Chapter 8

When we arrived at the arena a media frenzy had swarmed the doors. Each flash of a camera made me more twitchy. I loved a lot of things about hockey, the publicity not so much. Thankfully security had traffic blocked off to the private parking area. Jeff recognized me and waved me through. It was only after I pulled into my parking spot, and shut off my truck that I let out a sigh of relief.

"Dad," Penelope's voice was small as she sat next to me, "did I do something wrong?"

I shook my head vehemently and put my arm around her and she seemed to shrink under it. "No Sweet Pea. This is all a misunderstanding. I'll get it taken care of."

Penelope nodded, but her voice was still quieter than I'd like as she responded. "Okay."

I'd tried to shield her from the worst of the press as she grew up. Hard to do when Erin lived her life in front of a camera and didn't seem to understand the need for personal space or boundaries. My lawyer had a vacation home thanks to the amount I'd paid him to get Erin to finally understand that Penelope was off limits when it came to the spotlight.

Lia patted Penelope's knee with her hand. "Don't blame yourself for a thing. People are just interested in knowing what your dad is up to."

My stomach twisted at her words. Thanks to me, there was a press nightmare outside the arena, and I'd managed to drag Lia into it too. When I'd walked into that salon earlier and seen the same woman I'd spent months flirting with, standing up for Penelope it had made my gut twist in a not entirely unpleasant manner. If things had been different, if I'd maybe run into her under less stressful circumstances...no point letting my thoughts go down that path. I'd learned long ago to not dwell on what ifs. The reality of everything hit me hard.

This mess better not impact negotiations my agent was working on. No doubt he wouldn't be thrilled to get the call from the Glacier Bay PR team. I picked up my phone and sent a quick text to Hannah.

My phone buzzed almost immediately. Hannah must have been waiting for me, but then again the woman always seemed to know what was happening when it came to the players on the team. Lou liked to groan that it cramped his style to have his little sister monitoring the team's PR, but then he'd turn around and brag about her to anyone who would listen. She really was good at her job.

Of all the players I would have bet on causing a media circus, I wouldn't have bet on you.

Another person I owed an apology to, and I texted her back.

Sorry.

The dots showing she was typing disappeared and reappeared.

It's fine Nate. This is my job. Coach approved us meeting as soon as you get to the arena. Head to my office with the woman, I promise I'll have you in the locker room in time to get ready for the puck drop.

With one hand I pinched the bridge of my nose and let out a long sigh. If Coach wanted me to meet with Hannah now, this whole thing would be worse than a puck to the ankle.

A warm hand gently squeezed my arm around Penelope. I dropped the hand from my nose and saw Lia offering a soft smile with worry in her green eyes.

I put on a brave face, and pulled the keys out of the ignition. "It'll be okay Lia. Hannah, the team's PR manager, wants to meet with us real quick."

Penelope perked up. "Do you think she has those chocolates in her office?"

For the first time since Charlie's I smiled. "I'm sure she does."

"Good. I want to put one on my sundae."

Remembering the food on Lia's lap, I sighed once more, "Best we take those inside. No need to let the food go to waste."

We got out of the truck and I guided us through the building to Hannah's office on the 3rd floor. Her office was small, little more than a glorified broom closet outside the team's conference room. When I opened the door, I saw her attempting to tuck a frazzled piece of her curly hair into a tight bun. I don't think I'd ever seen her wear it down like in the photo on the ID badge hanging from the lanyard around her neck.

She stood quickly and straightened her blazer. She smiled genuinely at Penelope before offering a hand for Lia to shake. Lia shifted the takeout from one hand to the other and I wanted to kick myself for making her carry it all the way up here. I took it from her while Hannah and Lia said something about the bakery.

"Let's move this next door," Hannah suggested. "That way Penelope can eat before she decimates my emergency chocolate."

Lia smiled at that and I wished I'd been the one to make her smile.

"Aww!" Penelope whined. "Come on Han."

Hannah's mouth twitched at Penelope's nickname for her. "Maybe after the game if we win."

Penelope narrowed her eyes. "That's what you said last time."

"We can discuss it after you've eaten."

I could see the moment Penelope remembered the ice cream because her eyes lit up and she was all too eager to get into the conference room and take the bag from my hand. She grabbed the first container with her dessert, leaving the other box with Lia's in the bag. I'd lost my appetite, but I hoped the sugar would help Lia feel a little better about such an awful day. I pulled out Lia's dessert and handed it to her.

Penelope had taken one of the black office chairs at the far end of the conference table and was so focused on her sundae that I knew she'd be oblivious to most of what we had to say. Just to make sure, I gave her my phone to play the tower takeover game I knew she liked. I'd make sure when I took Penelope back to Erin's that she got her phone back.

Lia, on the other hand, didn't do more than poke a spoon at her sundae as I sat next to her. I couldn't blame her, she'd lost her job and was now the subject of an online onslaught.

Hannah didn't waste time once I sat. She had her business face on. "Nate I'm going to get right to it. The press has been looking for a reason to knock you off your father of the year pedestal, and your ex is giving them all the ammunition they need. They've picked up her salon video and are spreading it faster than a power play on open ice."

"What do we do?" Lia asked.

"That depends on the two of you. You could tell the press it's all a big misunderstanding, and they'll write their conspiracy theories. Or we can ignore it and hope the game distracts them until some other idiot catches their attention."

It was starting to feel like the third period and I was down by two.

"Can we get Erin to take down the video?" I asked.

"The damage is done. Even if Erin took it down it's available in so many places."

"Erin lied in that video."

Hannah shrugged. "Even if she did a retraction it wouldn't spread as far. But with the gossip rags salivating over something to print, you could release a response in your post-game interview tonight."

My shoulders sagged. For years I'd quietly let my lawyer handle Erin, and ignored any requests for comments. I really didn't want to break that streak tonight in an interview that should be focused on the game.

"I know you don't want to Nate, but they will ask anyway."

I nodded in resignation. Lia reached over with her hand to give mine a gentle squeeze of reassurance.

"What if I say something?" Lia asked. "Would that help?"

Her offer did more to gut me. Lia owed me nothing, I was the one who came in and messed up her life. She hadn't asked me for anything. Anyone else in her shoes would have demanded compensation for damages. Erin would have been suing for emotional distress and then some. I would've easily ended up losing months of my life in court just to reach a settlement.

"Not really, no." Hannah shook her head and pointed a thumb at me. "The press wants this guy to talk."

Lia's phone buzzed and she pulled it out of her pocket. I saw the name Mom flash on the screen. She looked at Hannah who told her if she answered it she shouldn't answer any questions about today when it came to me and Penelope. Lia stepped away to the corner and talked as quietly as she could into her phone. There was a lot of pausing as she listened to whatever her mom had to say on the other end. But I saw the distress in her posture as it slumped and she tried to reassure her mom that everything was okay.

Just like that, determination straightened my spine. It would be okay for her. I'd make sure of it.

I looked at Hannah, "Write whatever you want me to say and I'll say it."