They never do.
With under five minutes left, Colby Nelson sneaks one past Barrett off a brutal rebound and suddenly it’s tied again. The air shifts and everyone is tense as overtime looms.
I skate back to position, my jaw clenched and my heart hammering.
This is it.
The puck drops in OT and it’s chaos, end to end.
Dex Foster tries to spring August Blackstone on a breakaway and I chase him down, diving just enough to lift his stick and knock the puck loose at the last second. My body slams into the boards and pain flares, but I’m already back up and skating.
Griffin sends it forward to Ledger, Ledger to Oliver, Oliver back to me as I join the rush.
I cross the blue line, fake a shot, and draw two defenders as I slide the puck to Ledger streaking down the slot.
He won’t miss.
He can’t miss.
Ledger snaps it home, the puck hitting the back of the net, and the arena explodes.
Game over.
I throw my arms up as my teammates swarm Ledger, sticks clattering, gloves flying. The roar is deafening, the kind that rattles your ribcage and makes everything else fade away.
As we circle back toward the bench, I look up one more time.
Harper is crying, Connor is screaming, and for the first time all night, the noise inside my head goes quiet.
Harper catches my gaze and taps her heart twice before tapping the glass in front of her.
Holy fuck.
She’s done it again.
Our signal.
Tap, tap…touch.
The signal she’s always given me to tell me she’s here and she’s got my back.
The signal that reminds me I’m not alone.
I give her the same signal, touching the space over my heart twice and tapping an invisible glass in front of me, knowing that whatever happens next, rumors, retirement talks, press storms…
This?
This life with Harper and Connor?
This is what I want more than anything.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
HARRISON
The crowd noise filters through the concrete walls, distant and muffled, but here it’s just the hum of fluorescent lights and the squeak of rubber soles on tile. I’ve got my suit jacket slung over my shoulder and my tie loose in my hand, my mind already half on the press briefing waiting for me down the hall.
It was a big win for us, but I know without a shadow of a doubt this presser will be all about my future.
