“What did you know about Luc before you took this gig?”
Her smile faltered. She hitched it up. “If I’m completely honest, I didn’t know too much. We might live in the same city but,” she leaned forward, cupping her mouth, “don’t tell anyone, but I’m actually not a huge hockey fan.”
“Whoa!” Francesca mock-gasped, as Luc swiveled in his seat with a fake scowl.
“Don’t hate me!” Bailey said, hands palms up in surrender.
“Well, it seems most of us know that Luc has some skills on the ice, but you’ll be teaching him some new moves, too, huh?”
“Exactly!” She grinned and waved again.
“Anything else to say, Luc?” Francesca asked.
He glanced back at Bailey. “I think I’ve got the perfect partner. She looks sweet, but she’s tough, and we’re gonna do our best to crush the competition,” Luc said, pointing at the camera. “As long as I don’t crush her first.”
“Them’s fighting words,” Miguel murmured, as the studio erupted in more laughter.
But even as they smiled, she knew that was the key to getting Luc engaged. He was competitive, and so was she. She’d need to find a way to flick that switch and get him focused on winning, and not all the obstacles surrounding them.
Her shoulders straightened. She couldn’t wait to get home and finally start teaching the bear man she’d been partnered with.
Why had he bothered to answer the group’s video call? Luc sighed, as the murmurs of the airport lounge faded as his friends’ mockery continued.
“Dude. No way.”
Ryan hadn’t stopped laughing since Luc had joined the group video chat five minutes ago.
“Stop it. You’re embarrassing yourself.”
Ryan pointed to himself. “I’m not the one who’s going to be embarrassed. What the heck?”
“Yeah, come on, Lukey baby, you gotta admit, this is a shock,” Vancouver’s Chris Thomas said. “Weren’t you the one sitting at a table only a week or so ago saying you didn’t dance? You been keeping this a secret, huh?”
“No.” Luc winced. “It’s still true. I can’t dance.”
“Then why on earth agree to do a dance show?”
Luc sighed, and shook his head. “Nothing has been officially announced yet but the club tapped me for being captain.”
“They did?” Mike Vaughan, Calgary’s captain asked. “That’s fantastic.”
“That’s awesome,” Jai Mullins, the alternate captain for San Jose, said. “Congrats.”
Chris applauded. “About time. You’re the best they’ve got, especially now Linzey has left.”
“Gee, thanks.”
“You’re welcome,” Chris grinned.
“So, what’s that got to do with dancing?” Ryan asked.
Luc shrugged. “They wanted me to raise my profile.”
This sent Ryan off in another peal of laughter.
“What?”
“I don’t think you can get a higher profile than announcing that. Everyone is talking about it. Have you seen what they’re saying on TSN?”
He sighed. No, he hadn’t, and he had every intention of keeping it that way. He’d posted on Instagram like the team and show wanted, careful to keep the focus on the cancer fundraising part, but hadn’t read any of the comments. He didn’t dare. And now he needed to get the heat off him and turn this conversation’s focus onto Ryan. “Anyone else think Ryan is a little too happy these days?”
“Don’t think you can try and change the subject, man.”
Huh. Ryan was getting entirely too feisty since going out with Sylvie. She was good for him.
“I personally am loving the fact that Mister I’m Never Doing Anything Girly is going to be dancing on national TV.” Mike grinned. “I can’t wait to see what he has to wear.”
“My vote is for pirate sleeves,” Chris said. “Hey, I bet they’ll make you do a bare-chested one.”
“They better not,” he growled.
“Come on. Don’t you think that’ll get your socials moving?”
“The wrong direction, maybe.”
“Do you have to wear makeup?” Jai asked.
