I’m in the stands at the game, dressed in a handmade Pittsburgh blazer I purchased from a small shop. I’m tucked in between Arden and Penny, with Wyatt and EJ on Penny’s other side. Whatever happened between EJ and Wyatt seems to have blown over. They’re acting as close as ever. Emma is here, too, and she’s talking to Shay with a big smile on her face, looking much more relaxed without the human shackle that is Morgan attached to her ankle.
Boston’s family is in attendance somewhere. With Lemmy. I’m trying not to let that mean anything. They’re friends. That’s normal. It’s not weird if Lemmy meets his brother and his kids. It’s weird if I do, though.
It isn’t a big deal. It can’t be. We’re just having fun.
When we spoke on the phone earlier, I could hear Boston’s smile when he talked about Bennett. My brother told me all about meeting him on the ice, and he said he is a literal carbon copy of Boston, which means he must be the cutest kid in the whole damn world.
I’m happy that Boston is choosing to tend to old wounds. Something changed that night in his bedroom. He gave me pieces of him that he has never given anybody else, and they’ve stayed with me, safe and protected. I didn’t sleep at all that night. I slid my fingers through his hair, held him to my chest, and stared at the wall, thinking about how lucky I am to know him. To truly know him.
Boston Black is a good man. He’s a kind man. He’s a man who has endured more than his fair share and still manages to have care in his heart. It’s why he needed this week with his family. He needs to remember how family can feel when it isn’t dark and painful. Not everyone is as lucky as Carter and I.
I was initially drawn to him because he’s beautiful. He’s a man, in every sense of the word. He draws attention just by existing. But he’s so much more than that beneath the surface. I was enamored by his beauty, anybody would be, but now I’m enchanted by his soul. It’s a very irritating new development. I try not to like the guys I’m hooking up with, but here we are.
He glides onto the ice as music blares through the speakers. We rise to our feet to cheer them on. Wyatt and EJ make a quiet bet about who is going to get more points this game: Callum or Declan. I’ll let you guess who bet on who.
Declan and my brother slide by our section, but I barely notice. I’m looking for number twenty-nine.
I find him quickly. He’s chatting quietly with Oscar, nodding along with his head dipped low, expertly ignoring Reno who is goofing off by his side. They follow a few feet behind Declan andCarter, sweeping by our seats. Boston’s eyes snap upward as they pass.
He doesn’t wave, doesn’t react, but his eyes find mine for a quick second. I flash him a little wink, subtle enough that it draws no attention, and on brand enough that even if it did, nobody would question it.
I swear his mouth pulls upjusta tad at the side.
“We need a win,” Penny grumbles. “I am sick of living with the crankiest man on the planet.”
Wyatt barks out a laugh. “I’ll swap you.”
She nudges his arm. “At least you have your own apartment to hide in.”
He shifts awkwardly, clearing his throat. EJ brings his beer to his mouth and starts downing it.
“The dynamic is off,” Arden adds quietly, eyes still locked on the ice. “Even in preseason, it wasn’t good.”
I haven’t been paying much attention. I probably should be, but I’ve been preoccupied by beards and biceps. Iamaware that they’ve only won a handful of games in the last little while because my brother has started vanishing more often than not to go to the gym or to practice. He doesn’t get cranky when they lose. He’s never been one to bring work home with him, but he always focuses more heavily when they aren’t doing well.
That focus keeps his attention off me, so I was basking in it. I’m entirely selfish, I know.
“It’s fucking Danford,” Wyatt mutters, low enough that nobody around us can hear. “It threw everything off.”
“The team’s divided,” Penny agrees.
“Has he reached out to Cal?” Arden asks.
Wyatt’s jaw ticks. “No.”
Well, damn. That isn’t good. Come on, Tom Danford. The first rule of marrying the raging she-devil is to be prepared to apologize to your friends on her behalf when she sacrifices themto her overlord. You can’t just…put your head down and pretend she didn’t try to destroy your captain’s life. It happened. You have to be the bigger man and apologize for it.
Penny shakes her head, bringing her straw to her mouth. There is still a rage that simmers in her when either of them are brought up in conversation. Sometimes, I wonder if a part of her hopes Morgan will show up to a game so that she can light her ass on fire and get the rest of what she wants to say off her chest.
Morgan, wisely, has been absent.
The game gets off to a really strong start. Saltzy scores a goal four minutes in, which EJ claims is ‘nasty,’ and Reno gets a penalty for tripping directly after. The second he’s out of the box, he’s hammering toward the net, and he gets the second goal of the night.
If he wasn’t such an overexcited puppy, I think Reno Rossi could be quite a catch.
Lark Waters is unstoppable tonight, but when Danford is on the ice, our defense looks a little bit worse for wear. It’s very clear that this is pissing off his teammates. Luka keeps shaking his head and throwing up his hand when Danford does something stupid. My brother is trying his best to balance out his poor performance the moment he steps on the ice to take over. Thankfully, Boston manages to score right before the end of the first period, and seconds before the siren blows, my brother smashes right into the back of Rosden and they immediately drop the gloves.
I stand on my tiptoes, wincing when Carter hits Rosden’s head so hard that his helmet flies off.
