‘Because you leave me no choice. If you want to salvage what’s left of your playing years, you’re going to have to change your attitude and fix your image. We’ve pretty much discovered that you’re not able to handle that on your own,’ he said pointedly. ‘Which is why we’re hiring professionals.’

Ward snorted. ‘We’re? You mean I have to pay for this shit too?’ But as much as Bernie loved him, he knew his agent wouldn’t be doing this out of the goodness of his own heart.‘Professionals,’ he repeated, disgusted. ‘PR people are nothing but a bunch of leeches, you know that. Clean up my image? All they’re gonna do is try to turn me into someone that I’m not. I’m WildCat McKenzie, damn it.’

‘You’ll still be WildCat McKenzie,’ Bernie soothed. ‘Just a shinier, more public-friendly version.’

Chapter 5

HANNAH

Hannah straightened up and double-checked her reflection in the bedroom’s full-length mirror, before leaving for a preliminary meeting with the first of her newly assigned client list in the New York office.

The dregs, as Zoe described them.

And yes, while this particular motley crew – mostly comprised of up-and-comers and almost down-and-outers – weren’t the most glamorous bunch, that didn’t mean Hannah was going to give them anything less than her best.

Most people went around wearing a public mask, showing the world only the side of them they wanted to be portrayed. Hannah still did it herself, at work especially, and there were only a few people for whom she dropped the cool, calm collected persona to reveal the real her.

Ironically, a major part of her job was to find the person beneath – the inner part that was truly who they were. And with luck, and mostly some gentle coaxing, help the client feel comfortable enough to show their authentic selves to the world. It was the part she loved the most too.

Because Hannah knew first hand how empowering it was to escape the clutches of outside expectations to truly be at ease with yourself. Like she finally had after leaving small-town Ireland.

As with all her clients, she wanted to make a good first impression, but since this was an evening meeting, she needed a change of clothes after a full day at the office. So she went with professional but casual – her hair pulled back into a ponytail, a salmon-coloured blazer and a crisp white shirt beneath, jeans and metallic mid-heel slingbacks. Then opened the top button of her blouse, figuring it looked a little less austere considering she was meeting an athlete, who tended to be more relaxed about dress codes. She’d never worked with an ice hockey player, before though.

‘McKenzie isn’t just a hockey player, honey,’ Zoe tittered when Hannah initially ran through the client list with her over the phone. ‘The stories about that guy are legendary.’