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“Thank you, Mr. Armstrong.” In public, on a night like tonight, I owe him the respect he deserves as team owner. But I add a wink, just for his benefit.
The mood is jubilant, rowdy. We’re going into the next series confident given our sweep and how much we outscored our opponent. I flop into a seat next to Alexsei and drop my gym bag on the floor. I loosen my tie a little and give Alexsei a fist bump.
“Good game, man,” I tell him.
“You too. Let’s do it again.”
I nod. “It’s not going to be as easy.” We don’t know who we’re playing yet, but the other two teams currently battling it out have better defense than Houston. “That ice was wide open tonight.”
We go over the game in detail, before Alexsei invites me to hang out with some of the other guys when we arrive back in Chicago.
“We’re not getting home until like two in the morning,” I say, shaking my head.
“So? What are you, forty?”
“I need to get home. Get some victory love from my girlfriend.” I grin.
It’s been a couple of weeks since we got back from Decatur. Clayton is out of the hospital and recovering at home under Lorraine’s watchful eye, with help from Michael’s sisters. Michael is going back down there again this weekend to check in. That night in the hospital, I was really worried about Michael. It also made me think about my own father, and how much he means to me. Then I’d thought about Nathan, being so damn young when he lost both of his parents. Made me more determined than ever to win over Dani’s parents.
It had definitely brought all of us closer, and things have been great at home.
“I never thought you’d be the settling down type,” Alexsei says.
I shrug. “I don’t know. I love being in a relationship.”
“How is that going? With all of you? I know you hit a rough patch there for a minute.”
“Really well now. I feel like we’ve all figured out our place with each other a little better. Dani is engaged to Michael and Nathan and I’m the boyfriend.” I know the reaction I’m going to get to that and I don’t care. We’re doing what works for all of us.
As predicted, Alexsei’s eyes bug out. “No shit? Damn. And everyone is cool with that? Areyoucool with that?”
Jack Hayes claps me on the shoulder as he makes his way down the aisle past us. “Good game, McNeill.”
I scored two goals and assisted in a third. Not a high-scoring game for me, but solid. It was a team effort tonight.
“Thanks, you too, man.”
Returning to the conversation with Alexsei, I nod. “I’m very cool with it. Dani wants a commitment from me, which she has. But marriage feels like a big step and I want to feel a hundred percent ready for it. I want to have that moment, you know, where youhaveto propose. When you can’t imaginenotproposing. It just doesn’t feel right yet. But I’m all in and she’s all in and I feel good knowing I don’t have to worry about her being lonely or that she’s not having all of her physical and emotional needs met at any given moment.”
“When you put it like that, it sounds like less work.” He shoots me a grin. “God knows you probably have some shortcomings.”
“Kiss my ass.” I say it lightly. I’m not offended. Because hell, it’s true. We all have shortcomings.
That’s why Cookie & Company works so damn well. Nathan brings the intensity, the dom vibe, the quick decision making. Michael is the rock, the mediator, the one who keeps us fed and on schedule. I bring the fun and keep things from getting boring.
“I’m the hot sauce,” I tell Alexsei. “I bring a little kick.”
He groans. “That’s so bad. But if you’re happy, I’m happy for you.”
“I am.” I’ve never been happier. “Just one more thing needed to make this year the best one of my life. Time to win a championship.”
With my girl, and Nathan and Michael cheering me on, it’s pretty much a fucking guarantee.
CHAPTER 31
Nathan
It’sa good day to be me. Some would argue every day is a good day to be a billionaire hockey team owner, but I’ve had my fair share of heartbreak. Losing my parents, my grandmother, watching my grandfather’s slow slide into dementia. Missing out on the ultimate sports goal—winning a championship—the last three years in a row.
