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“I don’t think this is the time or place to take your dick out, Lansfield.”
“Shut up, you menace.” He laughs and pulls out a small folded piece of paper. It’s wrinkled, and the corners are ripping. “If someone asked why I played, or why I wanted to get out of here early, or why I’m so goddamn happy, I’d show them this.”
“What is it?” I ask, and he opens it so I can see the picture. “Oh.”
“That’s why I hung that picture of us in my locker. That’s why I had this with me all night. Whenever I thought about my why, I thought about you and June. Who knows when I’ll retire. Maybe it’ll be next year. Maybe it will be in five years from now. Until then, you are what keeps the fire going, Maven, and I have a feeling we’re just getting started.”
I bite my bottom lip and tug on his arm. I stand on my toes and kiss him long and slow. He hums against my mouth, and I laugh when he traces the letters on the back of my jersey.
“I love you,” I say when I pull away, needing to come up for air. “I will always love you.”
“And I’ll love you right back.” Dallas breaks out into a smile, and he lifts his chin. “You feel like celebrating with me tonight, Mae?”
“That depends. What’s on the agenda, Lansfield?”
“You. Me. June. A hotel bed and a massive fucking pizza until our stomachs hurt.”
“And then?” I ask.
“Ice cream, probably, if you two have anything to say about it. But after that?” He shrugs and brings his hand to his mouth. He kisses my knuckles and his eyes meet mine. “I was thinking we lose our minds a little bit. Maybe for the next sixty years. We could buy a house. Have a couple kids. Throw a wedding in there, eventually. What do you think?”
“I think that sounds like the stupidest idea in the world.” I grin. “Let’s do it.”
EPILOGUE
Maven
Nineteen months later
“Are you nervous?”
I look up from tying my cleats and find Isabella smiling at me.
“Terrified,” I admit. “But that’s part of the fun, right?”
“It’s all of the fun.” She flings her arm around my shoulder and squeezes tight. The hug centers me. It helps me relax and take my first deep breath of the day. “You look good, Mae. I forgot how well you rock a pair of shin guards.”
I beam and adjust my athletic shorts, pulling the drawstrings tight. “Thank you for being here. I need all the emotional support I can get.”
“I’m so proud of you, but we should get going.”
“The game doesn’t start for almost an hour,” I say, and I level her with a suspicious look. “What’s the hurry?”
“Can you stop asking questions for six seconds and just head to the field, please?”
I give the soccer ball at my feet a soft kick and follow behind it. “What are you hiding?”
“I’m not hiding a damn thing.” She opens the door and nudges me forward. “I just want to make sure you have plenty of time to warm up.”
I laugh and step outside. The temperature is still warm and humidity hangs in the air. I savor it for a second. I relish in how good it feels to be stretching my legs and heading toward something I’m excited about.
“You’re so bad at keeping secrets,” I say. “But so am I, which is why I should tell you I have a ticket saved under your name for the Stars preseason game tomorrow night. I hope you’ll come. It’s a sellout, and I had to pawn off my kidney to get you a seat.”
“You bet your ass I’ll come.” Isabella sighs dreamily and falls in step beside me. “I still can’t believe you get to photograph the hockey boys.”
“And hockey girl. She’s incredible, but I prefer kickers.” I bite my bottom lip and sigh. “I wish Dallas was here. I wish the weather in Phoenix wasn’t shitty so they could’ve taken off last night, not late this morning.”
“I know you do,” she says gently. “I told him I’d record the whole thing. So he didn’t miss out.”
