Page 162 of Breakaway Hearts

“Is that what this situation is?” He raises an eyebrow.

I shrug.

“The answer is no, I would not stand for that, or protect someone who hurt people, whether it’s my starting goalie or lead scorer. I’d rather come in dead last than let that happen under my watch.” He looks pissed. “But I also choose my team carefully, based on a hell of a lot more than how they play hockey. What you bring to the ice is more than your skillset. I may be wrong in some cases, and I’m not too proud to admit that when it happens, but I don’t invite people onto my team unless I would feel safe leaving Liv alone in a room with them, because my players don’t just represent the school, they represent me, and my job is to improve your hockey skills, but it’s also to make sure you turn into men your parents, and you, can be proud of. Not ones with sealed records.”

“Then don’t cover for me.”

“Because I’m wrong about you?”

“Because two wrongs don’t make a right, and you shouldn’t be allowed to hurt people and get away with it.”

Coach sighs, not happy, but I think he understands.

“I’m giving the C to Lewis for the time being. I expect you at those three games, in a suit, sitting on the bench with me. And you can help Ben out at practice.”

“Yes, Coach.”

I’m running around on errands during practice, then take my place on the bench for the game. It absolutely kills me to not be out there with them, to be in a fucking suit instead of my skates, when I’m not fucking injured. But it hits me when I look up at my seats and see Madison there with Tab, that losing hockey, which was everything to me, my life’s dream, fucking sucks, but it would be nothing compared to losing Madison.

During our second penalty kill, Danny comes to sit beside me.

“I’m sorry about the suspension.”

I scoff, suspicious of whatever he’s going to say next.

“I’ve known a few assholes who try to buy people’s affection and fix everything with money. It makes me sick, especially when I’m the one stuck cleaning up the mess they leave behind…but I heard some of the shit Milligan was saying to Gravy all night.”

I freeze, but he doesn’t look nearly pissed off enough to know what actually happened.

“Sitting on this bench when you have the money and clout to be on the ice, when you could make a lot of it go away, owning up to your mistakes…you’re an okay captain.”

I try to read him, even as his eyes are on the game, but I think he means it.

“I wasn’t last night,” I argue. “I don’t even have the C anymore.”

“Then do better next time. Showing up is half the battle.”

I make it back to the locker room right after Coach tells them my sentence, judging by the curses the guys let out.

“Can I say something?” I ask Coach Benson. He reluctantly nods, but I get a lot of glares from my teammates. “I want to apologize to each and every one of you, for what happened last night. That wasn’t how a captain should behave. I forgot that my actions don’t just affect me, they impact the entire team. I let everyone down, and I’m sorry.”

We just cleared the air, but I’m still surprised when Danny is with my roommates and Jason, trying to talk down the guys who are blaming me for ruining our chances for the Frozen Four.

“He hurt Maddie, right?” Cooper asks, which somehow cuts through the arguing.

“What?” I ask, because I can’t say ‘who the fuck told you?’ without implying he’s right, but some of the other guys mirror my words in an angry, surprisingly protective tone.

“We don’t need specifics, but the asshole you punched…” Miles swallows, and I notice that Coach leaves the room, which I think is his way of giving me permission to explain myself without it saving my own ass.

“If he hurt Maddie, I think he deserves what he got. And more,” Vale states.

“Fighting is not a solution. As your captain I shouldn’t have⁠—”

“We protect our people, and Maddie is ours. Just like Savannah,” Donovan points out. “Noah was the best captain I’d ever had, but I can guarantee he would have raised hell if anyone did anything to Sav. And every single guy on that team would have joined in.”

Like they did last night.

“Because she’s on the wall?” one of the rookies asks, probably recognizing the name more than who she is to us.