“What are you doing now?” Angie takes her glass of white wine and points toward the seats.
“I’m finishing school for PT, and doing an internship with the team.”
I follow Angie to our seats. “How’s that going?”
The arena is starting to fill as it gets closer to the puck dropping. Both teams are out on the ice warming up. My eyes immediately lock on to Cash.
It’s hard to miss him down there. He has a presence on the ice that is unmatched. The way he skates is powerful. Like the blades of his skates are an extension of him.
I don’t think I ever noticed Duncan like this. And we dated for a few months.
God, I really need to get it together.
“Piper?” Angie nudges my shoulder. I completely missed her question.
“Hmm?” I turn my focus to her. “What were you saying?”
“The feeling doesn’t get old.”
“What feeling?” Now I really have no idea what she’s talking about.
“Watching your guy out there on the ice.”
“He’s—” I’m about to say he’s not my guy, but stop myself. “He’s really good.”
“Really good?” Angie practically has to pick her jaw up off the floor. “He’s one of the best players on the team.”
I sit forward, resting my elbows on my legging-clad knees. I can’t tell much from a warm-up, but I know Cash is good. His reputation precedes him, even if it might not be for the best reasons.
“I don’t want to sound cocky.”
Angie laughs. “All hockey players are. You can brag about Cash if you want. I won’t say anything.”
The seats start to fill up around us. I don’t recognize half these women, but I know their significant others based on the numbers they are wearing. Some are wearing bedazzled jerseys and dressed to the nines, but others, like Angie and me, are in simple pants and our jersey.
The teams leave the ice as the pregame starts. Fans start cheering as the lights go down. Bright spotlights start to flash through the rink.
A video of the players, all of them looking like badasses, starts to play on the jumbo screens hanging over the ice.
Energy thrums through the arena like a real-life, breathing thing. It’s palpable.
From what I can see, not a single person around us issitting down. Boos echo as the opposing team skates out onto the ice.
The orange and black of Vancouver’s jerseys are a blur as they skate around their end of the ice. People are banging on the glass. It’s electric.
Then, the lights shut off completely. The music changes to a low bass, steadily increasing before the Black Diamonds are announced. The fans go wild. Angie and I cheer right along with them as the team skates onto the ice. Cash skates out, followed closely by Troy, and Angie loses her mind.
Butterflies are swarming inside me as I track him across the ice. Both teams are out there now as the Black Diamonds announce their starting lineup.
When Cash’s name echoes throughout the arena, a burst of something explodes in my chest.
Pride.
Cash and I have been at this thing for, what, twenty-four hours? And all I feel for him is pride.
I don’t know what it is about his reputation that Cassie isn’t on board with. From what I can see, the fans are eating this up. Not that anyone would boo one of their own during a game.
After the national anthems of both the US and Canada are played, the game starts. There’s no denying that Vancouver is a good team. Great, even.
