Poppy grins. “That’s awesome.”
We watch as a Wisconsin player takes a shot at the Hollis U net, but Travis manages to catch the puck in his glove. We jump up and cheer along with the rest of the crowd.
“Nice save, baby!” Anna yells.
Travis glances over at her. His brow is furrowed in a serious, sharp expression. But the moment he sees her, that hard look on his face eases. He winks at her before turning back to the game.
“Look at your grumpy goalie boyfriend being all soft and cute for you,” Poppy teases.
Anna beams, her cheeks flushing. I can’t help but smile. It’s so cute how Travis and Anna exchange sweet looks during the game. Nick and Poppy do it too. During warm-up, he skated over to our section and blew her a kiss. It was so freaking adorable.
Poppy and Anna are wearing their boyfriends’ jerseys too. They wear them whenever they watch the guys play.
I look over at Blake as he gets into position for face-off. I was going to surprise him and wear his jersey for tonight’s game, but when I saw that Poppy and Anna wear their boyfriends’ jerseys to every game they attend, I decided not to. I don’t want them to think that I’m trying to act like his girlfriend, since I’m just a friend.
“Oh, hey, how did apartment hunting go the other day?” Anna asks me.
I let out a tired chuckle. “Not good. I looked at a handful of places. None of them worked out.”
“Shoot, sorry to hear that,” Poppy says.
“Yeah, it’s a little frustrating. But it’s okay. I’ll keep looking. I’ll find something eventually.”
I think about how upset Blake was after we left that guy Taylor’s house. He was pissed at him for being such a creep.
And he was so protective of me.
A warm feeling settles in the center of my chest. I’m lucky he’s my best friend. If he hadn’t been there to look out for me, I would have probably moved into Taylor’s house. My stomach churns thinking about what would have happened if I had moved in with that creep.
The ref drops the puck onto the ice, and Nick gets control of it. He passes it back to Blake, who takes off with it across the ice.
“Still staying in Blake’s bedroom then?” Anna asks.
“Yeah. He’ll be so excited when I finally find a place of my own and move out,” I say.
Anna quirks an eyebrow at me, her smile teasing. “I don’t know about that. He seems pretty happy to have you around.”
I think about how insistent Blake was when he told me I could stay with him as long as I needed to. How he said he didn’t want me to move out until I found the perfect place.
Anna wiggles her eyebrows at me. I can’t help but chuckle. She’s teasing me because she thinks that Blake likes me more than a friend, but I know better.
“He’s just being a good friend,” I say. “He’d let any of his friends live with him if they needed a place to stay.”
Anna tilts her head at me, but before she can say anything, Poppy gently bumps her arm. We focus back on the game.
Leo has the puck now and takes a shot, but the Wisconsin goalie blocks it.
It bounces off his stick and goes flying into the boards. Blake races over and grabs it. He’s a blur of black and blue as he moves. He’ssofast.
A half-second later, he smacks the puck with his stick. It sinks in the back of the net. The buzzer sounds as the Hollis U fans in the stands go wild.
I’m on my feet, cheering. I watch as Blake’s teammates surround him to celebrate his goal.
He turns and scans the crowd. A second later, his gaze meets mine. He flashes a wide grin and winks at me.
Tingles swoop through my tummy as I bite back a smile.
Anna elbows me. “Does he wink at all his friends like that?” she teases.
