The photo had come from Coral, who’d been pissed at how he’d behaved during her sister’s wedding and eager to make amends for what she’d done, in any way possible.
Finally, the interview ended. The room was startlingly silent, with over a dozen pairs of eyes on us.
I waited for Tally’s reaction, my heart in my throat.
Her lips curved in a wide smile. “I can’t believe you did all this.”
“What do you think?” I asked, nerves rioting through me.
“I think you’re crazy, but that was the sweetest thing anyone has done for me.” Her eyes sparkled and I had the almost irresistible urge to kiss her.
“You’re worth it,” I told her. “I’m falling in love with you Tally, and I want the whole world to know.”
But mostly, I wantedherto know, and to never have any reason to doubt me. Hopefully, this would help with that.
Her expression was fond as she wound her arms around my neck. “Oh, you sweet, ridiculous man. I’m falling for you too.”
With that, she kissed me while our guests whooped and cheered.
I smiled against her mouth, my heart beating furiously. “Be mine, Tally?”
“Forever.”
TWENTY
TALLY
I shouted and jumped up and down as Alec skated out onto the ice in the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. It was a little more than a month after his televised interview and it was the first time this season that his parents and I had managed to make it to one of his away games.
The atmosphere in the arena was electric. Thousands of hockey fans screamed support for their team and many of them held banners or signs. The three of us could have been lost in the masses if not for our position right above and behind the penalty box.
Alec glided around the inside of the rink, scanning the crowd. I could tell when he spotted us because he dipped his head in acknowledgement and shifted his focus to the warm-up.
“Are you excited?” his mom asked near my ear.
“Of course! I can’t wait to see him get out there and kill it.”
Her lips twisted ruefully. “Has it occurred to you that this is the first away game you’ve gone to as a couple?”
“Yeah.” Not that I saw why it mattered. Whether I was his best friend or his girlfriend, I was there to shout myself hoarse cheering for my favorite guy.
Mr. Wright offered me his fries, but I shook my head. I wasn’t hungry yet, although I was sure I would be soon. Fortunately, there were plenty of snack options.
On the ice, Alec performed drills with his fellow first line forwards. Each time he slipped the puck past Davi, I clapped, even though I doubted he could hear me. It made me feel like I was supporting him in spirit, even if he wasn’t conscious of my physical presence at every second.
They added a defender into the drill, and then another. After a while, the teams prepared to start and all but the starting lineup cleared off the ice. As expected, Alec was in the front line on the right.
The puck dropped and Vegas beat Cromwell to it, zigzagging up the ice. Alec tried to steal the puck from the Vegas center, but he passed it off to the wing, who shot it back to the defense, who sent it straight back to the center, who was not clear to take a shot at goal. Fortunately, Davi knocked the puck aside.
The game was tight. By the end of the first period, there was no score. The second period was more hands on, with a few players being roughly checked into the boards and a fistfight breaking out. It ended with no points on the board.
Entering the third period, both teams went in fast and hard. I could tell from watching Alec that he was tired, but he didn’t flag, and the coach didn’t swap out the first line despite how much game time they’d had. He wanted to win as badly as the players did.
One of Vegas’s wings broke away and rocketed down the side of the rink with the puck. Dexter cross-checked him and the puck zinged away, ricocheting off the side.
Cromwell took control of the puck and charged up the center. Alec raced alongside him, gathering speed. Cromwell was heading for a confrontation with the defense. He caught Alec’s eye a millisecond before he flicked him the puck, and quickerthan the goalie could react, my boyfriend slotted it past him, across the line and into the net.
The Dragons’ fans roared and clapped. Alec scanned the crowd and seemed to lock his attention onto us briefly before he continued to play.
