Ryker (Cold Fury Hockey, #4)

by Sawyer Bennett

“Ryker…there’s just too much risk for me to get involved with you. I’ve just started as the general manager. I have everyone doubting me—” “I don’t doubt you,”

“No, you don’t and that’s part of what makes this so damn hard to say this. I have too much to lose for something that may be nothing more than a fling. It’s just too difficult.”

“You’re wrong about one thing. A fling wouldn’t be difficult, because it would be quick and secretive and over probably as soon as it started. You’d have little risk of ever being caught. But I don’t do flings. You would be way more than a fling to me.”

have absolutely no business wasting time on coffee with Gray, although just now saying the words wasting and Gray in the same sentence makes no sense to me. For some reason, time with her is just not a waste to me. That is very odd, because she and I have decided to just be friends, and I don’t do “friends” with women. Not that I’m opposed to it, but I’ve never had the opportunity to do so.

“If you have a chance at love, you should never let anything stand in your way. And I mean anything. Not even this job.”

“I’ve fallen in love with you, Gray, and I know things are tough right now, but I can feel it…deep in my gut. Can’t you? How good this is between us?”

I’m relieved when she whispers, “Yes. I feel it.” “Then fuck Hensley and the rest of the world. We keep pushing forward, okay?” “Okay.” Her words are whisper soft as she stares at me. And then she gives me the sweetest words ever. “And I love you too.”

But no one—and I repeat no one—plays with my lady balls. That just won’t do.

But the one thing I’ve learned in business is that you don’t go overboard in your sales pitch. She came on too strong at the end, which means that she didn’t believe in her product. She was trying to sell me a load of sweet family memories, and if they were really as valuable as she made them sound, she would have never needed to add the threat of exposure on the end.

That meant she was really selling me a pack of lies.

But her credibility was shot when she tried to coerce me, and I realized with brutal clarity that I needed to trust in Ryker’s feelings for me. And let’s not forget…she was the one who cheated on him. She’s the one who caused that marriage to fail.

“Actually, man, if it’s real love…it’s supposed to be hard, in my opinion. That’s because you feel deeper. Things are more important. The risks are greater and the rewards surpass anything you could hope for. You think shit like that comes easy?”

He has practically every character trait that I aspire to have, and I realize he’s actually my role model. He’s my lover, but he’s also my role model.

It made me realize I just had to work harder to find a way

that we could both have what we want, and if I couldn’t, then I was prepared to give up everything up for him. I just knew in my gut that it was the right thing to do.

We discussed the future and my goals. We’ve had those talks before, but they always focused on education, business, hockey, and career decisions. Now I was thinking about love and relationships and children, and my dad actually liked that. It was weird…and yet, not weird.

Now, I have no clue if this is going to work. If both Ryker and I will get all that we want, and hopefully more. But if it doesn’t, the worst that will happen is I’ll lose my job. The best that will happen in any scenario is that I will have

Ryker.

MY NAME IS GRAY BRANNON. I’M THE GM OF THE COLD FURY. I’M IN LOVE WITH RYKER EVANS.

I look back at Ryker and he’s shaking his head. While I can’t see his mouth, I can see the sparkle in his eyes and the way he holds his shoulders. He’s shaking his head in amusement, not denial.

He takes his mask off, lays it on top of the net, and skates up to me. His hair is wet, plastered to his head. Mercury-colored eyes shining brightly at me. The most gorgeous man in the entire world, and he’s mine. Ryker reaches a gloved hand out and rests it against the glass. I drop the sign to the ground, raising a hand up to press on the other side.

“Because I love you and I know how easy it is to love you.

“I definitely know that you are not a person that takes threats well.” The gravity in my voice alerts her to the fact that I’m still very much wigged out by what happened with Claude. “You told a knife-wielding lunatic to go fuck himself.”

Gray offered her resignation with my approval, as we don’t ever want there to be a hint of impropriety with how we handle player relationships. I would also like the public to know that Ryker Evans has previously offered to retire from the team so as to remove the conflict, but Gray wouldn’t let him do that.”

“I don’t know that I’ve ever been more proud of my daughter than I am at this moment. All she ever wanted from the time she was a little girl was to be involved with hockey. Seeing her take the reins of the organization was what I thought was the proudest moment of my life. I was wrong. Today is the proudest, as I watch her stand up and sacrifice all that she ever desired for the simple prospect of love.”

I laugh and press my chin on top of her head. We lie like that a few moments, comfortable in the silence yet still burdened by the crazy things that have happened to us in the last few days. Crazy, terrifying, heart-pounding, knee-buckling, insomnia-inducing, tear-producing, crazy-ass things. But it’s all good.

“I love you. No matter what happens tomorrow, or the day after that, or the day after that. I. Love. You. And that is all that matters to me. The fact that I can go on a date with you, or hold your hand out in public, or that you can finally introduce me to Violet and Ruby as your girlfriend…those things are so much more important to me than being the general manager.”

“But nothing. No matter what happens tomorrow, I will always be involved in hockey. I’ll still be involved with this organization. Stop worrying about me, and trust that I

made the decision that was best for me. I put my priorities in line and I sought out the top one. It’s a win for me, don’t you get it?” “I’m thinking I’m the one who’s truly won here,” I whisper. “I’m not sure what I did to deserve this.” “How about we agree that we both got what we deserve and be happy with that?” she offers with a gentle smile. “Let’s just be happy.” Oh, man, this woman. This fucking woman.

It’s hard to imagine. My first year as a general manager, winning the Stanley Cup. Talk about history making.

That’s right. I’m still the general manager of the Carolina Cold Fury. Almost three months ago, I declared to the world that I was in love with Ryker Evans and simultaneously handed in my resignation so that I could keep my reputation and the reputation of this club intact. It became breaking news and was the subject of conversation all across Twitter and in every bar that held a hockey fan. The following day, the board of directors convened and held a vote on whether or not to accept my resignation.

Every person save one in this arena follows the puck with hungry eyes. Every person but me. I watch Ryker because I want to see the moment when he gets his championship, proving to himself and the world that the Brick Wall still has it. I want to see the light in his eyes and the smile on his face, and I want to revel in his happiness.

So it appears that everything is wrapping up tidily. Claude is in jail awaiting trial; I’m the general manager of the Cold Fury; I’m in love with a wonderful man who has wonderful children; and we just won the Stanley Cup championship. I suppose there’s only one more thing that could make this night better.

Ryker picks me up, his strong arms going around my

waist, and raises me up so I can kiss him. I wrap my arms around his sweaty neck, and I give him the kiss of a lifetime. “Whatcha thinking about?” he asks me as he lets my body slide back down to the carpeted ice, but keeping our fingers locked together. “About marrying you,” I tell him simply. “So now you’re ready?” he asks skeptically. “Hey,” I say with a bit of a whine. “I’ve always been ready. I just didn’t think the world was ready for us. But now it ...

It’s just me and Ryker…his eyes latched to mine. “Gray Analise Brannon…will you do me the honor of getting on a plane with me this weekend and flying to Vegas to become my lawfully wedded wife?”

I giggle and put my hands on his shoulders. I lean in and give him a kiss and the crowd roars, so now I know they are definitely watching what’s going on.

“Ryker No Middle Name Evans,” I tell him with a grin. “I would be honored to get on a plane and fly with you this weekend to Vegas to become your lawfully wedded wife as...

I watch him…the man I love with all of my heart, getting

the recognition and vindication that is long overdue from his teammates and the fans. In this moment, I don’t know that I could ever be happier for him.

In this moment, Ryker Evans is getting ev...

good man de...