12 Christmas Romances To Melt Your Heart (5 page)

C
atherine Gayle is
a
USA Today
bestselling author of contemporary hockey romance and Regency-set historical romance. She’s a transplanted Texan living in North Carolina with two extremely spoiled felines. In her spare time, she watches way too much hockey and reality TV, plans fun things to do for the Nephew Monster’s next visit, and performs experiments in the kitchen which are rarely toxic.

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f you enjoyed
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ou can find
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O
ther books
by Catherine Gayle

P
ortland Storm series

Ice Breaker

Breakaway

On the Fly

Taking a Shot

Light the Lamp

Delay of Game

Double Major

In the Zone

Holiday Hat Trick

Comeback

Dropping Gloves

Home Ice

Mistletoe Misconduct

Losing an Edge
– coming soon

Game Breaker
– coming soon

W
ant
to join in the conversation? Join the
Portland Storm Reader Group
on Facebook.

T
ulsa Thunderbirds series

Bury the Hatchet

Smoke Signals

Ghost Dance
– coming soon

Rites of Passage
– coming soon

W
ant
to join in the conversation? Join in the
Tulsa Thunderbirds Reader Group
on Facebook.

F
or a list
of all her historical romances, please
visit her website

C
opyright
© 2015 by Cedrona Enterprises

All rights reserved. This copy is intended for the original purchaser of this book ONLY. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without prior written permission from Jami Davenport. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author's rights. Purchase only authorized editions.

T
his Ebook is licensed
for your personal enjoyment only. This Ebook may not be re-sold or given away to others. If you would like to share this book with others, please purchase an additional copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of the author.

T
his book is
a work of fiction. While reference might be made to actual historical events or existing locations, the names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

T
his novella is
the continuation of Blake and Sarah’s story which began one year prior in
Love at First Snow
and was featured in
Melting Ice.

B
lake Daniels heard
the ominous snap before he felt it. Then the pain hit him in wave after wave of excruciating agony followed by nausea. He struggled to get up and skate away as he’d done countless times before during his long NHL career. Denial had served him well in the past, but not this time.

Instead, his body betrayed him and refused to cooperate, sending him sprawling across the ice and landing in an embarrassing heap at the feet of team captain Cooper Black. Coop stared down at him, concern written in every line of his face. Blake glanced around at his other teammates. Their expressions ranged from sympathy from the veterans to outright fear from the rookies.

It couldn’t be that bad.

He glanced down at his leg and saw the odd angle of his skate.

Oh, yeah, it was that bad.

Fuck
.

He closed his eyes and allowed the medics to do their job. At thirty-five years old, he didn’t need a doctor to tell him this injury had most likely shattered his hockey career. He was looking at a long rehab and no more second chances. The moment he’d been dreading for the past few years had finally come to fruition.

Through the fog of the intense pain, only one thought raced through his mind like a hamster on a wheel.

What the hell was he going to do with the rest of his life?

S
arah Whitney’s
guilty pleasure was watching Sockeye hockey games and, more specifically, veteran defenseman Blake Daniels. She even subscribed to the hockey channel so she wouldn’t miss a game. She recognized her obsession as pathetic considering she was the one who had broken it off with Blake.

Despite what Blake or their mutual friends might think, she’d done it for him. Hockey was his first, last, and only love. She had a thriving veterinary practice on Madrona Island, one of Washington State’s San Juan Islands. She wasn’t moving to the mainland, and he wasn’t giving up hockey. Even when he retired, he planned to work in hockey in some capacity, which wouldn’t be possible if he were living on a remote island three hours from Seattle when the traffic was good.

Breaking up with him had crushed her, but she couldn’t continue their long-distance relationship any longer. They had no future, and Sarah was a practical, logical woman. She still loved Blake and was resigned to the fact that she’d never find another man to fill the gaping void left by his absence in her life. Despite the short amount of time they’d been together, he’d burrowed deep into her heart and paid rent for a lifetime. Even if he didn’t live there anymore, she wasn’t breaking the lease.

As she tuned into the game that night, she wondered when she’d stop torturing herself by watching him play. No one needed to tell her how ridiculous and destructive her behavior was, she already knew, but such knowledge didn’t turn the TV to another channel or cancel her subscription to the NHL Network.

