Title: Something So Unscripted
Author: Natasha Madison
Genre: Sports Romance
Zack
Finding my teammate in bed with my wife made the decision I had been fighting with for years easier.
It’s time to move on.
A fresh start and a new NHL team in a big city. Most importantly, it’s my son Jack’s best shot.
It would be both of our best shots.
Denise
After a bad childhood, I made sure I would succeed, so I lived for my job.
The problem is I die a little with each patient I lose. It’s part of my career at Hudson Children’s Oncology Hospital, but it doesn’t make the sting of loss any easier.
Seeking anything other than a life saved isn’t on my agenda until a NHL player walks into my hospital with his son.
We’re officially off script the moment we meet.
If this love is anything, it’s unscripted.
“Zack.” I hear her voice and just look at my wife. The woman who said she would love me in good times and in bad yet is currently holding a sheet to cover her naked body. The four-carat engagement with matching eternity wedding ring glistens in the light. “It’s just ...” she starts to say, and I look over at the man in bed next to her. In our bed.
“It’s over.” I say the two words I swore I wouldn’t say no matter how hard it got. No matter how much I saw her push me away, no matter that I always suspected she was cheating on me. Then I look over at the man who I called a brother, the man who stood by my side on and off the ice. “You’re scum.”
“It just happened,” Colton says, getting out of the bed. At least he’s wearing boxers. His knee is still wrapped from the operation he had last month, which is why he wasn’t on the road with us, which is how I surprised them.
We were on the road for the whole week and due back tomorrow, but I hightailed it out of there to get home to my family and my son. “It just so happened you walked into my house and slept with my wife?” I ask him, and I have to wonder why I’m not more pissed, why I’m not more angry with them. “You come here and sleep with my wife with my son under the same roof.”
“Zack,” my wife says, and I look over at her again. Tears are rolling down her cheeks, her perfectly made up face now streaked with the black mascara she always wears. “Please let’s ...”
I shake my head, putting my hands in my pockets. “Let’s what? Let’s talk about this?” I throw my head back and laugh. “Let’s talk about the fact that our son is in his room dying. Let’s talk about the fact that instead of helping him, you’re just helping yourself. Let’s talk about the fucking fact that instead of being there by his side with me, you chose to escape the fucking reality that our son won’t make it to six years old.”
“No.” She shakes her head, and I know that I’ve about had it.
“I’ll give you an hour,” I tell them both. “One hour and I want you packed and at the door when I come back.”
“But—” she says.
“But nothing, Chantal. You did what you had to do for you, and now I’m doing what I need to do for our son.”
I turn and walk out of our bedroom, then down the winding staircase that leads to the big brass front doors. Once outside in the warm Arizona air, I take my phone out of my pocket and call the only person I know who has my back no matter what. My agent and best friend, Jamie.
He answers after one ring, and it doesn’t surprise me he sleeps with his phone in his hand. “What’s up?” he says, his voice sleepy since it’s four a.m. in New York.
“I want out of Arizona, make the trade. Call the powers that be; I want out,” I tell him, getting into my Range Rover.
“You can’t just demand that,” he says, and I hear sheets rustle.
“Just walked in on Colton fucking my wife, so you can bet your ass I can. Make it happen. Call New York because it’s the only place I’ll go. I don’t care if I take a pay cut.”
“That fucking scumbag,” he says. “I’ll call them now.”
“Jamie, there is a top-notch doctor who specializes in cancer in New York. Max Horton’s sister,” I tell him quietly and slowly drive out of my gate.
“I’ll make it happen,” he says softly. “I’ll let you know what they say.”
“Jamie, I’m leaving here in a week regardless of what they say,” I tell him and disconnect the call.
“One week,” I say to myself. “One fucking week.”
“It’s over.” I say the two words I swore I wouldn’t say no matter how hard it got. No matter how much I saw her push me away, no matter that I always suspected she was cheating on me. Then I look over at the man who I called a brother, the man who stood by my side on and off the ice. “You’re scum.”
