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Rhys takes a moment, then nods somberly. “You’re right.”
“Of course I’m right,” I say.
“We’ll play like a team for us. And because she reminded us that we are,” Hollis adds, a nod to our chats with Briar.
I’m glad we’ve cleared the air somewhat, but that’s not all I wanted to say. We need to talk about her. Here. What’s next, because I’ve missed her. I’ve missed her so damn much I feel hollow without her. Here goes the hard part. “She’ll be here tonight. It’s a big fucking deal.”
“Yeah, because,” Hollis says on a rough swallow, “I think…I’m a little in love with her.”
Rhys snorts. “Try a lot.”
Hollis laughs. “Fucking showoff.”
“I was saying you were a lot in love with her,” Rhys corrects.
Clearing my throat I cut in, gesturing from Rhys to Hollis and back. “Pot. Kettle.”
“Fine. A lot,” Hollis adds, like it was the easiest thing in the world to say.
Rhys blows out a breath, then shrugs in admission. “Yeah, me too. I’m in love with her too. A lot.”
I don’t hide a smile this time. I can’t hide it because I never expected this. I absolutely never thought this would happen. But if I’ve learned anything in my twenty-seven years on Earth, it’s that life is what you make it, and you’d better make it everything you want. I offer a fist for knocking. “That makes three of us.”
A little later we hit the ice, one by one. I race out first, my gaze swinging immediately to the seats on center ice.
There she is, wearing the cutest white knit cap I’ve ever seen, her long, blonde hair curling at the ends, and a plain black zip-up hoodie, along with a pink scarf. Too bad we couldn’t send her a Golden State Foxes jersey, but her boss would flip if she wore one.
Briar’s sitting next to her friends, Trina and Aubrey. We got tickets for them while Ivy works the game as the team’s mascot, dressed up in her fox costume.
The three of us skate by Briar during warm-up drills, and she cheers for all of us together and each of us separately.
It’s early in the first period and the crowd roars, their energy fueling me. Tension—and that hope for a win—crackles in the air, a palpable current that electrifies me.
Arizona’s team is formidable. They’re stacked up and down, but I’ve got something no one else in this rink of twenty thousand has—well except for two other guys.
I want it more.
I want it tonight.
I want it for her.
The puck zips across the ice, a blur of black amidst the swirling chaos of players. I zoom in on it, a rush of adrenaline charging through me as their forwards hoard it, passing it back and forth down the ice, chasing toward Dev in the net, but not on my watch. I’m there too, battling for the puck then…boom, I strip it from the Arizona player, spin away and sprint down the ice, flicking it quickly to Rhys.
In no time, he’s flying toward their goal when a pack of D-men swarm him, so he slips the puck easily to Hollis, who sends it screaming into the net.
Just like that, the lamp lights and the crowd goes wild.
I turn to center ice. Briar’s cheering us on, her voice echoing through the rink. It’s not really echoing. Of course it’s not. But I feel like I can hear only her.
When the game ends with a W, we all skate toward her without even planning it, like she’s our North Star. She’s what guides us. The three of us form a semi-circle in front of the glass where she is. She comes right up to us, glances around, checks to see who’s watching, then satisfied it’s safe, she unzips her hoodie, giving us—just us—a sneak peek.
Underneath, she was wearing a Foxes jersey after all.
There goes my last shred of resistance. I’m so far gone for this girl.
That’s why we needed to win. We have her friendship, and now it’s time to earn her heart.
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