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“If it’s in any way related to the Rovers, he’s not on board. He’s never been to a single one of my games. He wants nothing to do with hockey and me.” He used to watch hockey games with me from time to time—before I started playing.
And he used to come to some of my peewee hockey games. He just had no idea that I’d make a career of it.
Rowan cocks her head in confusion. “If I had a kid who reached the levels of success that you have, I’d be so proud of them. What’s up with him?”
I shrug and scowl, tapping my fingers on the table. “My father always expected me to take over the company from him. I’m the only heir. He’s ready to retire, honestly, and the only reason he won’t is because I haven’t stepped forward to help him run the company.”
“Do you ever see yourself doing it?”
“There’s a remote possibility, if I felt like I could make the company my own, do more charitable initiatives, make sure that our work is aligned with the best interests of the community where we’re doing business, make sure we’re environmentally friendly, that kind of stuff. But hockey is my absolute passion—it’s the reason I wake up in the morning. If I retired while I was still capable of playing, I’d resent my father and his company so much that I’d fail. It’s just a fact. I know me. Honestly, if I retire, I want to coach and stay involved, because I love the game.”
“Maybe you should sit down and just explain it to your father the way you explained it to me? Because from where I’m sitting, it makes a lot of sense.”
I shake my head. “I’ve tried, on several occasions. My father thinks it’s a mistake. It’s a physical game, and I could get badly injured. I mean, hell, I could get badly injured crossing the street and getting hit by a bus, or tripping over Puck and falling down the stairs, but he’s fixated on me leaving hockey, and until I do, things are going to be really strained between us.”
She winces sympathetically. “I’m sorry. That’s very hard.”
“I was injured playing basketball at school once, and my dad absolutely freaked. He was a real asshole about it, threatening to sue everyone, shut the school down, ruin people’s lives.” I grimace. That was humiliating, and a huge overreaction. I didn’t want to let my dad make me live in fear of getting a boo-boo, so I tended to act out and act even more reckless. Which drove him nuts and led to a lot of shouting and fights.”
“I mean, that sounds like he really cares about you.”
“More like he wants to control every aspect of my life,” I grumble.
My phone beeps, and I glance at it to see a group text started by my man Beck.Got my four. Just need the official invite with the dates.
I type back,On it.
Beck adds,Also ... $15k committed boyzzz.
We all chime in, with me thanking him and everyone else suggesting that he probably just called the Galaxy cheerleaders and promised he’d bang them wearing his official jersey in exchange.
The rest of them chime in with their commitments.
They’ve each gotten at least a couple of guests, with more likely, and at least a few thousand dollars in donation commitments.
A huge grin spreads across my face.
“Ooh, is that good news?” Rowan cries out. “Tell me it’s good news.”
I turn my phone for her to look at it. I scroll through some of the texts.
“Okay, awesome, and your friends are in danger of testosterone overdoses. I’m genuinely worried about them,” she scoffs.
I smirk in reply and set my phone down.
“Let’s see where we are.” Rowan enthuses.
She hands me a pad of paper, and I grab a pen, and she starts adding up numbers on her own pad.
A few minutes later, we compare numbers. Even with the invites having mysteriously “vanished”—that is, ended up in the paper shredder—we’re at double our goal.
We are getting so much money and so much fun for those kids and their families.
I leap to my feet.
“Woot,” I shout. The next thing I know, Rowan and I are jumping around in excitement.
Without even thinking, I chest-bump Rowan as if she were one of the guys, and she stumbles back a little bit, laughing.
