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Country sucked in ragged breaths between the second and third period. Stiff Sticks had shown up to play today, and he was feeling his lack of sleep from the past two nights. He’d slept like the Alberta wind, always shifting and changing direction, never resting even when it pretended to.
The chasm between him and Jenna was eating at him like termites on an old stump. The fact that they were losing money on the ranch with each day that passed bit at his heels. Hockey had always been his safe place, but even suiting up wasn’t doing it for him tonight.
“Hey, Country.” Curtis pointed his mitt to the south side of the arena, and Country turned. His stomach swooped like he’d just gone over the crest of a roller coaster. “Did you know she was coming?”
He shook his head.
“I did.” Sean grunted. “Jenna and I are like this.” He held up his glove in front of their faces, and Ryan barked a laugh.
“Doesn’t work with gloves, bud.”
Sean kept his hand in the air as he skated to centre ice.
“Was that a flex?” Curtis tucked his water bottle under the bench. “Pretty sure Sean just insinuated he’s closer to Jenna than you are.”
“He’s not wrong,” Country muttered. He glanced back up and watched Jenna find a place on the top bench where her cameraman could set up. Someone else was with her—not Chris from Sunday.
“Get out there, Maddox!” Sean gave him a brotherly shove off the boards.
As soon as the puck dropped, Stiff Sticks pressed hard, their attacks becoming more desperate as the final minutes ticked down. Understandably. They were tied two to two and neither team wanted to end with a draw.
Country intercepted a pass near their goal and maneuvered the puck back toward the neutral zone. He passed to Sean who sidestepped their defence and relayed the puck to Jack. Jack made a break for the net but never got the shot off.
A few moments later, Darcy snatched the puck in their defensive end, sending it wide to Suraj, who found Country up the line. Another opportunity. Another missed shot. The seconds ticked down, and as the final buzzer sounded, all Country felt was relief. His head wasn’t in it tonight. He hadn’t been on point all week.
He lined up and tapped gloves with Stiff Sticks, but it took him all of thirty seconds before his head swivelled back to that seat at the top of the stands. Jenna was still there. Standing in a swirl of fans moving up the aisle and out the doors to the foyer.
Country rounded the end of the line and bolted for the bench, then grabbed his water bottle and jogged into the tunnel. He was the first one to hit the showers and resisted the urge to soak in the hot water after peeling off his sweat-soaked base layer.
“In a rush, there, eh bud?” Curtis grinned as he threw his gear onto the bench.
“I’m old. It’s past my bedtime.”
“You don’t get to play that card when I’m the one with four kids keeping me up at night.”
Fair. Country rinsed his hair and walked through the curtain of steam to grab his towel.
“Might want to use a hairdryer. Get pretty first,” Ryan teased.
Country pulled his boxers on. “You’re pretty enough for the both of us.” He shoved his damp legs into his jeans, yanked his shirt over his head, then shoved his pads and gear into his bag. “Nice W tonight, boys.”
He waved and threw his coat over his arm, grabbed his bag, and pushed out into the hall. Country only made two wrong turns before finding his way back up to the fan entrance and striding into the mostly empty stands. He scoured the area where Jenna had been standing moments before but couldn’t find her blonde hair.
He turned and walked out into the foyer, scanning the groups standing around and chatting. Nothing. He was half tempted to run like a lunatic out to the parking lot but knew it was probably futile. Jenna was gone. And he wasn’t going to have reason to see her again until after Christmas, which was three weeks away.
He blew out a breath and turned back to the vending machines. He’d invited her to Sunday Supper, then Ryan had gotten her out to a game, and he still couldn’t lock this down. Maybe he needed to take the hint.
Country set his bag down and scanned the options behind the glass. He typed E3 for a Coke, and when the mechanism stuck, suspending the bottle between the prongs and the shelf, he wasn’t even surprised.
Chapter Seventeen
Jenna sat in her car with the engine idling and scrolled through her string of twenty-five text messages.
Melissa.
Curtis is hosting a bonfire tonight. He invited us to come. Anyone game?
