Page 117 of Never Bet Against A Hockey Player

I wasn’t sure if I wanted to scream or cry, but by the time the final buzzer echoed out and the stadium lost it, I was right there with them, screaming my head off, tears running down my face.

August pulled me close, hugging me tight.

“He did so good out there.”

“He did,” I said, wiping my eyes. “And here I am blubbering like a baby.”

“You’re just being a good big sister,” he promised, pressing his lips to my temple. “He’s lucky to have you in his corner.”

“He’s lucky to have us,” I corrected.

“Okay, enough of the sappy shit. Let’s go celebrate our boy,” Lachlan said, letting out a whoop and pulling us out of our seats.

We rushed to the locker room, waiting outside for the kids to start filtering out. We didn’t have to wait long. Gavin was the first to push the door open and run out.

He practically threw himself into my arms, his cheeks red and his eyes shining with excitement.

“Did you see me out there?”

“You were incredible,” I agreed. “I hope you heard us cheering for you.”

He laughed, shaking his head.

“I think the whole stadium did. Not to mention you sound like you’ve already lost your voice tonight.”

“Worth it.” I beamed at my brother. This was one of the best nights of my life. “So, how do we celebrate?”

“Winner’s choice,” Conrad tacked on.

“Could we go to the arcade again? I was telling Caleb and Ryan about it. Do you mind if I see if they want to come celebrate with us?”

“Come on, buddy,” Conrad said. “Let’s go find them.”

He put his arm around Gavin’s shoulder, and Gavin led the way. We hung back, letting the alpha take the lead with making plans and making sure the parents were okay with everything.

“So, what do you think? Hockey’s not so bad, huh?” Lachlan teased, gently bumping his shoulder into mine with that sexy smirk on his face.

“I could take it or leave it,” I teased, earning an indignant huff from both him and August.

“Don’t lie. You’re starting to love it,” August said.

“Of course, but only because Gavin is part of it now,” I said.

He didn’t get a chance to say anything back thanks to Conrad returning with two families in tow. There were several kids, likely siblings, along with a handful of betas, alphas, and omegas.

We exchanged pleasantries, but there were too many names to remember. I was already overwhelmed.

Gavin was so damn excited that I couldn’t let him notice, so I pasted on a smile and simply climbed into the car.

All three of the guys noticed right away how uncomfortable I was. I was sitting up front with Conrad when he moved his hand over to my thigh.

“You all right, baby?”

“Yeah, of course,” I said easily. “There’s just a lot going on.”

“You’re doing great,” he promised. “They’re going to love you, and Gavin is so excited.”

“He is,” I said with a small smile, glancing back to where he was regaling Lachlan and August with the details of the game we all just watched.