Total pages in book: 56
Estimated words: 54710 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 274(@200wpm)___ 219(@250wpm)___ 182(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 54710 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 274(@200wpm)___ 219(@250wpm)___ 182(@300wpm)
Ah. That’s why he doesn’t like me. I didn’t ask his permission to do my job. My boss told me to run the social media accounts my way, which means a more intimate look at the players’ personalities and lives. Deb told me she likes that I’m a self-starter who doesn’t need direction, because she has a full workload of her own.
“No problem. Warm-ups only.”
He starts his walk to the arched rink entrance and I admire the view from the back. Great ass, wide shoulders, and a neck that’s just begging me to put my palm on it and run my fingers through his silver-kissed hair.
It’s fortunate that I’m good at ogling men without them realizing it. Also, Mark. Mark and I have a great connection and I like him a lot. This must be a habitual ogle, not a legit one.
I clear my throat. “So how long are warm-ups? I don’t want to film too long or anything.”
He turns and looks at me like I’m a toddler hyped up on sugar, pressing on his last nerve.
“You’ll know. When the guys stop stretching and skating laps, that’s your cue.”
My cheeks burn. “Okay. Thanks, Coach.”
He hates me. And I love this job, so I can’t have the team’s head coach hating me. I’ll play his game and be remorseful when he comes by my office later. If he wants to okay it every time I want to film something, that’s what we’ll do.
And of course, I’ll bring him some of my banana chocolate chip muffins. They’re my secret weapon for winning people over. More than two thousand people have downloaded the recipe after seeing my social media posts about it.
I’m not even trying to film from the team bench, though I’d love to be that close. Coach Turner is irritated enough with me already. Instead, I take the elevator up, moving as quickly as I can in heels, and find an entrance to the lowest level of seats.
Already winded, I blow out a frustrated breath when I realize the glass is in my way. I don’t want to film through it unless I have to, so I hustle over to the concrete stairs and start climbing them.
It’s not fun in these shoes. And now I’m conscious of the team seeing my less-than-fit ass hoofing it up these stairs.
I have to go back out into the concourse to reach the highest level, and it’s there that I take off my shoes and carry them so I can go faster. A custodian gives me an amused look as I pass him, sweating in my formfitting wool pencil skirt and black top.
Finally, I get to a high enough level that I have a bird’s-eye view of the ice. I don’t bother getting a tripod out because I may not have long. I drop my shoes and equipment bag and film the players stretching.
Isaac’s stretches make him look like he’s humping the ice. When I was researching the socials of other pro hockey teams, I noticed that female viewers are feral for those stretches.
Mute buttons are a good thing. Otherwise, this video would include the sounds of me fighting for my life after the trip up here. You’d think I just finished a long uphill sprint.
The guys are skating now. I make sure to capture the last names on as many jerseys as I can. Our fans love seeing Carter Stanton on the ice. He’s letting me film him with his pet pig, and I’m ridiculously excited about it.
It’s not the players who are close to my age that my eyes keep wandering to, though. It’s the cranky coach with jacked arms. The way he chastised me was honestly hot, and I’m not sure what that says about me.
Once I finish filming, I sit down in a nearby seat to check the team’s social media pages and comment back to people. It allows me to cool off, since the rink area is colder than my office and I’m no longer running like a fucking jaguar chasing prey on the Savannah.
No one will ever mistake me for a fitness fanatic. I hate getting sweaty unless it’s between the sheets. I like my size-fourteen body. Since I love fashion, finding clothes that flatter my figure is one of my favorite things to do. I also love doing my hair and makeup. The comments I get on my social media pages from women who feel beautiful and empowered by my advice and the photos of myself used to make me cry, but I’ve gotten used to it now, and it’s one of the reasons I keep working to grow my reach. If I can make women feel better about themselves and their bodies, that’s a gift to both me and them.
When I get to the end of the new comments on the team’s IG, I put my work phone in my equipment bag and take out my personal one, hoping I have a new message from Mark.