“The fuck? That’s high sticking. Jesus. Is this ref fucking blind?”
Sutton side-eyes Casey. I learned very quickly tonight that she made the wise decision not to bring her swear jar with her; she figured it would probably be too heavy to carry around after the first ten minutes. It seems she was very right. She’s totallytaking note, though. I think Casey may have to stop at the ATM on the way home to cover her debts.
We’re five minutes into the third period, and we’re down by one.
It’s not the start to the season the Vipers were hoping for, but that doesn’t mean they’re losing focus, despite the questionable calls the ref is making.
I may still be a hockey novice, but even I can see more than he can.
“Hey, ref, are you pregnant? You’ve missed two periods.”
I shake my head. I’d forgotten this side of my best friend I discovered earlier in the year. I thought she was so sweet and innocent. Okay, no. That’s a lie. I just didn’t know she was capable of throwing this level of abuse at a stranger.
“Finally. What do you know? He’s not fucking blind,” Casey cries when one of the other team’s wingers is sent to the penalty box, giving us a chance to even the score.
“This is it,” Sienna says, grabbing my arm. “They’re gonna do it. I can feel it.”
“That’s the beer,” I deadpan, earning myself a glare.
Fletch, our captain, wins the faceoff, but no sooner has he shot the puck toward Kodie than he’s taken out by an opposing D man.
The play continues as Kodie quickly scrambles to his feet, but it’s too late; the puck is heading toward Cole. Everett and Calvin are there, ready to intercept and protect their goalie.
My heart is in my throat as Everett dives forward.
“Yes,” I squeal when he wins it and races down the ice.
With only one defenseman to contend with, he has a clear shot on goal.
“Oh God, is he gonna—” I thought he was joking when he said he was going to score a goal for me.
He pulls his stick back, and I swear the arena goes silent for a split second. Then all hell breaks loose.
“He did it. Oh my god, he did it.”
“Of course he did it. He’s Everett Donnelly,” Casey says, as confident as you like.
The rest of the team piles on Everett, celebrating his goal. But it’s over quickly because time is ticking and they’ve got a game to win.
But before the game can continue, Everett comes racing toward us, his eyes locked on me.
“Oh shit.”
He clatters the board before he bellows, “That was for you, baby,” at the top of his lungs. “Let’s start this season as we mean to go on.”
My body burns with what I swear is the attention of the entire arena on me.
I’m sure, if they’ve seen any hockey news over the last few weeks, then they know who I am. My sudden appearance in Everett’s life, our pregnancy, and then our engagement announcement have been everywhere.
Casey warned me about tonight, that people would be almost as interested in me as they are him, but I don’t think anything could have prepared me for this.
“Look,” Sutton shouts, pointing up to the ceiling.
I swallow thickly and look toward the massive LED screen hanging above. And just like I feared, there is my face with Everett’s and a big red love heart surrounding us.
“Too late to change your mind now, baby. You’re already wearing my ring.”
The second I look back down and find his eyes, it’s like everything around me vanishes and it’s just the two of us in the living room, watching a game on TV.
