“Yeah, and she’s right over there if you want to take it up with her.” I nodded to the other side of the rink where Cammie was talking to her coach. She looked like she was apologizing for being late. I wasn’t sure I’d ever seen her say sorry to anyone for anything. Her coach might just be the one person Cammie respected, perhaps even liked.
“That’s your sister?” Mackenzie was looking between us like she was trying to spot the family resemblance. It can’t have been hard. My siblings and I all had dark hair and the same blue eyes as our dad. I supposed Cammie had taken after Momin the height department, though she more than made up for her short stature with a big attitude.
“Yep, that’s Cammie.”
“She looks too nice to be related to you.”
“Ha!” I spluttered and shook my head. “Out of me and Cammie, I’mdefinitelythe nice one.”
“Yeah, right.”
“I am. Although you might disagree with me after we start training together.”
“Weren’t you listening? I disagree with younow.”
“All I heard was you stalling. We’ve got work to do. Start with five hard laps. No coasting.”
I steeled myself for another cutting comeback or, worse, for her to launch her stick at me and storm off. But to my surprise, she set off, skating hard as she made her way around the perimeter of the rink.
I could have joined her, but I was still waking up. I’d never been a morning person, plus I was still a little sore from the game. My ego wasn’t the only thing that suffered. I’d taken a couple of hard hits from the Sharks’ defensemen, and I probably should have spent Saturday night in a freezing ice bath instead of going out.
Mackenzie finished her laps without complaint before she started stretching in front of the net. I’d been thinking a lot about how I could help her improve, and I’d picked out a couple of problem areas. Fitness was an obvious one. She’d been exhausted by the end of the first period, and we’d need to build up her stamina over the next few weeks. But there was one issue in particular I wanted to work on today.
“Okay” I skated over to her. “We’re going to work on cleaning up your rebounds. You stopped most shots no problem against the Sharks, but you didn’t clear the puck well enough. That’s why our toothless friend scored his first goal on Saturday.”
I was being brutally honest, and I expected to see Mackenzie glaring at me through her helmet. She wasn’t exactly the kind of girl who liked being told what to do. Especially not by me. But I was surprised to find her listening intently, so I powered on.
“Don’t just stop the puck; control it and redirect it away from the slot.”
Again, I was shocked when she didn’t tell me to go to hell and nodded instead. “Okay, let’s try it.”
She continued to surprise me as the session went on. She was intently focused on clearing the puck after each save and, before long, Mackenzie was effectively using her stick to push the puck away from the net before instantly readying herself to face the next shot. She was a fast learner. Either that, or I was a miracle worker. Probably the latter.
This might have been the longest period of time we’d ever spent in each other’s presence without an argument breaking out or tension boiling over. It didn’t feel right. It wasn’t us.
It also wasn’t very reflective of how intense the game against the Sharks was. Mackenzie wasn’t used to the emotional rollercoaster of anxiety, frustration and adrenaline that flowed through you during a chaotic battle on the ice. But those things were hard to replicate during an early morning practice. The roar of the crowd, the proximity of other players, the snarkycomments from opposing forwards.
An idea sparked in my mind, and I fought to withhold a smirk. Maybe there was one thing about the game I could replicate after all. God, she was going to kill me.
After the next save Mackenzie made, I swooped in to pounce on the rebound and scored before she could stop me.
“That was sloppy,” I said. “I know pretty girls think they can get away with anything, but you’re notthatpretty.”
“What did you say?!” Her glare was back as she shot to her feet. Oh, how I’d missed it.
“I said you’re pretty, but notsopretty I’m going to pass up an opportunity to score such an easy rebound.”
“Don’t talk to me like that.”
“It’s okay, you make up for it in other areas.” I paused, bracing myself for the lasers she was about to shoot my way. “Like your ass. Have I ever told you how great it looks? Even in your goalie gear.”
She stiffened, and I could almost hear her teeth clenching from where I hovered at a safe distance.
“Yep, that thing is the stuff of legend,” I said as I gathered the puck again. She was stunned into silence and stood frozen in the net, so when I took my shot, it sailed right past her. “It’s the kind of ass that break hearts and ruins men’s lives.”
“Talk like that again and I’ll ruinyourlife.”
I grinned. I think I preferred this Mackenzie to the one who nodded and followed instructions. She looked like she wanted to murder me, and the way she scowled daggers in my direction made my whole body light up. It was like Christmas, if your tree was on fire and you were a pyromaniac.