The Seattle Sockeyes were hanging on by a thread against the Canucks with only a few minutes left in the third period. The new hockey season brought great hope to the team for a coveted playoff spot. While way too early in the season to tell, all signs were good.

Blake streaked down the ice and cut in front of an opposing player driving to the net, effectively blocking the man’s shot. Only the guy kept coming, fully intent on plowing through Blake. The next few seconds happened in slow motion. The two men crashed into each other and slammed to the ice in a tangle of limbs, skates, and sticks. The Canuck player shot to his feet first, and Blake followed only to collapse in a writhing heap on the ice. He attempted a few more times to rise, but his left leg wouldn’t hold weight and down he went.

Play was stopped. His teammates gathered round, concerned expressions on their faces, as they blocked the cameras from showing their fallen comrade.

Sarah rose to her feet, moved closer to the TV and desperately tried to catch a glimpse of Blake, but his teammates purposely stayed in the way. She caught glimpses of his body and could tell he was rolling around on the ice in agony.

The TV flashed back to the moment of impact, showing every gory detail in slow motion. As the other player fell on him, his skate bent at an unnatural angle as if he’d broken something. Such a major injury would take him out of the game for a majority of the season and possibly end his career. At his age, he’d be hard-pressed to get back in game shape, especially with the younger guys already biting at his heels.

Sarah immediately wanted to go to him, only she couldn’t. They were broken up, thanks to her, and she hadn’t spoken to him in months. A clean break, that’s what she’d insisted on. Now she wished she hadn’t. A small, selfish part of her prayed he’d come home to her and retire from hockey. He could spend the rest of his life on this island.

Doing what?

The reality was the same now as it’d been early in the summer. He wouldn’t be coming back. There was no future on this island for him, despite her being here.

They were over, and no amount of hoping and praying would change that brutal fact.

B
lake Daniels sat
outside the conference room waiting for his meeting with the Sockeyes brass, certain he knew what was up. He’d been off the ice for two months, replaced by a younger, faster version of himself. He wouldn’t be coming back to the team in a playing capacity, but he suspected they’d offer him a different job.

This team took care of its own. Ethan Parker, the majority owner, wouldn’t set him adrift without giving him options, especially with Christmas less than two weeks away. Only Blake didn’t know if he’d like any of those options, nor did he want to be the team charity case because everyone felt sorry for the guy whose life and career had been marred by a string of bad-luck injuries and unprecedented personal tragedy.

For the last two months, he’d grappled with healing his broken leg, trying to stay in shape the best he could, and rushing his rehab. Only nothing was going as planned. He wasn’t healing as quickly as he’d hoped. He wore a walking cast on his leg, which allowed him to get around more easily, but he wouldn’t be skating any time soon. While he could work on upper body strength, his lower body was wasting away—or so he felt.

As much as he attempted to remain positive, these past five years his life body-slammed him to the ground every time he tried to get back up, starting with the death of his entire family in a floatplane crash on Christmas Eve five years ago.

After meeting Sarah, the love of his life, last Christmas Eve, he’d thought his life had finally turned a corner, and things were looking up. She, too, was an orphan so to speak, an only child whose parents were both dead.

Then the Sockeyes had come calling, needing a defenseman to replace an injured player. Newly cut from his last team, Blake had jumped at the chance to return to the ice for one final season. Only it hadn’t been final. The Sockeyes offered him a one-year contract at the end of last season. He’d talked it over with Sarah. She’d insisted he sign, and next thing he knew, he’d been plus a team and minus a girlfriend. Not exactly how he’d planned things to work out.

He understood Sarah’s position. They’d fallen hard and fast for each other, but circumstances didn’t bode well for their future. His future had been hockey because that’s all he knew, while hers had been dedicated to her veterinary practice on Madrona Island, a practice she’d taken over from her father. As a life-long resident and the island’s only veterinarian, she took her job seriously and was committed to the community and the animals. She would never move, while he didn’t have a life on that island. They parted amicably, admitting their relationship couldn’t possibly work out, leaving Blake with nothing except hockey. And now it appeared he didn’t have hockey.

