"Yeah."
"The press is going to go crazy. Sienna will probably lose her mind. It's going to be a circus."
"I know."
"And you're doing it anyway."
"I'm done hiding. Lucy deserves better than secrets." I hold his gaze. "She deserves everything."
Connor's quiet for a long moment. Then something in his expression softens. Not quite approval. But closer than it was.
He claps my shoulder. Less bruising than this morning. Almost friendly. "Don't screw this up out there."
"The game or the rest?"
"Both." A ghost of a smile crosses his face. "Good luck, man."
He starts to leave, then pauses. Looks back.
"For what it's worth? You make her happy. That counts for something."
Then he's gone and I'm left in the corridor with my pulse pounding and something warm expanding in my chest.
Not forgiveness. Not yet.
But the beginning of it.
The national anthem plays and my skates touch ice for the first time in three weeks. The crowd roars. Fifteen hundred people packed into a rink built for a thousand. Standing room only. Kids in hockey jerseys pressed against the glass. Banners for Pine Hollow Children's Hospital hanging from the rafters.
Lucy did this. Put this whole thing together. Called in favors and made spreadsheets and convinced an entire town to show up on a Tuesday afternoon three days before New Year's.
The game is a mix—four NHL players split between two teams of local players and alumni. Exhibition style, just for fun. The kind of game where everyone gets to play alongside pros and kids get to see their heroes up close.
I scan the crowd and find section C. There she is in that cream sweater, Emma beside her, both on their feet and cheering.
Lucy catches me looking and smiles. Waves. My chest goes tight.
The puck drops.
Charity games are supposed to be relaxed. Fun. Low stakes. But old habits die hard and within five minutes we're playing like it's game seven of the finals. Cade steals the puck and sends it up the boards. I catch it on my stick and feel my shoulder protest justslightly as I pull back for a pass. Not pain. Just awareness that I'm still healing.
I send it across to Alexei who buries it top corner. The crowd explodes.
I skate back to center ice and look up at the stands. Lucy is jumping, hands above her head, face split in the widest smile I've ever seen. Emma's laughing beside her. And a few rows back I spot Connor, not cheering but not scowling either.
Progress.
The first period blurs past. Back and forth. Nothing too rough. Just good hockey played by guys who love the game. Hayes gets a breakaway and dangles the goalie before sliding it five-hole. The crowd loves it. He skates past our bench and shoots me a grin.
"This is fun. You should retire here."
"Focus, Matthews."
"I am focused. Focused on that brunette in section B who keeps staring at me."
I glance over and spot Natalie. She's definitely looking at Hayes, though whether it's interest or disdain I can't tell from this distance.
"That's Lucy's best friend. Touch her and die."
