Hunter blinked at him, then looked at me. I stifled a laugh, shifting closer, resting my head lightly against his shoulder. His eyes met mine, dark and incredulous, and there was that flicker of disbelief I’d learned to read: he couldn’t quite believe we hadn’t been caught—or that they’d been onto us all along.
“You knew?” Hunter asked, voice low, a mixture of awe and mock indignation.
“Of course we did,” Mason said. “You’ve been subtle as a freight train. Seriously, man, we’ve been watching you tiptoe around her forweeks.”
“Plus, you’re a terrible liar,” Theo said, swatting him with a towel damp with sweat.
Hunter’s lips pressed into a line, the faintest twitch of a smirk forming. “Tiptoe, huh? That sounds… accurate.”
I laughed softly, moving my hand to rest over his. The warmth of our touch grounded the tension, threading something steady through the chaos of the room. Hunter’s fingers tightened around mine for a moment, and I felt that low hum of shared satisfaction, the relief of finally being recognized, not just by each other, but by those who mattered around us.
“I can’t believe you knew and didn’t say anything,” he said to Theo.
“You were like a kid sneaking cookies,” Mason laughed, and the others joined in.
Hunter leaned back slightly, still holding my hand, letting the room’s teasing wash over him without dampening the closeness we’d fought so long to claim. “I owe you guys an apology,” he said quietly, turning fully toward Grayson and Mason. “For keeping my mouth shut about us. I… I should’ve told you. I thought I was doing the right thing.”
Grayson shrugged, tossing his towel onto the bench. “You thought wrong. But honestly, it’s not a big deal. You’re still the same guy, and now we get to rag you even more.”
Mason laughed, clapping him on the shoulder. “Yeah, the big secret’s out. Don’t worry about it. We’ve seen the two of you together long enough to know it’s solid. No surprises there.”
Hunter’s eyes found mine again, and I leaned a little closer, pressing my forehead against his shoulder. I could feel the way his body finally eased just a fraction, the tension in his jaw softening. I traced lazy circles with my thumb over the back of his hand, letting the warmth of that small touch stretch between us.
“You know,” I murmured, voice low enough that only he could hear, “I kind of liked being your secret.”
His head tilted toward mine, a playful spark lighting his gaze. “It had its perks. But this is kinda cool too.”
We lingered like that for a long moment, letting the teasing from the guys fade into the background. The room wasn’t silent, but it felt like it was ours, the rest of the world muted by the proximity of each other, by the quiet understanding we had built across countless challenges, conflicts, and stolen moments.
Hunter tilted his head down toward me, lips brushing my temple in a soft, featherlight kiss that sent a shiver down my spine. I leaned into him, sighing softly. “Don’t get too comfortable,” I whispered, lips barely moving. “We still have to survive off-season before next year’s chaos begins.”
“I can survive anything with you around,” he murmured back, voice low and warm, curling around me like a protective blanket.
I snuggled closer, feeling the steady beat of his chest beneath my cheek. There was no grand declaration, no dramatic flare. Just the quiet, unshakable rhythm of us, of all the work and risk and risked hearts finally settling into something tangible.
Hunter’s hand found the back of my neck, fingers threading through my hair. “I… I don’t know why I worried so much about telling anyone. Seems obvious now.”
I leaned up, brushing my lips against his, soft and lingering. “Obvious to us, yes. But the rest of the world…” My words trailed, caught up in the comfort of being this close, being held.
Across the room, Mason called out with that lazy grin of his. “Hey, Holly! You still okay being seen with someone who’s such a terrible liar?”
The room erupted with laughter. Grayson tossing a towel at him, someone banging a stick against a locker for effect. Hunter groaned under his breath, but I could see the faint pink creeping up his neck, and it made me smile.
I slid my arms around his waist, nestling closer until my head rested against his chest. “Works perfectly for me,” I murmured.
Epilogue
Hunter
Almost One Year Later
The grill was quiet now, the smell of charred peppers and smoky burgers fading into the afternoon haze. The clatter of plates and laughter of my family had dimmed as they headed toward the car, waving goodbye. Holly and I lingered on the porch, the sun warming our shoulders, the hum of cicadas filling the spaces between our words.
I reached for her hand, lacing our fingers together like it was second nature. “You know,” I said, keeping my voice low, almost reverent, “I don’t think I’ve ever really thanked you.”
She tilted her head, eyebrows rising. “For what? I fix broken hockey players all the time,” she teased, but her smile softened under the weight of what I meant.
“For everything,” I said, letting my grip tighten slightly, feeling the heat of her palm through mine. “Not just the PR stuff, or the media. You fixed my head, my family, me. You made me… whole. And I’ve spent a long time not being that.”
