Page 83 of Broken As Puck

I broke the balls and managed to sink a striped one. Regina sank three before her turn was over.

I turned to Jane. “Have we been hustled?”

She tilted her head, her curtain of brown hair sliding around her shoulders like silk. “Everyone knows that there’s no winning against Regina.”

“That doesn’t mean it’s not fun to play,” Maribel added with a wink. “Especially if you’re on her side.”

“I see.”

The game didn’t last long. Regina wiped the floor with Jane and me, and Maribel wasn’t terrible either. Nevertheless, by the time we finished, the men were less like a horde of starving beasts, so I managed to snag myself a small bowl of onion rings.

I enjoyed the crisp, savory taste, and when Matt sidled up to me again and took my hand in his, I swallowed and kissed his cheek. “Feeling better?”

He nodded. “I think I’m going to call Coach Dunn later and tell him the truth if that’s all right with you?”

“Of course. I hope you won’t get in trouble for lying.”

He sighed. “I probably will, but you’re worth it.”

Chapter Thirty

MATT

Jesse thrust Frankie the fox in front of me. “Kiss him for good luck.”

I stared at the plush toy that had been handled by every player on the team, not to mention stuffed in the most disgusting duffel bags. “I’m not kissing that. I know where it’s been.”

Jesse’s face fell, which looked especially ridiculous with the beard he’d been trying to grow. “But this game decides whether we make it to the finals. Don’t you want to make sure we have all the good juju we can get?”

I pressed my lips firmly together and rubbed the fox’s head instead. “I’ll touch it. I’ll even hug it. But I’m not putting my mouth on it.”

“Aww.” He pouted. “Austin said the same thing, but I thought if I could get someone else to do it, then he might too. You both need to lighten up.”

I shook my head. It didn’t matter what he said; it wasn’t happening.

He rolled his eyes and grabbed Drew’s shoulder. “Hey, bestie. You’ll kiss Frankie, won’t you?”

Drew put his hand over Jesse’s face and playfully pushed him away. “Go away, demon.”

A whistle blasted through the changing rooms, and we all fell silent and turned to the front. Coach Dunn and Assistant Coach Willets stood side by side, clad in blue-and-black suits, and there was a fox head badge pinned to Willets’s pocket.

Coach Dunn rested his hands on his hips. “You’ve worked hard to get this far,” he said, slowly looking from one face to the next, gracing every player with a moment of eye contact and not missing anyone. “Every person here has played their ass off this season and whatever the final score is today, I’m proud of you all.”

Jesse opened his big mouth and looked like he might be about to say something, but Drew covered it and nodded at Coach to continue.

“If we make it to the playoffs, just know that you deserve to be there. You’re ready for it. So let’s get out there and show New York what a strong team looks like.”

Assistant Coach Willets clapped and the rest of us followed suit. My gut had swarmed with nerves all day, but while I wanted to win, I didn’t feel like everything was riding on this game. For once, I had more in my life than hockey. I had a beautiful woman out there in the stands, and win or lose, I’d get to go home to her.

Someone from the venue’s staff poked their head in to let us know it was time to roll out. I checked that everything was in place and then pulled my helmet on. We lined up to go out onto the ice, and there was a certain weightiness in the air that wasn’t usually present.

Austin took the lead and Nick fell into step behind him. I followed Nick, with Brian on my heel. As we entered the stadium, a roar rose from the stands. Most of the audience was decked out in the blue and red of New York, but there were clusters of people wearing primarily black and silver, which the Chaos supporters were using to differentiate themselves because both teams’ uniforms were in shades of blue.

The atmosphere was electric. I reached the ice and skated a lap, scanning the stands for a familiar face. I found Chelsey standing with my parents, near Kim and Patrick from the documentary crew. Her camera hung around her neck and when she saw me looking, she stood and turned to show me her back.

My name was printed across her Chicago Chaos jersey. Satisfaction swept through me, and I pointed to her and put my hand on my heart.

Fuck, I loved her.