But her eyes…they tell me she both understands exactly how much it means to me to have Blake here…and how much it hurts that my parents aren’t.
I hold out my hand.
She says something to Adrian and he runs up to Blake, the two exchanging a complicated handshake I’d have no hope of replicating.
Then she’s at my side.
“Good surprise?”
I touch her cheek, press my lips to hers. “The best surprise.”
Her eyes warm…before compassion creeps in. “I’m sorry?—”
“Don’t,” I say. “I don’t want to think about the sad stuff. Not when I have so many good things to focus on.”
“I love you.”
“See?” I take her hand, draw her forward. “That’s one of the best things.”
She’s smiling as the lights come up and it’s fucking beautiful. So fucking beautiful I’m glad the marketing team is filming and taking pictures. Because I’m going to need a big ass copy of that picture for my wall. Especially since?—
“Glad you finally convinced her to be your girlfriend, bro!” Blake calls.
Especially since that smile turns into laughter at my brother’s razzing.
More flashes.
More pictures with all of us.
Then Adrian is holding the puck for the ceremonial drop.
The crowd cheers when he lets it fall to the ice and his smile touches me almost as deeply as Blake’s, as Kylie’s.
“Where are you sitting, starfire?” I ask as I walk her off the ice.
She nods to the opposite corner of the rink, and I spy the cluster of open seats and empty space where my brother will have plenty of room for his oxygen and his chair. “So Blake, Adrian, and I can keep an eye on you.”
So I can see them.
So I can know they’re with me.
“Colt?” she says just before she heads down the hall.
“Yeah, baby?”
A wicked grin. “The jersey.” A beat. “And nothing else.”
Her hair flows like a cape behind her as she turns and follows Blake and the others, leaving me with a hard-on again…
And the knowledge that tonight is going to be the best of my life.
Thirty-Nine
Ky
Even though Sara had to get on a flight back home (she works tomorrow evening), I managed to arrange for Blake to stay a few days here at Colt’s house, to spend some quality time with his brother considering how infrequently they’re able to get together in person.
I did not count on the power of the jersey.
