“Mhmm,” Sasha confirmed, practically bouncing. “So how long?”
Murphy didn’t hesitate. “Since the gala.”
“What?!” Sasha yelped way too loudly.
The sound carried down the hall, because a second later the door creaked open again, and Conner leaned in. “What’s going on in here?”
Hillary froze, bracing for the panic. For this to blow up.
But Murphy just turned toward his teammate, still grinning. “Hillary and I. We’re together.”
Conner blinked. Once. Twice. His eyes cut from Murphy to Hillary and back again.
“You’re serious?” he asked, voice edged with disbelief.
“Dead serious,” Murphy said, still grinning like he’d just scored a game-winner.
Connor’s expression shifted—confusion first, then something softer. Supportive. “Well… okay then,” he said slowly, like he was sorting through it in real time. “I mean, it’s surprising, but you’re both adults. And if it makes you happy, that’s all that matters.”
Sasha practically squealed, clapping her hands together. “See? I knew it! Iknewit!” She was practically vibrating with glee. “This issomuch better than any scandal headline.”
Conner chuckled, shaking his head. “Yeah, well, let’s keep it that way.”
“Deal,” Hillary managed, her cheeks warm.
Sasha looped her arm through Conner’s, already tugging him toward the door. “Come on, I think we just became the first official keepers of this secret.”
“Uh, yeah,” Connor muttered, still looking a little dazed but not upset. “Guess we did.”
The door shut behind them, leaving Hillary and Murphy alone in the sudden quiet.
Murphy turned to her, his grin softening into something warmer. “Told you it’d be okay.”
And for once, she didn’t feel panic rising in her chest. She felt safe.
The door shut behind Sasha and Conner, leaving the office quiet except for the faint hum of the building around them. Hillary let out a shaky exhale, shoulders slumping.
Murphy leaned against the edge of her desk, arms crossed, grin stretching across his face. “So,” he drawled, tilting his head, “how do you feel? Survived your first confession?”
She gave him a look, somewhere between exasperated and fond. “It was harder than you think.”
“Oh, I know.” His grin only widened. “But you did it.” He straightened, taking a step closer, the playful spark in his eyes softening. “And I’m proud of you.”
Before she could reply, he dipped down, capturing her lips in a kiss that was slow but full of promise. Hillary melted into it, the tension in her chest finally loosening as his mouth lingered against hers.
When they pulled apart, his forehead rested against hers, and he whispered, still smiling, “See? Not so bad.”
And for the first time, she believed him.
Murphy tugged open her desk drawer like he’d done it a hundred times before, pulled out one of the protein bars she kept stashed there, and plopped down in the chair across from her desk. He tore the wrapper with his teeth, chewed, then leaned back like he had all the time in the world, even though she knew he probably had five minutes before he needed to be on the ice.
“I just got off the phone with my mom,” he said around a swallow. “Patrick still hasn’t been released from the hospital.”
Hillary froze, her pen pausing halfway to a note she hadn’t been writing anyway.
Murphy shrugged, trying for casual, but his foot bounced restlessly under the desk. “Mom says everything’s fine. They’re just being cautious. He’s doing better, but . . . ” His voice trailed off, and for the first time, she saw it. There was worry underneath that steady smile he always wore.
He rubbed a hand across the back of his neck, sighing. “I don’t know. I just thought he’d be home by now. I hate not being there.”
