“No one asked you, asshole.” Ian tensed and puffed out his chest like a rooster about to go into full-tilt attack mode. “Shut your pie hole.”

“Boys,” Lucy said as she looked at Shelby and rolled her eyes in one of those woman-to-woman moments that needs no words. “You’re probably both going to hate it, but if you want to keep your place on the team, you’re going to do it. The word came down all the way from the owner’s suite. This PR play is nonnegotiable, and it involves all three of you.”

“Why me?” Shelby asked, shocked out of silence with her already squeaky voice going up to nails-on-a-chalkboard annoying even to her own ears.

“Because.” Lucy bared her teeth in a smile that was anything but friendly. “The Biscuit as part of the Ice Knights media hub is the perfect place to tell the story of brothers reuniting on the road as they fight to win the Stanley Cup together.”

Ian let out a string of mumbled curses before saying clearly, “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

Lucy turned to face him, her hands on her hips and her attitude just daring him to try it. “I’m not, and if any of you think of bucking the system here, it will not end well for you. You might rule on the ice, but I can scare the shit out of Godzilla without even breaking a sweat. You do not want to fuck with me.” She gave Shelby, Ian, and Alex the stink eye and then jerked her head toward the SUV. “Now, everyone get in and I’ll explain everything on the ride back to Harbor City.”

…

The next two hours were already going to be absolute hell, but to add into it even the idea of getting all brotherly with Christensen—even if it was only for PR purposes—had Ian’s gut churning. At least that made him forget the fact that he was sitting next to Shelby in an enclosed space.

Not that he was paying attention to that.

Or the way her black jeans clung to her long legs.

Or the way her cheeks got a little pink every time she looked at him, as if she couldn’t stop thinking about last night, either.

Or the—

Fucking A, pull it together, man. She’s not interested. Stop being such a rejection junkie.

“So here’s how this is going to work,” Lucy said as soon as they hit the interstate and a straight shot back to Harbor City. “Due to a freak glitch in the schedule, the Ice Knights have an extra-long road trip starting tomorrow.”

“I thought I wasn’t going on that because of this.” He held up his busted thumb, which meant he still had about a week of off-ice time left.

“You can finish healing up on the road.” Lucy shrugged. “Plans change.”