Chapter 2

Callie

“You’ve been here for only a month and your life is more exciting than mine,” Hannah sighed. Hannah Martin was twenty-six years old, just like me, as well as my coworker and friend. On the first day of work at the hospital, we clicked instantly. It was a hard transition moving from Minnesota to North Carolina.

Linking my arm with hers, I laughed as we entered the hospital locker room. “I wouldn’t exactly call it exciting.”

Our shift was over and it was time to change clothes and head out for the afternoon. We were both RNs and worked in the ER, but I was also a surgical nurse. The kind of things we saw on an everyday basis would shock most people.

Hannah scoffed and looked at me like I’d lost my mind. “Your brother is a gorgeous hockey player who just got traded to the best NHL team in the league. I’d kill to know those kinds of people.”

I rolled my eyes. Even though my brother was now playing for the Charlotte Strikers, it was challenging for him, considering it was midseason and we had to move quickly. Luckily, my two other brothers found an amazing house we could all live in until I bought my own place. “It’s not all it’s cracked up to be, Han. Besides, I did invite you to the party a couple of weeks ago. You could’ve met the whole hockey team.”

She released her long chocolate-brown hair from her bun and waved me off. “Yeah, yeah, I know. And what an eventful night that was. You spent almost the whole evening plucking shards of glass out of that Neanderthal’s head.”

I changed out of my scrubs into my favorite pink skirt and white top. With wearing scrubs all day every day, I really missed my colorful, more feminine clothes. “Don’t remind me,” I huffed. “I haven’t been to another party since.” It was probably because there hadn’t been another celebration party since that night. Dallas wasn’t allowed to play the last two games and the Strikers lost. My dress still had bloodstains on it from his head. I had yet to see him again face-to-face after that fiasco. He probably didn’t remember a thing from that party other than the fact he almost beat a man to death. Apparently, charges weren’t filed, which shocked me.

Once Hannah was dressed in her shorts and tank top, we grabbed our things and headed out to the parking lot. The sky was so blue with no trace of a cloud in sight. I was used to March being chilly in Minnesota, but in North Carolina, it was anything but. The warmer weather was going to take some getting used to. At least I was able to bring out my cute spring clothes.

“Maybe now that I broke up with my no-good, worthless, cheating boyfriend, I can start hanging out with you more,” Hannah stated flippantly. She acted as if being screwed by the man she’d been with for two years was no big deal, but I could tell her heart was still broken. It was time that changed.

I walked her to her silver Honda Accord. “I’d like that. Other than my brothers, you’re one of my closest friends.” She opened the backseat door and tossed her bag in. “Want to come to the rink tonight?” I asked. “Justin scored some private rink time just for us. You can finally meet my brothers.”

Her eyes lit up. “Seriously?”

“Of course.” I laughed. “They’ve heard a lot about you. And now you don’t have a boyfriend holding you back. It’ll be nice to have a girl to skate with.”

Her smile faded slightly. “I’ll end up making a fool out of myself. I’m not good at ice skating. I’ve only done it once.”

I shrugged. “Then don’t skate. Just come and hang out. You’ll have fun, I promise. Then afterward, you can get dinner with us.”

I could tell she really wanted to come. “Do I have time to go home and freshen up?”

“Yes,” I squealed happily, flinging my arm around her shoulders. “Meet me at the rink in an hour.” Being around someone other than my brothers was going to be heaven. I needed the girl time.

Carter Skating Center was a brand-new ice rink in Charlotte where the Charlotte Strikers now practiced. Kellan Carter was the captain of the team and the owner of the rink along with his wife, Kristen, who was a little over six months pregnant. Other than Hannah, Kristen had become a close friend of mine as well. The rink was basically my second home.

Grabbing my bag out of the trunk, I hurried inside. I could hear the guys still practicing and the coach yelling at them, so I diverted down the back hallway to see if Kristen was in the office. Sure enough, she was sitting at her neatly organized mahogany desk with her feet propped up, her face hidden behind a book. There were several pictures on the wall, one of her and Kellan at their wedding, another with them right outside of the rink on opening day, and the others of the Charlotte Strikers when they won the Stanley Cup the past four years.

“Must be nice to read on the job,” I said with a laugh, entering the room.

Chuckling, she glanced at me over the top of the book. “It is when I’m not allowed to do anything else.” Her eyes brightened as she took me in. “You look cute in your skirt. One of these days, I’ll fit back in mine.”

“It won’t be long,” I said, tucking my blond hair behind my ear. It felt good to wear it down. At work, I always had to keep it up so it wouldn’t get in the way.

