“She’d better not distract him from the game.”
This feels like a dream come true mixed with my worst nightmare, but I’m doing my best to tune out all the noise while I focus on Grant. He’s still there, watching me, and even with the mask and the glass between us, I can feel the intensity of his stare.
April bounces beside me, waving enthusiastically. “Hi, Grant! Good luck out there!”
He raises his glove to wave, then skates backward, his eyes never leaving mine until he has to turn and head back to his net.
I finally glance over at the rest of the team on the ice and catch several of the guys looking our way. Theo is nudging Reese,who is grinning from ear to ear. Noah skates past with a thumbs-up for me, then says something to Grant that makes him shake his head.
Sawyer taps his stick against Grant’s pads as he passes, clearly ribbing him about something.
Grant ignores all of them. He takes his position in the net and goes through his pre-game ritual—tapping his stick against the right post three times before adjusting his mask and settling into his stance.
But just before the puck drops, he glances back at me one more time.
I can feel all the attention on me now, and there’s no stopping the heat that’s creeping up my neck and spreading across my cheeks. People are definitely staring. Definitely whispering. Some of them are outright pointing at me, but that’s fine.
There’s no more hiding now. No more pretending this is just casual or temporary or anything less than what it really is.
Grant Parker just claimed me in front of thousands of people, and I’ve never been happier.
April tugs on my sleeve. “Mom, your face is really red.”
“I know, sweetheart.”
“But you’re smiling really big.”
“I know that too.”
She grins and settles back in her seat as the puck drops. “This is so cool.”
And yeah, it really is.
Chapter 38
Grant
The locker room is louder than normal, and the guys are all hyped up after our win. We dominated the third period, and I stopped twenty-eight of twenty-nine shots. It’s been a hell of a night, even by my own high standards.
I strip off my jersey and pads while everyone around me is in full celebration mode. There are a dozen conversations happening at once—rehashing every play, arguing about whose assist was better, and planning where everyone is going after they shower.
“So.” Theo’s voice cuts through the noise as he drops onto the bench beside me. “Parker’s got a girlfriend.”
The guys closest to us go quiet, but I don’t look up from unlacing my skates. “Yeah.”
“And you’ve been keeping her a secret this whole time?”
Sawyer walks over and slaps me on the back hard enough that I nearly tumble forward. “Yeah, Parker, what the hell? How the hell did you even pull that off? We see you every day.”
“I’m good at keeping things to myself.”
“No shit,” Reese snorts, shaking his head. “The stone-cold goalie actually has a soft spot. I never thought I’d see the day.”
I don’t consider my relationship with Heather to be a soft spot at all, but that’s not the hill I want to die on tonight.
“I knew something was up,” Noah says from across the room. He’s grinning from ear to ear like he really knew anything about the situation. “You’ve been different lately. Less robot, more human.”
I grimace because this is obviously going to be a whole ordeal until everyone has had a chance to get their digs in. “Keep in mind I can still make your life hell in practice.”
