Chasing the puck

Chapter Fifteen

The soft hum of the city buzzed outside as Sarah sat at her desk, the glow of her laptop illuminating her face. The headlines plastered across the screen made her stomach churn: “Ford’s Former Coach at Center of Scandal—What Did the Players Know?” She scrolled through article after article, each one more damning than the last. Tyler’s name was in every one of them, dragged through the mud because of his proximity to the scandal. And though she wasn’t directly responsible for the leak, Sarah felt the guilt weighing heavy on her chest.

She clicked out of the articles, her fingers trembling on the trackpad. The media storm had been relentless. Every day, new allegations surfaced, pulling more people from Tyler’s past into the fray. She bit her lip, thinking about how this all started with a simple assignment. Now, her relationship and her career were caught in the crossfire.

Her phone buzzed on the desk—Tyler. Her heart sank as she saw his name flash across the screen. He hadn’t spoken to her much since the leak. Their conversations had been clipped, distant. She’d wanted to go to him earlier, to explain everything, but the guilt and fear of making things worse had kept her frozen. But now… now she had no choice.

She picked up the phone and headed out the door.

The silence in Tyler’s apartment was thick, almost oppressive. He sat on the couch, staring blankly at the muted TV screen when Sarah walked in. He didn’t look up immediately, but she could feel the weight of his disappointment and frustration. She approached slowly, her heart pounding in her chest.

“Hey,” she said softly, standing a few feet from him.

Tyler’s gaze finally shifted to her, his eyes hard, guarded. “Have you seen the latest articles?” His voice was low, controlled, but she could hear the tension beneath it.

Sarah nodded, walking over to sit on the couch beside him. She kept a small distance between them, the space reflecting the emotional gap that had grown between them in the past week. “I’ve seen them,” she admitted. “I didn’t expect it to get this bad.”

Tyler leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees as he ran his hands through his hair. “This is my life, Sarah. I’m in every headline, every conversation, and now my team’s being dragged into it too. Do you have any idea what that feels like?”

Her heart broke at the exhaustion in his voice. She reached out, wanting to comfort him, but stopped herself, unsure of how to fix the damage. “I didn’t want this to happen,” she said quietly. “I’m trying to keep the story contained, but I can’t control what other outlets are doing. I never meant for this to hurt you.”

He looked at her then, his blue eyes filled with frustration and something deeper—hurt. “But it did, Sarah. You’re part of this world, and whether you meant to or not, you’re caught up in the same machine that’s ripping my life apart.”

The words hung between them, sharp and cold. Sarah felt the sting, knowing he wasn’t wrong. She had always been careful to keep her work separate from her personal life, but now, that boundary had been shattered. “I’m not the enemy here,” she said softly, her voice pleading. “I’m trying to do my job, but I don’t want to lose you in the process.”

Tyler shook his head, his voice quiet but edged with frustration. “It’s hard to trust that, Sarah. It’s hard to trust you when every time I open my phone, there’s another headline that feels like a punch to the gut. I don’t know how to handle that.”

Sarah’s throat tightened, tears threatening to well in her eyes. She had never seen him like this, so raw and vulnerable. “I hate that this is happening,” she whispered. “I don’t want you to feel like I’m not on your side. I’m trying to balance everything, but it’s hard. I’m scared too, Tyler. Scared that my job is going to come between us. But I need you to know that I’m still here. I’m still fighting for us.”