Alondra sees me and her smile is . . . radiant. Absolutelyradiant.
Then she’s darting toward me.
I brace myself for impact as she throws herself into my arms. “Jack, you were fucking incredible out there,” she says, and the praise means everything coming from her. I wrap my arms tight around her, taking in a deep breath of her strawberry shampoo.
“Thanks for coming,” I say, trying to mask the unexpected emotion bleeding into my voice. I know what it means for Al to come to games, knowing her dad is coaching, but she came anyway.
“Good game, pretty boy,” Al teases, unraveling herself from me, so my momma can hug me too.
“You were amazing,” she says, and I close my eyes, leaning into her embrace. Momma feels like home.
I’m overwhelmed from feeling so many different emotions right now, I struggle to speak for a few moments. “I love you,” I finally say, and Momma squeezes tighter.
“I’m so proud of you.”
“Momma S!” Dylan exclaims behind me, and I’m reluctant to let go, but I do.
“You had a great game,” she says, patting him on the cheek before hugging him next.
Ellie gives me a brief hug before disappearing to find her brother, and I drape my arm across Al’s shoulders. “So you had fun?” I ask her, whispering as I twist a curl around my finger. I’ve spent too much time thinking about how I wrapped them around my whole hand to kiss her neck.
“I did,” Al admits, sighing dramatically.
“You’re wearing my jersey,” I point out, trying not to sound too happy about it, especially when I’m probably pushing my luck.
She doesn’t get a chance to respond before Shane approaches, clapping a hand on my back, and I try not to feel sad when Alondra twists out from under my arm.
Al glances around, and I realize she’s probably trying to see if her dad has spotted her. For a moment, I forgot Coach Brown is her dad. I’ve been so careful to separate church and state. Hockey is church and Al is my state. It’s kind of confusing, but it makes sense to me.
“Are you coming to Twin City?” Shane asks, a grin on his face, distracting me. “Hi, Momma Schultz. You picked a good game to see.”
“Good to see you, Shane. It was a great game to be at,” Momma agrees, giving him a warm smile.
I can’t think of anywhere I’d want to be less tonight than in a crowded bar with hockey players celebrating a big win. Normally, we’d have a Saturday game, but this weekend we only had a Friday night game, so I’m sure they’re going to be insane. “Sorry, I’m taking Momma out for dinner.”
“What about you, Jones?”
“Are Coop and Nate going?”
Shane laughs, running his fingers through his dark flow of hair still damp from showering. “They’re both coming, but Coop only said yes after Ellie did. He figured Jack wouldn’t be going out tonight, so someone needs to babysit everyone.”
Momma turns toward me, and I know what she’s going to say before she says it. “You should go out with your friends. It’s getting late anyway, and I could go back to the hotel.”
“Hel—heck no, I want to celebrate with you,” I say, managing to catch myself just in time, but she still lifts an eyebrow at my close call.
“We see Jack too much, please, go with him. Give us a break,” Dylan adds, and I roll my eyes, but at least this is better than our conversation this morning.
“And he tried to tell you I was being mean to him. Momma, do you see what I have to deal with?” I ask, but I can’t even fight the smile on my face because I’m just so damn glad she’s here.
She’s too busy talking to Al to hear me. “—coming too, right?” Momma asks, and Al’s cheeks flush as she twists a curl. I wonder if she knows how much it distracts me when she does it.
“I really don’t want to impose. Jack’s been so excited to see you, and I don’t want to take any time away from you,” Al says, glancing at me. Does she want to go to the bars with everyone else?
“Don’t do anything stupid tonight,” I say, and Shane chuckles, pulling Dylan with him.
“No promises, Captain,” he says, saluting me before they walk away.
“Jack, will you please tell Alondra she’s welcome to come to dinner with us?” Momma asks, and my smile widens. I knew she’d love Al once she met her.
