Pucking Strong: An MM Workplace Hockey Romance (Jacksonville Rays Book 4)

Ifeel numb. Nothing feels real. Not the chair I’m sitting in. Not the glass of water someone put in my hand. Not the man sitting across the desk from me. His mouth is moving. He’s speaking words in a language I know, but I can’t will myself to care.

Petra is dead. My only sister. My dearest friend.

I think I’m in shock. Medically, I believe this is shock. I’ve felt it once before. I was seven years old, ice skating on my family’s lake in northern Sweden. The ice cracked, and I dropped straight through. The water was so cold, it stabbed the air from my chest. A stream of panicked bubbles spewed from my mouth as I sank.

My saving grace was my scarf, hand-knit by my mother. Petra managed to grab the end, tightening the knot our mother had tied at my neck like a noose. I thrashed in the dark water, my feet trapped in my heavy ice skates. From the surface, Petra stretched flat on her belly and pulled me up, testing the strength of the knot with everything she had.

A scarf saved my life that day. A scarf and my fearless sister.

Afterwards, I sat before the wood-burning stove in our old cabin, wrapped in quilts, body aching with cold. Our parents stood over me, quietly debating whether to take me to the hospital. I couldn’t speak. I could hardly move. I was frozen with shock.

“Karlsson?” A gentle hand squeezes my shoulder.

I glance up, remembering where I am. I’m not seven years old, sitting before the wood-burning stove. Petra doesn’t sit at my side. No, inexplicably, it’s Teddy O’Connor who sits next to me, his face full of concern.

I’ve always held a fondness for Teddy, ever since our curious meeting at the crosswalk all those years ago. It was a surprise when he showed up in our gym this morning, still so nervous and tongue-tied. He’s tall and lean. His fair brown skin is dusted with freckles over his cheeks and nose. More than his kind smile, I’ve always noted his hair. He wears it in long, thin locs. At the moment, a spray of end pieces sticks out from the large knot, like the feathers of a bird’s crown. His hair is bold and extravagant, so at odds with his generally meek demeanor. And yet, it fits him.

I get the feeling he only acts meek and tongue-tied around me. I’ve seen him with the others. He laughs and jokes. Few people can put Lukas Novikov in his place, but Teddy does. I’m not surprised he’s different around me. I have that effect on people. They’re made uneasy by my long silences and my general awkwardness. I’m certain I must make Teddy uncomfortable.

But in this moment, his hold on me is steady, tethering me to this room and this moment.

“We have to decide what we’re doing here,” says John Weiss from across the desk. As the new general manager of the Rays, he always wants a plan. “Karlsson, what do you need from us?”

“I have to go to Sweden.”

Arjan Singh, the team’s services manager, stands by the desk, brow furrowed with worry. “We can get you on a flight tomorrow.”

“But we’re less than two weeks out from the start of training camp,” says Weiss. “Will you need a leave of absence to deal with this, Karlsson?”

I just stare at the glass of water in my hand.

“Karlsson?”

“I don’t know, sir.”

“Lindberg said his niece is still in critical condition,” Teddy explains. He turns to me, those hazel eyes full of such worry. “How old is she?”

I swallow, feeling numb. “Five.”

Every face in the room falls.

God, help me. Does Karolina know her mother is dead? Who told her? She’s an ocean away, lying in a hospital in pain. The poor little lamb.

“Henrik, honey, I’m so sorry.” Doctor Price stands behind my chair. Next to her is her husband, Jake, my team captain.

“Will anyone be there with her?” asks Teddy. “Her father, maybe? Can you meet him at the hospital? Or what about grandparents?”

“No father,” I reply. “And my parents are elderly and in poor health. It’s difficult for Mom to travel.” I stand from my chair, setting the glass of water untouched on the desk. “It has to be me. There are arrangements to be made for my niece.”

Jake searches my face. “Are you her guardian now? Will you bring her back with you?”

We’re skating perilously close to me saying out loud that my sister is dead, and I’m not ready. I clear my throat. “I must contact the hospital first to better understand her injuries. If she can’t travel, that will complicate matters. But, yes, I’m all she has left.”

Tears in his eyes, he gives a curt nod. “Then she needs to be here. Go get her, Henrik.”

Doctor Price takes my hand in both of hers. “Let me send you over on my family’s plane. That way, even if she’s injured, so long as she’s stable enough to fly, you can bring her home.”

Jake nods again. “That’s a great idea, babe. Go call Hal.”noveldrama

“I couldn’t ask that of you—”

“I’m offering,” she says over me. “I’ll go call my dad right now. We can have the plane here by tonight. You’ll be in Stockholm by tomorrow morning.”

“It’s a good plan,” says Singh. “And it’s generous of you, Rachel.”

“It’s literally the least I can do,” she replies, pulling her phone from her pocket. “We’ll have you at Karolina’s side in eighteen hours.” She steps from the room, her phone already to her ear.

“What if you need help getting her loaded on and off the plane?” asks Weiss. “She could be confined to a hospital bed or be on crutches. Can you handle that on your own, Karlsson? Would you prefer we arrange a proper medical transport?” He’s still thinking through all the contingencies. I’m glad someone is. I’m certainly in no fit state.

“Is there no one we can send along with him?” says Jake.

Weiss shakes his head. “Not ten days out from the start of training camp.”

This upsets Jake and the three men argue, all talking over each other about schedules and priorities until a new voice enters the fray.

“Hey, send me.”

We all turn to look at Teddy.

“What did you say?” asks Weiss.

Teddy shifts nervously in his chair. “Uhh … yeah. Well, I was just gonna say that I haven’t technically started yet, right? I mean, I filled out my paperwork, and I gave Novy half a leg massage today. I’m covering for Rachel when she goes on leave.” He turns to Jake. “Do you think she’d be cool staying on for one more week if I go help Karlsson?”

“She’d be totally cool with it,” Jake replies, relief evident in his tone.

“I can’t ask that of you,” I say.

Teddy just shrugs. “I’ve got the qualifications. Injury rehabilitation is my jam. And I’ve worked with kids before. A lot, actually.” His smile falls as he holds my gaze. “I can help, Karlsson … if you’ll have me.”

It would be easier to know I have support in this. I don’t even know what I’m walking into. All I know is that Petra is dead and Karolina is injured. I tried calling the hospital back, but they said her doctor was in surgery. My phone sits heavy in my pocket as I wait for it to ring. Fighting the emotions threatening to tear me open, I just nod.

“Perfect,” says Jake. “It’s settled.”

At that moment, Rachel steps back into the room. “What’s settled?”

“Teddy is going with Henrik to Sweden. And you’re covering for him until they get back.”

She sighs. “Oh, that’s perfect. I hated the thought of you going alone, Karlsson. Teddy, you’re a treasure.”

“It’s nothing.”

Standing, I turn and offer him my hand. “It’s not nothing to me. I’ll not forget this kindness, Teddy.”

He stares down at my hand for a moment before he shakes it. “Anything for the team, right?” But then he drops it, eyes wide. “Oh, shit.”

“What?”

“I gotta go make sure my passport isn’t expired!”