He glanced up as Ethan peeked his head out the door and waved him inside. Blake gingerly took a seat at the conference table and smiled grimly at the people seated around it, including Ethan’s fiancé Lauren Schneider, the director of player personnel; Garret Calhoun, the general manager; Mike Gorst, the head coach; and Cooper Black, the team captain.

They smiled back at him as if everything was wonderful when Blake knew it wasn’t even close.

Ethan sat back, letting Garrett do the talking while Ethan observed Blake’s reactions.

“Blake, what are your plans?” Garrett asked.

“I—uh—” Fuck if he knew. He wanted to play, as unrealistic as that particular want might be. “I’m working hard to rehab, but I’ve had some setbacks.”

“Have you considered hanging up the skates and taking on a support role such as coaching?”

Blake shook his head. The team was putting him out to pasture as gently as possible, but nothing could be gentle about the demise of his career, even though common sense practically screamed in his ears that he was old for a defenseman. They’d already replaced him and never missed a beat.

His career was over. Blake wasn’t going back on the ice as an NHL skater. The sooner he pounded the cold hard facts into his thick skull, the better.

“Blake,” Coach Gorst said gently for him. “Your playing days are over, but the team sees great value in your knowledge of hockey, the patience you’ve shown with the younger guys, and your work ethic.”

Ethan jumped in. “We want you to be part of the Sockeye family for years to come. Coaching is perfect for your skill set.”

“I hadn’t thought about coaching,” Blake admitted, knowing he’d been in denial too long.

“We don’t expect a decision right away,” Lauren added. “In fact, we’re willing to work with your timeframe. If you’d like to start tomorrow, we’re good with that. If you want to wait a few months, that’s good, too.”

Damn, they were bending over backward for him, and Blake felt ungrateful. Their coaching suggestion didn’t appeal to him. He wanted to play hockey, despite how improbable that particular want might be.

Without Sarah, hockey was all he had, and a life without both looked pretty bleak. He’d most likely take the Sockeyes up on their offer
eventually
. What better option did he have? He needed time and space to absorb the reality of his situation.

They all looked at him expectantly, waiting for his answer. “I appreciate your offers. I need time to mull this over, and I’ll be in touch.”

“Take all the time you need,” said Ethan, while Lauren and the others nodded. He hated the sympathy in their eyes, even if it was well-intended.

Blake nodded and stood, ready to get this meeting over with. The group stood as well, and he shook their hands and hurried out the door to the parking lot. A fine sheet of rain was falling. The grey Seattle skies reflected his mood. As he opened his SUV door, a shadow crossed over him. He spun around as best he could in the cast.

“Oh, fuck, it’s just you.”

His buddy, Isaac “Ice” Wolfe, stepped from behind a car.

“What the hell are you doing lurking in the bushes like a stalker? Keep that up and someone will blow your brains out.”

Isaac chuckled, not the least concerned by Blake’s response. “How’d it go in there?” he asked.

“Like expected. They’re hanging up my skates.”

Isaac nodded, acknowledging the death of Blake’s career with a wry smile. “Sorry about that, buddy.”

“Not as sorry as I am.”

“What’re you going to do?”

“They asked me to coach and issued an open invitation to decide when the time feels right.”

“I see. This couldn’t have come as a surprise so you must’ve given it some thought.”

“Yeah, but I’m no closer to making a decision than I was a year ago when my career was dead the first time around.” Blake stared at his cast, as if it were personally to blame for his current woes.

“You have to give them credit. They take care of their own.”

“Yeah.” Now if Blake could only figure out how to take care of himself. “I’m going off the grid for a week or so, figure out what to next.”

Isaac nodded. “I wanted to invite you to join the family for Christmas.”

“Thanks, but I think I’ll be on the island, chilling and getting my head on straight.”

“The offer stands if you change your mind.”

“I know, I appreciate that.”

Isaac’s ice blue eyes cut through the bullshit, and Blake was pretty damn sure his friend saw him for the mess he was. With a grim nod, Isaac reached out and shocked Blake with a bro hug.

“Take care of yourself.” Shaking his hand, Isaac left Blake alone in the parking lot with nothing but his broken dreams and an uncertain future, both of which were piss-poor company.