“I can’t wait to get back to M&M. I miss designing.” Now that the rink was open, she took a small leave of absence from her regular job at M&M Architectural Design so she could help Kellan. The woman had amazing interior design skills. I thought I was pretty good at decorating, but she had me beat. Sighing, she set her book on the desk. “If Kellan had his way, I’d be at home eating bonbons. The man won’t let me anywhere near the ice.”

Setting my bag down, I looked down at her rotund belly and smiled. She had on the cutest purple maternity top that made her auburn hair look brighter. “Can’t blame him. He just wants to keep you and your little munchkin safe.”

She stood and waved her hand dismissively. “Please, he knows I’m an expert on the ice. I was a figure skater for most of my life.” Circling around the desk, she opened her arms and hugged me. “It’s good to see you again. You going to skate around with your brothers?”

I nodded. “For a little while. Hannah just broke up with her boyfriend and she’s coming to hang out. I think she’s afraid she’ll make a fool out of herself if she skates.”

Kristen winked. “That’s why you get one of your brothers to help her.”

“My thoughts exactly.” And I knew just the one to do it.

“Have you thought about my offer?” she asked curiously.

Groaning, I picked up my bag. “You mean the one where you want to set me up on a date?”

Her face brightened. “Yep. I know the perfect guy. All you have to do is meet him.”

I wasn’t ready to get involved with anyone just yet. Before I moved to North Carolina, I was in a relationship with a guy I knew in college. We were together for three years when things started to fizzle out. The spark we had in college wasn’t there anymore. Through mutual understanding, we decided to end things, but it still hurt at the time.

“Well?” Kristen prodded. “What do you say?”

With a heavy sigh, I gave in. “Fine. Just give me a few weeks until I find my own place to live.” I kept telling myself I’d go out and search for houses, but with working all the time and going to the hockey games, I hadn’t had a chance.

Kristen squealed and clapped her hands. “Perfect. You’ll like this guy. He’s a police officer.”

“Sounds good. I look forward to meeting him.” Glancing down at my phone, I saw it was nearly six o’clock. “And I have to go. Hannah and my brothers should be here any minute.”

“Let’s go then.” Kristen walked with me out to the rink and waved at my brothers as she waddled past them.

Corey and Brant were thirty years old, the oldest of my siblings and fraternal twins, so there was no issue telling them apart. Corey had blond hair and green eyes just like Justin, me, and our mother, while Brant looked exactly like my father, with dark brown hair and blue eyes. They were polar opposites as far as personalities went. Not only were they family, but they were also Justin’s agents. They were a package deal.

“What’s up, guys?” I called out.

Corey smiled and walked over, while Brant moved to the side of the rink to talk to Justin. “Hey, beautiful,” Corey said. “Got a hot date tonight?”

I snorted sarcastically. “Only with my brothers. Figured I’d parade around the hockey players in my short skirt.” I probably should’ve waited to bring out my spring wardrobe until I got a tan, but I couldn’t hold off any longer. It wasn’t easy spending time out in the sun when I worked every day.

Corey shook his head incredulously. “Don’t let Justin hear you say that.” Practice was over and the guys were leaving the ice, but by the disgruntled look on Justin’s face, something was wrong.

“Is everything okay over there?” I asked Corey.

He peered over at our brothers and shrugged. “Don’t know. Let’s go see.”

I followed him over, but then Hannah walked in, all calm and collected until her focus fixated on Corey. Her steps faltered and she nervously twisted her hair. I grabbed Corey’s arm to stop him and his gaze immediately centered on Hannah, a slow growing smile spreading across his face.

“Corey, this is my friend Hannah. I work with her at the hospital. She’s going to hang out with us tonight.”

Corey held out his hand. “It’s nice to meet you.”

Hannah took his hand. “Likewise. Callie has told me a lot about you.”

“Hopefully all good,” Corey said, nudging me in the side.

I winked. “Of course.” Justin and Brant waved their arms to catch my attention. “Why don’t you two keep each other company for a bit. I’ll be right back.” They continued talking, and that was exactly what I wanted. Corey was a good guy. He’d be perfect for Hannah.

When I got closer, I glanced at both my brothers and then settled on Justin. He ran a hand through his sweaty blond hair and huffed. “What’s going on? You look angry,” I stated.

He met my gaze. “Change of plans today. Coach is still pissed at Easton for the other week and wants him to stay. Coach knows we have the ice and asked if I’d help.”

“Seriously?” I scoffed. “I really wanted to skate.” Dallas Easton was about to become a pain in my ass.

He nodded. “I know, but with me just joining the team, I couldn’t say no to the coach.”

“I understand,” I replied with a groan. “I guess Hannah and I will just watch.”

Brant squeezed my shoulder. “Actually, there’s something we need you to do.”

I glanced at them both, their smiles growing more mischievous by the second. “Do I really want to know?”