“I didn’t know if we’d see you again,” she says as I march past her toward the coat closet in the front hallway.
I pass Mama and Celie on my way through the kitchen. Mama’s having a cup of tea at the table. Celie jumps up and grabs her coat off the chair as soon as she sees me.
“The lady’s ready.” Celie reaches out and ruffles my hair.
My hair I just spent twenty minutes working on.
I swat at her hand. “I’d kick you if I wasn’t going to be wearing a hat, anyway.”
I kiss my mother on the cheek. “I’ll see you later, Mama. Don’t wait up.”
Mama pulls her housedress more snugly around herself and smiles at me. “Don’t listen to your sisters, Savannah. It’s healthy for a woman to take her time. You can’t rush these things.”
“I don’t think there’s any danger of rushing, Mama,” Celie says. “Not with Savannah at the helm. This is the first brush with real romance she’s ever had in her life.”
While Mama chastises Celie for her teasing, I go put on my coat.
* * *
As the three of us walk into the rink, I say hello to Lenny as he works the ticket line. He nods at us and I lead Molly and Celie around the rink to center ice, just to the right of the players’ bench.
I take a look around from this vantage point, loving that I can see the entire rink. I chose these seats years ago as one of the perks of the job, and after years of sitting on the cramped team bench next to my father or running the scoreboard, I fell in love with them.
Celie squeals and grabs my arm. “Cam’s on the ice!”
I laugh. “I see him, Cel.”
Warm-ups have just started, and Cam skates toward the goal. He flips the puck easily into the net and as he turns in our direction, he waves.
Celie and Molly both wave back enthusiastically.
“This is so cool,” Celie says. “I always hated going to these games. Now we have a star to follow.”
I glance around at the crowd. Cam’s dad is a few rows away. He can’t possibly see me from this angle, so I look all I want to. His expression is constantly set in a frown. He’s so the opposite of Cam, who always looks like he’s trying not to grin.
As soon as the game starts, I forget about Cam’s dad or any anxiety I have about my date with Cam afterward. I scream and shout as Cam breaks free of two defensemen and scores the winning goal.
He turns toward me as the buzzer sounds, his stick high in the air. He pumps a fist in my direction and then pulls off his helmet. His dark hair is plastered to his head, and his cheeks are red from the cold. He’s got a cut on his chin from when he got into a fight for the puck up against the boards.
And I want him so much.
Like he knows what I’m thinking, he drags his team jersey up and over his head, leaving him in shoulder pads and a t-shirt. His arm muscles ripple through his shirt.
“What did I tell you?!” he calls to me with a grin. “Three more wins and we’re in the playoffs!”
“Okay, I know I’m married, but that man is hotter than sin.” Celie hugs me. “And I can’t believe how well the Cannons are doing! I’m sure you’ll make the playoffs this year.”
I tell my sisters they can go home, but they insist on staying with me while Cam showers. So the three of us stand outside the locker room and wait. Celie gets bored and convinces me to join her in a cartwheel contest across the middle of the empty hallway while Molly plays judge.
“Vannah did six in a row, and you only got four, Cel,” Molly says firmly as Celie protests.
But I’m still going, and as I stand up from my seventh cartwheel, I come face to face with a grinning Cam. My hat’s fallen off my head, which shows off what a mess my hair truly is, and I’m sure my face is flushed from being upside-down.
Cam’s bright eyes meet mine. “Hey, Savannah.”
I quickly grab my hat off the floor and pull it over my head as fast as I can. “Hey. I didn’t see you come out.”
“Doesn’t the rubber floor hurt your hands?” His hair’s damp from the shower, and he smells so good. He’s wearing those blue jeans of his I love and a brown winter coat with matching gloves.