“It just happened,” Colton says, getting out of the bed. At least he’s wearing boxers. His knee is still wrapped from the operation he had last month, which is why he wasn’t on the road with us, which is how I surprised them.
We were on the road for the whole week and due back tomorrow, but I hightailed it out of there to get home to my family and my son. “It just so happened you walked into my house and slept with my wife?” I ask him, and I have to wonder why I’m not more pissed, why I’m not more angry with them. “You come here and sleep with my wife with my son under the same roof.”
“Zack,” my wife says, and I look over at her again. Tears are rolling down her cheeks, her perfectly made up face now streaked with the black mascara she always wears. “Please let’s ...”
I shake my head, putting my hands in my pockets. “Let’s what? Let’s talk about this?” I throw my head back and laugh. “Let’s talk about the fact that our son is in his room dying. Let’s talk about the fact that instead of helping him, you’re just helping yourself. Let’s talk about the fucking fact that instead of being there by his side with me, you chose to escape the fucking reality that our son won’t make it to six years old.”
“No.” She shakes her head, and I know that I’ve about had it.
“I’ll give you an hour,” I tell them both. “One hour and I want you packed and at the door when I come back.”
“But—” she says.
“But nothing, Chantal. You did what you had to do for you, and now I’m doing what I need to do for our son.”
I turn and walk out of our bedroom, then down the winding staircase that leads to the big brass front doors. Once outside in the warm Arizona air, I take my phone out of my pocket and call the only person I know who has my back no matter what. My agent and best friend, Jamie.
He answers after one ring, and it doesn’t surprise me he sleeps with his phone in his hand. “What’s up?” he says, his voice sleepy since it’s four a.m. in New York.
“I want out of Arizona, make the trade. Call the powers that be; I want out,” I tell him, getting into my Range Rover.
“You can’t just demand that,” he says, and I hear sheets rustle.
“Just walked in on Colton fucking my wife, so you can bet your ass I can. Make it happen. Call New York because it’s the only place I’ll go. I don’t care if I take a pay cut.”
“That fucking scumbag,” he says. “I’ll call them now.”
“Jamie, there is a top-notch doctor who specializes in cancer in New York. Max Horton’s sister,” I tell him quietly and slowly drive out of my gate.
“I’ll make it happen,” he says softly. “I’ll let you know what they say.”
“Jamie, I’m leaving here in a week regardless of what they say,” I tell him and disconnect the call.
“One week,” I say to myself. “One fucking week.”
Review:
Zack is my favorite hockey name. The character Zack in another series stole my heart and this Zack with the Stingers has stolen my heart. He has taken it, wrapped it up, and sealed it. Natasha does a superb job telling Denise and Zack's story. She continues to make me teary eyed and gasping with surprise. She has outdone herself with this story.
Denise, Max's sister, is a well known oncology doctor. She has worked every hard and overcame a sad childhood to become this doctor. She is in with her full heart, caring for her patients, not just there for the check. When she meets Jack, Zack's son, her heart overflows with love. There is an instant connection. Jack becomes her friend.
Zack just learned the hard way that you must follow your instinct. Once he does he learns that his suspicions are correct. This fast tracks his life and soon he is in the right place to give his son the best fighting chance. Zack will make you fall in love. He will give you all the feels. He will steal you away from anything you are trying to do because you will not put this book down until it is done.
Natasha, girl, I love you. I love your writing. I love your characters. I love this family. They love and they love hard. They have a special place in my heart and in my collection of books. From Something So Right to this book they just keep getting better.
When her nose isn't buried in a book, or her fingers flying across a keyboard writing, she's in the kitchen creating gourmet meals. You can find her, in four inch heels no less, in the car chauffeuring kids, or possibly with her husband scheduling his business trips. It's a good thing her characters do what she says, because even her Labrador doesn't listen to her...
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