Page 87 of Trade It All

I stand there for half a second watching her walk away, every muscle in my body resisting the urge to follow.

Then I force myself toward the coaching room.

The next twenty minutes are a blur of line combinations, special teams reminders, and assistant coaches talking while I pretend to listen. I answer when I need to. Nod when I’m expected to. But my mind keeps flashing back to the shattered phone on Maddie’s office floor.

To her pinned in that corner. To the sound of her sayingCoach…By the time the players head out for warmups, I need sixty seconds where no one is looking at me.

Just enough time to get my head back on straight before I have to stand behind that bench and pretend I’m coaching a hockey game instead of planning a homicide.

I peel off and head toward the locker room expecting silence. Expecting empty stalls. Expecting one minute alone.

Instead—Luka is sitting on the taping table. Grady is leaned against the far wall with his arms crossed. Both of them are staring at me like they’ve been waiting. I stop in the doorway.

Yeah. I’m not getting that minute.

Luka is off the taping table before I fully clear the doorway. “What the fuck was that?”

His voice bounces off the concrete walls, anger already radiating off him in waves.

I shut the locker room door behind me and keep walking like I didn’t hear the accusation. “You should both be warming up.”

Luka just stares at me. Actually stares. The kind of look that saysare you genuinely this stupid?

I blow out a breath and glance toward Grady. “Why are you here?”

Grady lifts one shoulder, still leaned against the wall but no longer relaxed.

“Came in and found goalie boy in a fucking mood,” he says, jerking his chin toward Luka. “Mumbling something about Maddie and Tyler and looking like he wanted to punch through drywall.”

His eyes narrow slightly. “Figured I should stay since that girl is basically everybody’s sister.”

Something twists in my gut at that. Because if they knew—if either one of them knew the full extent of what Maddie is to me now—this conversation would be a hell of a lot messier.

Not just sleeping with her. Jesus, if only it were that simple. I’m in love with her. The thought flashes hot and possessive through my chest, immediately followed by the image of Luka and Grady deciding to play protective brother over a woman who spent the last three nights in my bed.

No. Absolutely not.

Luka takes two steps toward me, ripping me out of that train of thought. He is vibrating. Actually vibrating with rage. “Tell me we’re doing something about that asshole.”

I hold his stare. Then shake my head once.

Luka explodes. “Are you fucking kidding me?” he bellows, throwing both hands out. “He fucking hit her!”

Grady shoves off the wall so hard his shoulders slam into full attention. “He what?” His voice drops. Low. Dangerously low.

Luka waves his hands around like we are all fucking stupid. “He hit Maddie.”

Grady’s head snaps to me, eyes darkening. “Is she okay?”

I am already glaring daggers at Luka. “Weeks ago,” I bite out, shaking my head once at Grady. “Before he went to Denver.”

But Grady isn’t listening to the timeline. Doesn’t care. The only words either of them heard arehe hit Maddie.

Luka starts pacing. Hands in his hair. Muttering curses under his breath. “This is bullshit. This is actual bullshit.”

Before I can say anything else, Grady crosses the room, grabs Luka by the front of his pads, and hauls him toward the door.

Luka stumbles with the force of it.“What the hell—”