Nothing phases me. I’m on cloud nine. “You have just as much on the line as I do.”
“I need to win this game for my wife and my kids,” Grace agrees.
“And I need to win this game for my girlfriend, who fucking loves me.”
Romero laughs. “Dude, you are a sappy fucker.”
I turn to find him videoing me.
“No cameras in the locker room.” I lunge for him.
“You’ll thank me when we play this at your wedding.” Romero tosses his phone to Ryker.
“You know what, you’re right.” I shrug out of my button-down and hang it in my cubby.
“It’s been a long time coming,” Palaniappa says. “Shilpa has been waiting for this for nearly four years.”
“Tally was only a first year.”
“Yeah, but she was already tuning into your vibe. You just took a while to catch up with her,” Bright says.
We suit up and I take the ribbing good-naturedly. Tally loves me and I love Tally and the future looks fucking amazing. A win tonight will set the tone for this series. I’m just grateful we’re not up against New York this round.
The arena is humming with excitement as we take the ice forwarm-ups. I spot Tally in the box with the rest of her friends. It doesn’t matter that the world is watching. That there will be articles about it tomorrow that have nothing to do with the game. I drop my gloves and make a heart with my hands. Tally laughs and mirrors the action.
“Seriously, man, this is beautiful,” Palaniappa calls as he passes.
I toss her a wink and focus on the warm-up.
“It’s different, eh?” Stiles says as we stretch our inner thighs.
“Having someone to play for?” I clarify.
“Yeah. It changes things. You’re not just playing for you anymore, or your team, or whatever the arbitrary goal is. You have someone rooting for you and you want to make them proud,” he says. “I play for me, but I play harder for Bea. I want her to be proud of my game. The stakes go up with every person you add to your life, right? I want to make my dad proud, I want to be a role model for my brothers, especially Brody, who will be one of us next year, and eventually, I’ll want to make my kids proud.”
“It’s big, isn’t it?”
“Yeah. But it’s not pressure in the way we’re used to. It’s like we’re living inside the best version of ourselves.” He claps me on the shoulder. “You’re going to make her real proud tonight, man. I know it.”
The buzzer sounds and we move to the bench. I take my childhood best friend’s speech to heart. He’s right about all of it. I want to win this game for my team, for myself, my family, for Dred who’s married to the sandwich fucker, but mostly I want to win to make my girlfriend proud.
I carry that energy into the game. It’s contagious. We’re on fire during the first period. Romero is killing it on defense, so are Palaniappa and Grace. Ryker is protecting the net like he was born to do, and the offensive line is tight and strong. We havedecades of experience between us, years on the ice together, and we’re all playing with the same grit and determination.
I score a goal five minutes in and then Stiles jumps in with one of his own. We keep the lead all through the first period. In the second, Boston gets on the board with a goal, but Grace and Romero push the defensive line and help Ryker keep the puck out of our net. Bright manages a sweet goal off a rebound at the end of the second period.
We start the third with another goal, Stiles the assist and Grace with the point. And then we crush Boston, adding two more goals, giving us the win 6-1. It sets us up for an intense start to the series. They’ll need to work hard to keep a positive headspace with such a rough loss in game one.
We’re all pumped on adrenalin as the sportscasters come at us with questions.
“Madden, you’ve had a tumultuous season, but this was arguably the best game of your career. What do you attribute your stellar game play to?”
“My girlfriend is my inspiration. She’s had to deal with a lot this season and I’m grateful for her unwavering support. And the support of my team. We’re in this together, and I think tonight we showed the hockey-watching nation that we have each other’s backs. But honestly, every goal I scored tonight was for Tallulah. She’s incredible and I’m lucky to love her.”
“That’s a bold statement. How do you think your teammates feel, knowing you prioritize your girlfriend over your job?”
“Feel free to ask them, but I’m pretty sure you’ll get the same response as me. You said it yourself. I’m playing the best hockey of my career. I’m also the most settled I’ve ever been, and I have a person in my life I can rely on and who relies on me. Love makes it easier to thrive. And Tallulah, well she has my whole heart.”
CHAPTER 62
