“Seven.” The cell phone hooked to Darby’s belt rang and he turned his attention to the call. “Yes,” he said. “Right here.” He glanced at her. “Right now? Okay.” He disconnected and returned the phone to his belt clip. “Coach Nystrom wants you in the locker room.”
“Me? Why?”
“He didn’t say.”
Jane stuffed her notebook in her bag and headed out of the press box. She took the elevator to the ground level and moved through the hall to the locker room, wondering the whole time if she was about to get fired again; if she was, she feared that this time she just might go ballistic.
When she walked into the room, the Chinooks were all suited up and imposing in their battle gear. They sat in front of their stalls listening to the coach, and Jane stopped just inside the door as Larry Nystrom talked of the weakness in Vancouver’s second line and how to score against their goalie. She looked across the room at Luc. He wore his big goalie pads and white jersey with the blue and green Chinook on the front. His gloves and helmet were beside him as he stared at a point just beyond his skates. Then he looked up and his eyes locked with hers. He simply looked at her for several heartbeats, then his blue gaze began a leisurely journey down her gray sweater, over her black skirt and tights to her black penny loafers. His interest was more curious than sexual, but it pinned her in place and made her heart feel heavy in her chest.
“Jane,” Larry Nystrom called to her. She pulled her attention from Luc and looked at the coach. He motioned her forward, and she moved to stand beside him. “Go ahead and say what you said to the guys the other day.”
She swallowed. “I can’t remember what I said, Coach.”
“Something about us keeping our pants up,” Fish provided. “And traveling with us being an experience.”
They all looked so serious she almost laughed. Until now, she’d never really believed they were this superstitious. “Okay,” she began to the best of her recollection, “keep your pants up, gentlemen, I have something to say and it will just take a minute. I won’t be traveling with you any longer, and I wanted you to know that traveling with you all has been an experience I won’t forget.” They all smiled and nodded except Peter Peluso.
“You said something about synchronized jock-dropping. I remember that part.”
“That’s right, Sharky,” Rob Sutter agreed. “I remember that too.”
“And you said you hoped this was our year to win the Cup,” Jack Lynch added.
“Yeah, that’s important.”
Did it really matter? Sheesh! “Do I have to start from the beginning?”
They all nodded and she rolled her eyes. “Keep your pants up, gentlemen, I have something to say and it will just take a minute and I don’t want any of that synchronized pants-dropping crap.” Or something like that. “I won’t be traveling with you any longer and I wanted you to know that traveling with you guys has been an experience I won’t forget. I hope this is your year to win the Stanley Cup.”
They all looked pleased and she started to leave before they made her crazy.
“Now you have to come and shake my hand,” the captain, Mark Bressler, informed her.
“Oh, that’s right.” She walked up to him and took his hand. “Good luck with the game, Mark.”
“No, you said Hitman.”
This was just weird. “Good luck with the game, Hitman.”
He smiled. “Thanks, Jane.”
“You’re welcome.” From outside, she could hear the pregame entertainment begin, and she once again headed for the door.
“You’re not finished, Jane.”
She turned and looked across the room at Luc. He stood and crooked a finger at her. “Come here.”
No way. No way was she going to call him a dodo in front of the guys.
“Come on.”
She looked around at the faces of the other players. If Luc played badly, they’d blame her. As if her shoes were lead, she walked across the dense carpet with the Chinooks logo in the center. “What?” she asked as she came to stand in front of Luc. In his skates, he was taller than usual, and she had to look way up.
“You have to say what you said to me the other day. For luck.”
That’s what she’d suspected, but she tried to get out of it. “You’re so good, you don’t need luck.”
He grasped her arm and gently pulled her closer. “Come on, now.”