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20
Luca
Putting your life in danger to put out a fire?Yes, sir.
Scaling a ladder one hundred feet in the air to save someone?Sure thing.
Taking your best friend in the whole world and the only person you’ve ever been totally gone for to an ice hockey game where there’s the anticipation of having a first kissredowith said best friend ...?Absolutely terrifying.
It took a lot of asking around and the calling in of a few favors to get good seats for the Hawks game at short notice.I also made a promise to visit the school of the Zamboni operator’s granddaughter, with full lights and sirens.Thatmeans I now owe Cap and Marco a favor too.
But when I said I wanted to give my girl the date of her dreams, I meant it, so owing a few people is nothing if I can pull this off.I watched all the movies Lonnie mentioned to Val, even though I’d already seen them before, just to make sure I’d covered all the bases.
Despite all of that though, I’m still a bundle of nerves.Holding Lonnie’s hand helps.Letting myself touch her in whatever way I can is the best salve I’ve ever discovered.Having the freedom to do that also serves as a reminder of why I’m doing this.
It’s all for her, to hopefully help pave the way so that she can believe in this, in me ...us.And so she can forgive me for being such an ignorant fool for so damn long.
After collecting our tickets from the call window, we make our way to our gate and hand them over to the usher before walking inside the United Center.I can feel Lonnie nearly vibrating beside me, making me smile.I watch her eyes scan the whole ground floor, as if she’s taking in the atmosphere like I am—the thick crowd of buzzing fans, the smell of fried food and beer overwhelming the senses, and the music coming from inside the arena.It’s electric and addictive, and it doesn’t matter how many games I come to.It still gets to me every single time.
Lonnie grabs hold of my shoulder and lifts on her toes.I wrap an arm around her waist, holding her close, liking the feel of her body against mine and not for the first time, wondering how the hell I ever thought I could resist this amazing woman.
“This is awesome.I can’t believe you were able to get tickets,” she says loudly in my ear.
I grin down at her.“Let’s just say I have a friend of a friend.”
“Well, sounds like it’s a good friend of a friend to have.”She’s beaming at me, and fuck, if it doesn’t make me feel ten-feet tall and bulletproof.I'd do anything to keep her looking at me like that.
There’s just one thing that we need to do before going inside.Looking around, I quickly spot where we need to go.I slide my arm around her shoulders and lead her forward, squeezing our way through the crowd to the Blackhawks team store.
“What are we doing?”she asks.
“We’re getting decked out in Hawks gear.There's no way can we come to a game andnotrepresent our team.”
Her eyes widen and a smile appears.“Seriously?Luc, I’ve got a jersey at home.We don’t have to—”
I silence her by gently pressing my index finger to her lips as I shake my head.“Uh-uh, beautiful.Date of your dreams, remember?That means everything has to be perfect.So first, we’re getting matching jerseys and one of those giant foam fingers each.Then I’m going to wine and dine you with the best stadium food you’ve ever had.”
“You’re just full of surprises today, aren’t you?”she says, not sounding at all unhappy with the date or my plans so far.
I lean in close, the scent of her citrus shampoo doing crazy things to me, and it hits me that I never have nor will be able to smell anything like that without thinking of her.
“You ordered the very best.I’m just trying my hardest to give my girl what she wants.”I don’t miss the hitch in her breath or the warmth filling her gaze.
“I’ve always liked it when you called me that.”
Note to self—call hermy girlat every opportunity if it gets her looking at me like that.
As if needing a distraction, she steps back and throws her arm out.“C’mon then.Jerseys and foam fingers await.”
Thirty minutes, a chunk of change, and a big order of food later, we’re in our seats getting ready for the puck to drop.The first period is passing far too quickly for my liking.Not because I’m not enjoying myself—I’ve always loved watching games with Lonnie on my couch in front of my big-screen.But as I look up at the scoreboard and see the time ticking away, I’m getting more and more nervous.
Ice-skating was fun and a total failure if I was trying to make a good impression when it came to my skating prowess.Thankfully, my best friend knows me better than anyone and just laughed at my misfortunes rather than judging me for them.
This next moment in our date is amuchbigger deal, because it’s a chance for me to give London a much-deserved redo of our first kiss.
When she kissed me in the car, she caught me by surprise, and it was just as awkward and unsynchronized as an unexpected ‘didn’t-see-it-coming’ kiss could be.That doesn’t mean I don’t remember the soft, satiny feel of her warm lips against mine, and the taste of strawberry mint on her tongue.
But that wasn’t a moment I want her to remember.I want our kiss to be epic ...life-changing ...world-altering—or as much of those things as a kiss on demand in front of thousands of people in the crowd and millions on TV could ever be.
