,’ she said.

‘You ain’t got nothing to be sorry for; these lot on the other hand, between the catcalling and the banter…’ Coach turned to the ice. ‘Knock it off, Titans, or you’ll be doing suicides until you puke!’

A groan echoed around the arena and she laughed. ‘It’s okay, Coach. I can take it.’

‘But I can’t. It’s a question of respect. Give them an inch and they’ll take a mile. You’ll wanna keep that in mind while you’re with us.’

She gave a salute. ‘Gotcha.’

He pushed away from the boards and blew his whistle. ‘Right, suicides!’

‘But Coach, you said?—’

‘I didn’t say anything about puking this time!’

He sent her a wink and she grinned back. He was fun. This was fun.

Setting her bag down on the bench, she chose to stand, keen to get as close to the action as possible.

Watching them was hypnotic. As was the sound.

The blades cutting through ice, the thwack of the puck, the background music too…

Thrash metal seemed to be the tune of choice, and she could more than cope with that.

She pulled out her notepad and pencil while Coach issued orders, matching faces to names to jersey numbers, her lips twitching up every time a guy swept past and threw her a silent acknowledgement. A nod. A cheeky wink. A grin.

The only one not giving her any more attention was Blake.

Strange. Considering everything he’d said to her, everything he’d hinted at…

What was his problem?

Aiden did another sweep by, caught where she was looking and shook his head. ‘Don’t worry about him, he’s just rattled about this afternoon.’

She didn’t have time to respond, he was gone in a flash. The speed with which they zipped around was exhilarating – and, if she was honest, a little terrifying.

The thought of being out there herself later…

Now she sat as her knees gave a wobble and forced her attention on the entire team, rather than a certain giant who clearly wasn’t in the mood to talk.

But the more Blake avoided her eye, the more she found herself seeking him out…

* * *

‘Ice, you’re wanted!’

Blake looked up to see the assistant coach lean into the locker room and through the gap in the door, a glimpse of brunette. Astrid.

‘Coming.’ His brother slammed his locker shut and shrugged on his sweater, his eyes meeting Blake’s. ‘You alright?’

What his brother really meant was, You’re not gonna run, are you?

‘Sure.’

‘You want to do this together because?—’

‘Don’t you trust me, bro?’

‘That’s not what I meant.’

He sensed every ear in the room tune into their conversation – ten pairs and counting.

‘Butter her up for me, yeah.’ He turned away and tugged open his locker, eyeing his reflection in the mirror on the door and flicking at his hair like it was the most important thing in the world.

‘It’s rude to keep a lady waiting,’ he muttered, his twin senses telling him his brother hadn’t shifted. ‘You taught me that.’

That earned a few sniggers and had his brother moving.

‘Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do,’ he called after him. ‘Or if you do’ – his eyes caught Astrid’s as Aiden yanked open the door – ‘make sure you don’t get caught.’

Then he slammed his locker shut and moved in the opposite direction, to the gym. He suddenly had boundless energy and there was only one way to kill it off – one way that wouldn’t land him in more trouble at any rate.

Then , he’d be ready for her and whatever she had to throw at him.

And in the meantime, he wouldn’t be thinking of her and Aiden and whatever they were throwing around together.

Wishful thinking, much?