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“Yes, that would be great. Thank you.”
Keri hadn’t even left the room yet and my blood was already pumping hard. Once I was alone with Sidney, I’d get this meeting over with and then lay on the charm nice and thick. I was already picturing her in my bed tomorrow morning. Stacy the bartender would have to wait.Sidney
Keri gave me a sympathetic look as she rose to leave the room. We did business in a man’s world every day, and shutting down advances was just part of it. I squashed the flare of aggravation I felt toward my team’s captain and sat down on the edge of my desk. “More at issue, Mr. Bosch, is what I have planned for this team. Please, have a seat.”
He sat down on the old metal folding chair Liam had vacated and continued in his familiar tone, “Well, the good news is, it can’t get any worse. Bet you got a deal on this team.”
“I was well aware of your losing record when I bought the Flyers. I have the means to turn the team around and that is precisely what I intend to do.”
“Good luck,” he said sarcastically. His icy, gray-blue eyes were locked on mine. His blond hair was cut short and his face was nothing short of chiseled. He had a bigger, more muscular build than most hockey players I’d met before. If he ever gave up hockey, this guy had a future as a model.
“Keri and I are focusing on the big picture, Mr. Bosch, so don’t worry yourself about that. You’re here so we can address issues specific to you.”
His expression was a mix of amusement and confusion. “Since I doubt you’re cutting your star player, what issues would those be?”
Arrogant asshole. I returned his look of amusement.
“Your inability to behave like an adult, Mr. Bosch. You were recently arrested for disorderly conduct while on a road trip with the team.”
“I took a piss in a dark alley. That cop was being a dickhead.”
“And your arrest the month before?” I glanced down at my notes. “For assault?”
His jaw tensed. “The other team showed up at the bar we went to after the game. Their captain was running his fuckin’ trap about my guys. I’m not having that.”
I arched my brows skeptically. “So it’s okay for you to say your team sucks, but no one else can?”
“Something like that, yeah.”
I sighed and folded my hands in my lap. “Mr. Bosch—”
“Killian.”
“Mr. Bosch,” I continued. “You have the skills to be playing at the highest level of the game. Instead you’re known for being a hothead and a womanizer. Is that what you want?”
He shrugged. “Makes no fuckin’ difference to me what people think of me . . . uh, pardon my language, Ms. Stahl.”
“I’ll be blunt. I’ve got bigger balls than most of the men I know. Swear all you want around me, but do not ever dismiss me.”
The corners of his lips quirked up with amusement. “So I like to drink and fuck in my off time. I’m still the best damn player you’ve got. I suggest you meet with the guys who refuse to get in shape or learn how to fuckin’ skate.”
“Change starts at the top. The team has new ownership and a new coach. And you’re the team captain. I need you to stop behaving like a frat boy and start leading this team.”
A dark shadow of anger passed over his face. “Give me a team worth leading and I will. On the ice.”
“I’m not interested in having a team captain who gets in drunken brawls and whores around every night of the week. It’s toxic to the image of this team.”
“Well, I’m not allowing you to have a vice grip on my balls. I work hard on the ice, and I’ll be blunt right back. I like to fuck after games. Hockey brings out my primal side.”
His words made my skin feel flushed. I kept my expression all business, but I was secretly a little turned on by Killian. Not just because he was hot and intense, but also because he wasn’t intimidated by me. Once I asserted myself to a man, he usually backed down or ran scared. But Killian was different.
We stared at each other in a face off that felt like it lasted for several minutes. I cleared my throat and broke the silence, forcing myself to focus on the topic at hand. “Perhaps you’d be more comfortable if someone else was team captain,” I said.
He scoffed and arched his brows. “Perhaps not. This is my team, Ms. Stahl. You may have written a big check to call it yours, but in every way that matters, it’s mine. Lazy guys and all. Are you going to tell the four guys getting cut that they’re out of a job?”
