Life was good.
As I moved around the ice, the only thing I could hear was the cheer of the woman I loved. She had a front row seat with her best friend and her entire family along with mine. She was pumping her fist even though it was still intermission.
This was the big game of the season. The Chicago Wild Dogs and the Tampa Bay Gators were tied two to two, but their defense was kick-ass.
So was my brother.
I had a feeling the entire game would come down to one goal. Just a feeling. I needed my good luck charm. When I was just below, my beautiful girl leaned over.
“Hiya,” she said. “How are things going?”
“Not too bad. What do your parents think?”
“Ah, my dad is still a grump, but he was pumping his fist when you made that last goal. Seems he’s turned a new leaf since you saved my life.”
I chuckled and offered him a salute. “Wow. Miracles never cease. Well, let me see if I can win this game. Maybe he’ll start liking me.”
“Maybe. But I don’t care. Thank you for the extra tickets for Anthony and his family.” She turned slightly, waving her hand at the kid two seats back.
“You know what? He’s got talent. I went to his practice.”
“You made his year.”
“Well, we shifters need to stick together.” The kid was a misguided wolf and was damn good on the ice. He reminded me of… me. “Gotta run, babe. I have a game to win.”
Before I backed away, she beckoned me with her finger. “Don’t you dare walk away without giving me a kiss.”
“And so it begins.” When I cupped her face, I heard a collective sigh from the entire arena. After offering one wet kiss, I noticed we were the main focus of every jumbotron in the arena.
As I backed away, I placed my hand over my heart.
The entire audience roared.
“Grandstanding, brother?” Saint asked.
“Why not? I’m going to wipe your ass on the ice.” Grinning, I skated around him in a full circle. It felt damn good to be on the ice with him. This was exactly where we belonged.
He shook his head. “Bring it, Beast. Let’s see what you’ve got.”
“Whatever you say, Savage. You think we should shift for the crowd?”
He acted like he was thinking. “Nah. Let’s just play some hockey.”
We circled each other again and the buzzer went off.
With a nod of respect, he moved away. It was now or never. And I refused to make a fool of myself in front of her parents.
There was something to be said about a well-oiled machine, especially when all my teammates were involved.
Since our win, we’d had another, finally working together as we were supposed to do. Maybe a few demons had been shoved aside, making way for the happiness that was made possible by the beautiful woman in the stands. Fuck, I adored her.
In all my years of playing, I’d never felt so cohesive as I did at this moment. The ice was smooth, the plays solid, and as expected, the Wild Dogs’ goalie was spot on, preventing me from making two goals already.
Ours had done the same, both Saint and I frustrated and the clock was ticking down.
With only fifteen seconds left on the clock, we had control of the puck. I managed to intercept a lazy pass, deciding to run with it.
Now the crowd was on their feet. It was between me and the goalie now. Even my heart was hammering, the rush of adrenaline strong, I funneled every bit of it into my skates. As my first coach had taught me, I had to be one with them. They were a part of me.
