Total pages in book: 88
Estimated words: 87289 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 436(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87289 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 436(@200wpm)___ 349(@250wpm)___ 291(@300wpm)
Knox skates up beside us and bumps shoulders with Maverick.
A cocky grin simmers around the edges of his lips. “Hey, old man. Nice to see you finally decided to join a winning team for a change.”
Mav snorts. “You’re hilarious, McNichols. You couldn’t pay me enough to be teammates with you.”
“Yeah, I can imagine. It would really suck not being the best out there, wouldn’t it?”
Maverick just shakes his head, refusing to take the bait. “You remind me so damn much of your brother. That’s not a compliment. How’s Colby doing these days?”
Knox’s grin transforms into something more genuine. “Expanding the bloodline. Avery’s still got him wrapped around her little finger, and Britt’s due with baby number three in the spring.”
“We’re playing Milwaukee next month,” Mav says, shifting his stick between his gloved hands.
Knox chuckles. “Do me a favor and lay him out flat with a nice clean hit and tell him it’s from me.”
Mav smirks. “I’ll deliver the message personally.”
He glances toward his teammates on the far side of the rink. “I better get moving before they accuse me of fraternizing with the enemy.”
“Seriously, man. No one could blame you.”
With another shake of his head, Maverick skates off, leaving Knox and me alone on our side of the ice.
Even though I tell myself to focus on warm-ups and get my head on straight, I still find my gaze settling on the suite.
Knox follows my line of sight. “Looking for someone special, huh?”
I give him a bit of side-eye. “Maybe.”
He lets out a low whistle. “You must have been working on your manifestation skills because there she is.”
My eyes snap back to the glass at the upper bowl, and lock on Callie.
Nora is in her arms as she steps into view, her expression is a mix of nerves and determination. When her gaze lifts, it collides with mine. A small, quiet smile curves her lips.
Time slows as she shrugs off her coat, and everything in me falters.
Not only is she wearing my jersey, so is Nora.
When she turns to hug Willow, I catch sight of my name stretched across her back in crisp white lettering. The pride that fills me is almost enough to bring me to my knees.
I glide to a stop directly below them, and stare up like an idiot as Nora climbs into the seat beside Willow, trying to get Haven’s and Autumn’s attention.
Pressure swells inside me until it feels like it might just burst.
Knox taps my shin with his stick. “Come on, lover boy. We’ve got a game to win. There’s no damn way we can let McKinnon think he’s better than us. I don’t care if your sister is sleeping with the enemy or not.”
With a low laugh, I push off again and start moving. If I thought I was distracted before, it’s nothing compared to knowing that Callie and Nora are up there watching me. It feels like everything I’ve ever wanted is finally coming to fruition.
As much as I love seeing my woman wearing my jersey, I’m looking forward to stripping it off her body and making love to her once we get home.
I’m jerked from those thoughts when I get shoved from behind. After finding my balance, I swing around, prepared to knock Knox on his damn ass. The guy seriously doesn’t know when to quit.
Instead, I find Zane. His normally happy-go-lucky expression is nowhere in sight.
I straighten to my full height and glare at him. “What the hell is your problem?”
I know exactly what it is, though, and I should have been prepared for it. Especially after our last conversation.
Instead of meeting my gaze, his cuts past me and up toward the suite. “You really think that’s a good idea?”
“What I think,” I reply carefully, “is that if you gave a damn about Callie, you’d want the best for her. You’d be happy she found someone who treats both her and your daughter right.”
His jaw tics, the muscles clenching. “Callie’s not yours.”
“And she hasn’t been yours for years,” I fire back.
Zane skates closer until he’s crowding my space. “There are plenty of women you can screw around with. Pick one who doesn’t have my kid.”
Before I can wrap my lips around a response, he takes off.
It’s doubtful this is the end of it. I’d hoped he would cool off and think about what’s best for his ex, but apparently that’s not the case.
After ten more minutes, the players file off the ice as the starting lineup is announced. The puck is dropped and the game gets underway. As soon as it does, the noise fades and the rest of the world narrows to hockey.
It’s filled with quick shifts, clean passes, and hard checks.
It’s tight from the start.
Every line grinds it out, and every play becomes a battle. No one can say Maverick isn’t on fire tonight, and I’m matching his energy with every shift. Since we’re both defensemen, we don’t go head-to-head, but when our paths cross at the boards or at the blue line, neither of us hold back. There’s pride in how we play. A mutual respect threaded into every shove, every sharp pass, every clean check.