Zhuri stares between us wide-eyed because she knows that she’s at the center of this.
I just smile at her sheepishly, my teeth probably red and bloody.
Jack and I both receive 5-minute major penalties for fighting, and I get a 2-minute minor for instigating on top of it.
I reacted to Jack’s words, sure, but from what they could see, I started this fight.
Bullshit, but whatever.
I skate over to the penalty box with pride. I’ve never been a fighter, preferring to let my teammates handle that, but I’d fight Jack again a thousand times over to keep him from talking about my girlfriend that way.
The team changes lines for the faceoff, and Zhuri skates over to the bench.
She keeps glancing over at me, trying not to make it obvious, but I see her anyway.
She wants to tell me that I didn’t need to do that… but her smile tells me she’s glad I did anyway.
I think I catch a few glances from Michael as well, but that’s probably just in my head.
Clara scores a goal in the third period, and we win the game with Lev getting his first shutout of the season.
But all I care about right now is getting Zhuri alone.
With all the adrenaline running through me after the shit Jack said, I want toshowher exactly how much she means to me.
forty-four
Cameron
Everyonekeepsaskingwhatcaused my fight with Jack tonight, but I’m keeping tight-lipped.
The only ones that aren’t asking are the ones that know about us anyway, so they know Jack said something about Zhuri to piss me off.
The media is full of questions, too, because fights are so rare for me. I try to be as evasive as possible, telling them that he disrespected one of my teammates and leaving it at that.
The moment I can get back to the hotel, I do, so ready to forget about Jack and his shit.
I toss my bag on the ground and take off my suit jacket, placing it on a hanger and putting it in the hotel closet.
There’s a knock on my door a moment later, and I throw up a silent prayer that it’s not another person asking me about what happened.
And it’s not.
It’s my girlfriend, looking so fucking good in her tight black dress, white blazer, and black fuck-me heels.
Zhuri charges inside the moment I open the door, and when it falls shut behind us, she drapes her arms around my neck and kisses me hard.
I get lost in her for a moment before coming up for air. “Hello to you, too, baby.”
“That was so hot, Cam.”
“So hot that it was worth my getting a seven-minute penalty?”
Zhuri chuckles. “Probably not to the rest of the team, but to me, yes. No one’s ever fought over me before.”
“I know you didn’t need me to do it,” I sigh. “You don’t need me to defend you, but the things he said about you got under my skin, and I couldn’t hold myself back.”
“What was he saying?”
