Niko had an opening, and he could have taken the shot and scored them another goal, but he didn’t. August knew what was coming when Dax caught the puck and looked in his direction. They had practiced this shot early that morning, so Dax knew what August was asking for when he dropped to his knee.
The puck shot across the open space, and August slapped it toward the net so hard he felt his hands vibrate from the force. It hit the top corner of the net, and the goal light flashed.
August stood and threw his arms open as his teammates tackled him and knocked him against the boards. The goal wasn’t special, but it was the start of something for August, and everyone on the team understood its importance.
“You are so back, Gusty!” Dax tugged him down and kissed August’s sweaty cheek, adding gross slobber in the mix.
“I fucking love you, man,” Niko said as he clapped August on the back and pushed him toward the bench to celebrate with the rest of the guys.
August skated over to them and bumped gloves down the line, not missing thesmileCoach Fedorov gave him as he left to quickly tap fists with Nollan in the net.
When he was back on the bench, August turned around and locked eyes with Quinn while he took a drink, raising an eyebrow at him expectantly. There was too much chaos, noise and thick glass separating them to hear what Quinn was saying, but August could read lips just fine.
“Good boy.”
Fuck, who needed smelling salts or encouragement when praise like that could take him all the way to the cup?
And Augustwouldbring the cup home this year. He would do it for Eren. He would do it for his team. And most importantly, he would do it for himself because he felt like he had something to prove now that he knew who he was.
“Let’s get another one next shift,” said Niko.
August took a swig from his bottle and slammed it back into the cup holder. “You got it, Cap.”
Chapter 41
Quinn
“Perry is going away for life.”
The words sank into the pit of Quinn’s stomach, heavy and painful with both relief and anger.
His lawyer, Kenneth West, was the best lawyer money could buy, and he was damn good at his job. If he was telling Quinn that Perry would be in jail for the rest of his life, then he believed him.
“Once you handed me those pictures and tapes with his voice giving orders off camera, I knew it was over,” Kenneth continued, frowning grimly at the papers on the desktop. “Mr. Snow was not the only victim, as we suspected. When the investigators gave Mrs. Snow a search warrant and tore the attic apart, they found more than enough proof to convict him of multiple crimes, and there’s no way for him to wiggle out of the charges. He’s done.”
Quinn nodded and thrummed his fingers on the glossy table. He was having this meeting in Kenneth’s office because he had to be downtown for his date with August, but he wasn’t sure how hungry he would be after he left.
“What about her and all the other church members August talked about?” Quinn asked. “Was thereanythingthat could lead to more charges on the tapes?”
Kenneth closed the folder and leaned in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest. “Perry was the only one on the tapes that we know of. The rest are still being looked at, but it seems like he was the one who did most of thehard workwhile the others paid for it. The church is being investigated as well, so if there’s anything hidden, I will find it. I won’t rest until those disgusting monsters see justice, Quinn. Leave the hard stuff to me, and you focus on Mr. Snow.”
The slow process was killing him, but it meant that the detectives were being thorough, and that was good news.
“Call him August, please,” said Quinn. “I have to convince him to change his last name so he’s not associated with his failure of a mother, too.”
Kenneth smirked, and Quinn wasn’t blind to how gorgeous the dark-haired, blue-eyed, dangerous-looking man was. He appeared so prim and proper until he rolled up his sleeves in court to show off his tattooed arms, and then it was game on.
Their relationship had always been strictly professional, but Quinn could appreciate his attractiveness from afar just for fun.
At least he wasn’t sitting with his mouth open like August had the first time they met. The puckhead was still coming to grips with the fact that he liked looking at men, and he wasn’t handling it very well because it was easy to see when someone caught his eye.
Kenneth had laughed it off, but he had been in a great mood during the conversation, and extra gentle with August when he had to talk about the harder topics regarding their case.
“Mrs. Snow will be dealt with,” said Kenneth. “Her world is falling apart around her. She’s been disowned by her son, and her church is being torn down on top of her. And to make matters worse for her and better for you, her marriage to August’s father was never official, so legally, she’s not a Snow.”
Quinn drew in a breath and held it, then let it out with a laugh. He couldn’t fucking believe the dirt they were digging up on these assholes—literally, since the evidence came from the ground in August’s basement.
Kenneth waited for Quinn to stop laughing, but he was smiling along with him when he spoke again. “This will be going to trial, and I know it will be difficult for him, but we will need to call August to the stand to testify when the time comes. Do you think he can do it?”
