Page 66 of Lucky Mother Pucker

“You’re gonna do great,” Leo says as he walks with me to the training facility for the Hollis U men’s hockey team.

It’s the day of my job interview with the physios. Nerves fire off inside of me like cannonballs. I smooth my hand over the crisp fabric of the blazer I’m wearing.

I glance down at the gray pantsuit Briar let me borrow. I still can’t believe she offered it to me. That was so nice of her.

All of Leo’s teammates and friends have blown me away with their kindness and generosity. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. That’s exactly what he’s like too.

“I’m so nervous,” I say. “I’ve had a ton of interviews before, but not for a job like this.”

He opens the door to the building for me. I walk inside and follow him through the massive entryway, then turn right.

He glances down at me, smiling. “You’re an old pro.”

I laugh. “At interviewing for food service jobs, maybe.”

We head up a staircase, then through another set of doors. We pass through a training facility with tons of exercise equipment.

“Is this where you work out?” I ask.

“Yeah. We train here a couple times a week, at least.”

We stop at a closed office door. Leo rests his hand on my shoulder, then turns me to face him. “You’re gonna do great, Luce. You’re a hard worker. You deserve this. Just be yourself.”

I take a slow, deep breath. “Thanks. I needed to hear that.”

“I’ll be working out in the training room. Come find me when you’re done.”

I nod, and he walks off.

I take another deep breath and knock on the door.

A second later, it opens. A guy in a black polo smiles at me. “Lucy Bailey?”

I stick out my hand and smile. “That’s me. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

He shakes my hand. “I’m Evan. Come on in.”

I walk into the office. There are two desks in the modest space. A woman in her thirties stands up and introduces himself as Paula, the other team physiotherapist.

The gesture for me to sit in the chair in front of one of the desks.

I hand them both a copy of my resume, which they both look over.

“Hopefully you didn’t have trouble finding our office,” Paula says. “It’s a bit of a maze in this part of the building.

I smile and shake my head. “No, it was very easy. My friend, who plays on the team, was nice enough to walk me here.”

“Leo Peretti, right?” Evan asks.

“Yes. He’s the one who told me about this job, actually.”

“He’s a good kid. Very focused and dedicated,” Evan says.

“So for this job, we’re looking for someone who’s a go-getter. Someone who is okay with learning on the job. Who can roll with the punches and is ready for anything,” Paula says.

Evan nods along. “Some days you’ll be assisting us with carrying out treatment plans for the players. Some days you’ll be on the computer researching therapy mediums. Other times you’ll be cleaning equipment. Other days you’ll be scrubbing down the treatment rooms and washing and folding towels.”

“There’s definitely a grunt work element to this position,” Paula says with an apologetic smile.