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He shook his head. “There had never been mention of another owner or partner.”
Grinning like the cat who ate the canary, the Governor leaned back again. “The majority ownership belongs to his wife.”
“Really?” That was a well kept secret.
“And more interesting, apparently Mrs. Majority Owner wants to spend more time traveling and with the grandkids.”
A feeling deep in the pit of Daniel’s stomach was shouting for him to lean back, put up his feet, and watch a genius at work.
“I did the only thing left.”
Yep. Daniel was as sure of what the Governor was going to say next as he was that he was going to marry Paige and spend the rest of his life raising little Barons.
“I bought the team.”
“You what?” Paige almost fell off her seat.
“Well, the final paperwork isn’t signed yet, but the preliminaries are all worked out and the deal is as good as sealed.”
Daniel couldn’t hold back a chuckle. Paige had warned him that Barons always got what they wanted. He had no idea if the Governor actually wanted a hockey team that badly or just hated losing that badly, but either way, he would remember never to underestimate Paige or her family again.
“Let’s move this little celebration to the other room.” The Governor stood, extended his elbow to his wife, and quietly exited the room.
Paige had made it less than a foot when he snagged her hand and whirled her around.
Looping his arms around her, he pulled her in even closer. “You know what this means?”
“I’m going to have to get used to having you around?” she teased.
He bobbed his head. “Are you okay with that?”
Her arms lifted to wrap around his neck. “Very.” On tiptoe, she nudged his head lower until her lips met his, ending the sweet kiss much too soon. Taking a step toward the door, her hand now laced with his, she gave a tug. “They’re waiting for us.”
Happy to follow, his mouth curled up in a contented grin. From where he stood, it looked like the Duprees were also about to get everything they’d ever wanted.
Chapter Seventeen– Epilogue
Life as a member of the Baron family was definitely more interesting than most families. At least that’s what Siobhan thought. Some days were more rewarding than others, some more stressful, but today fell under the umbrella of uniquely interesting. Somehow—though she still hadn’t wrapped her head around how it had happened—the Barons now owned a professional ice hockey team.
Today, a good chunk of the clan had gathered for the groundbreaking on the new arena. Of course, the key family players involved in bringing hockey to Houston stood behind the massive blue ribbon and bow. Her grandfather, the former governor of the great state of Texas, her eldest brother the senator, her sister Paige’s boyfriend, Daniel Dupree—former hockey star and new goaltending coach of the Houston Comets—and of course the mayor, and a passel of city council, and other committee members all grabbing their fifteen minutes of fame.
Despite the crowd, the two people Siobhan had her eyes on were Daniel and her sister Paige. Of course Daniel had his eye on the photographers and reporters as they held the ribbon for the Governor to cut, but those same eyes kept darting over to where Paige stood with the rest of the family. Not just any glance, his eyes sparkled enough to light a path on the darkest of Irish nights. And her sister was no exception. The sheer adoration in both their gazes was enough to make Siobhan stomp her feet and whine until a man who looked at her that way came into her life. Of course, traveling back and forth across the globe did nothing to encourage a relationship, and if she were honest with herself, not having a steady guy yet wasn’t really such a bad thing. She liked playing for a living. Going to fast paced races, exotic locations, and using her photographs to bring a new light to whatever caught her fancy. Didn’t hurt that it paid nice money too. Paige was a few years older, maybe waiting a little while for the right man would make more sense. There were an awful lot of decades left in her life to exchange doe-eyes with the opposite sex.
“If you keep staring at your sister, someone’s going to think you’re jealous.” Her cousin Cooper spoke softly so no one else would hear.
Good at deflection, she raised a brow at him. “Which sister?” After all, Eve and her husband were here and looked equally besotted as Paige and Daniel. Though, they weren’t staring hearts at each other from across the empty construction site.
“Nice try.” Cooper shook his head and barely rolled his eyes.
Rachel leaned into her cousin. “You’re not letting the secret out?”
This time Cooper did roll his eyes at his kid sister. “No, but you may have.”
From the way Rachel squeezed her eyes and blew out a hiss, Siobhan was pretty sure her cousin would kick herself if she could. As a fellow baby sister with older brothers—brothers who didn’t hesitate to point out an error that anyone could have made even if they weren’t the baby of the family—Siobhan felt for her cousin.
Rachel held up her hand and shook her head. “I haven’t said a thing.”
In an effort at solidarity, Siobhan nudged her cousin. “And I didn’t hear a word.”
