Tacker (Arizona Vengeance #5)(43)

“I will,” I snap, then immediately feel bad about it. My gaze moves out to the ice, easily finding Tacker as they set up for some sort of warmup drill. “It’s not something you have to worry about.”

Raul jerks, swiveling in his seat to face me. “I don’t worry about it. I would never worry about you doing anything that would harm one of your clients. You have too good a soul for that, Nora.”

Air rushes out of my lungs, my face crumbling into a mask of apology that I would even have to defend myself to a man who has my back no matter what.

“All I’m saying,” he continues as if I truly hadn’t said a word about my ethical duties, “is that if you have a real connection to him that transcends the counseling relationship, you shouldn’t ignore it.”

I open my mouth to say something, but he holds up a hand to silence me.

“Whatever you decide to do,” he says softly, putting that hand on my shoulder to squeeze. “Whatever might or might not happen… I trust you to always do right.”

I stare at Raul, not sure what to say to that, but before I can even work through how to respond, a woman comes up beside Raul’s chair on the end of the aisle. She’s dressed in a blank pantsuit, holding a clipboard, with a wireless headset on.

“Excuse me,” she says in a crisp English accent. “Mr. Vargas and Miss Wayne?”

“Si,” Raul answers.

At the same time, I say, “Yes.”

“I’m Alicia… one of the concierge staff. I understand you two are VIP guests of Mr. Hall, correct?”

Raul and I exchange a look. Not sure we’re exactly VIP, but Tacker did give us his tickets.

She continues without waiting for us to confirm. “After the game, I am going to come and get you. Mr. Hall has arranged for me to give you a tour of the facility while he attends the post-game meeting and showers. I’ll then take you to the family room where you can wait for him.”

“Oh, okay,” I say dumbly, thinking it was an incredibly nice gesture for Tacker to make.

“Also,” she says with a smile. “Mr. Hall has arranged for you to move to the owner’s suite if you so desire. He got passes from Mr. Carlson today. Food and beverages are served there as well. However, Mr. Hall did want me to pass on that he personally believes these seats are better. He says it’s more exciting to watch the game close to the ice. Personally, I have to agree with him.”

Raul and I consider each other. When I lift an eyebrow, he shrugs.

I give the woman a smile. “I think we’ll stay here. Thank you, though.”

She beams. “Good choice. Now, unless there’s anything else I can get for you right now, I will just meet you back here after the game.”

We offer our thanks as she turns to leave.

“Damn… we’re VIP guests,” Raul says out of the side of his mouth, chest slightly puffed out. He holds his beer up in a silent salute to Tacker, who is concentrating on warmup drills. “Gracias, amigo.”

Laughing, I take another sip of my Diet Coke.


Alicia gave us a really cool tour of the arena after the game, which included pretty much everything but the locker room where the guys were showering and dressing. She’d left us in the family room, which I thought was a completely cool and neat concept. It’s where close friends and relatives could congregate both before and after the game, mostly for social camaraderie as their season ticket seats are often spread out around the arena. There were gourmet hor d’oeuvres as well as an open bar, all paid for by Dominik Carlson. I had been getting the sense from my own interactions with the team’s owner, as well as tidbits Tacker told me, that this guy goes above and beyond what other owners do for their teams.

In the family room, I see Blue, Brooke, and Regan congregating together, so we make our way over to the familiar faces.

Their smiles are bright and welcoming, and hugs are doled out as well. Since the team had visited the farm week before last, I’ve stayed in contact with Blue. She even brought Billy out to the ranch one more time. She had also texted me to ask if there were other volunteer opportunities she could do. In fact, she’d been out this past Sunday helping Raul and me fortify some fencing. The girl looks like a California supermodel, but she’s not afraid to get her hands dirty or do hard work, which I appreciate.

“Where’s Pepper?” I ask the girls, noting she’s the only one of the first-line women missing.

“Home with Charlie,” Brooke provides.

Tacker had told me all about Legend’s daughter, Charlie, who had literally appeared on his doorstep last December when the birth mom—who had kept her pregnancy secret from Legend—decided to abandon the baby. Legend had stepped up to the plate big time, and Pepper joined him in helping to raise her.

“So are you two coming out with us tonight?” Blue asks.

“Have to be honest,” Raul says, shooting me a tired smirk. “I’m sort of beat after the excitement of that game.”

It was exciting indeed. It went into overtime, and the Vengeance won after an exciting breakaway goal by Rafe Simmons. He’s the young guy who took Tacker’s place on the first line when he’d been suspended. By all accounts, he seems to still be making a profound impact on the team.

I give Raul a sympathetic look before telling Blue, “I think we’ll pass on going out. We have a hefty drive back to the ranch.”