We’re up one-nothing and all we have to do is hang on for nine more minutes.
To be fair, nine minutes is more like half an hour in hockey.
I do my fifty-seventh starfish impression of the night and put myself every-fucking-where in the net all at once, forcing the puck back into play and sending my teammates and opponents to the other end of the ice. They’re not gone long, because one of St. Sebastian’s wingers steals the puck fromBooker in a move that would be impressive if he were wearing burgundy and silver instead of black and gold.
I’m ready for him when he pops the puck off the end of his stick. It flies through the air and I can almost see him smile in triumph.
Until I knock that shit right down. There’s no time for his wide-eyed expression because Will is on a tear and he’s not stopping until he puts another point on the board. Booker feeds him the puck, but their goalie gets there in time to stop it. The big brute has possession and I’m getting ready for to defend my net, but Mickey has other ideas. He swipes the puck and passes it to Will who makes the play. They cheer for a minute before switching lines. As he hops over the boards, Mickey gives me an upnod.
Hell yeah. We got this.
I spend so much time down on the ice I feel like I should start making snow angels. But I’m blocking shots and making saves and keeping that zero up on the scoreboard.
“Briiiick!” Ollie’s voice rings out as he glides around the net.
For once, the nickname doesn’t bother me at all. I kinda like it, honestly. A brick wall is stable, protective, and damn near impenetrable.
Those are compliments in my book.
I stand guard as the clock ticks down. With a minute left, Will sends a sweet shot to Booker who knocks it right over the line. Those two are destined for the NHL and I can’t wait to watch them take it by storm. I hope to hell my view is from a net just like this one.
The roar of the crowd is deafening, and the energy is electric. We’ve got ten seconds left and even if the brute’s little minions score on me now, we’re still taking home the title.
But I’m not going out like that. Hell no. I knock two shots out and stop a third with my leg just as the buzzer sounds.
Confetti rains down. My teammates are screaming theirheads off, and Coach looks proud as hell. We did it. We’re bringing home a national title.
I find Maggie in the stands and blow two kisses in her direction. Since the tournament is in DC this year, and it’s only an hour and a half away, Maggie’s doctor cleared her to come, and I’m glad she’s here to watch us get the win. I’ll be just as happy, though, when we’re back in our apartment. Don’t get me wrong, I love the thrill of a win, especially after last year’s loss. But I’m ready for some downtime. We’ve got about four weeks until the Nugget’s arrival, and I’m ready to coast until the main event.
CHAPTER 45
JT
“What time are we leaving?”Maggie asks on a yawn.
I kiss her forehead. “Not for a couple hours. The parade starts at four and I told Mickey we’d meet him at the Wolf’s Den around three. You feel like taking a nap?” My girl looks exhausted. I’m not saying that shit out loud, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t true.
In the two weeks since we won the Frozen Four, life hasn’t slowed down much. And the Nugget has turned nocturnal, which means Maggie’s up most nights getting the crap kicked out of her organs.
“Are you going to nap with me?”
I shouldn’t. I’ve got finals next week and I need to hit the books, but I can’t resist. “Yeah, I mean, what if you need an emergency back rub or something? I should be on stand-by, right?” I ask, peeling back the covers to find Maggie naked.
Jesus.
She bites her lip. “I got too hot.”
“Oh, really? That tank top and those teeny tiny little shorts were too much for you?”
“They were,” she says with a laugh. “I’m hot and gross and grumpy and my back hurts. Maybe I do need a back rub.”
She plants her palm on the bed and lifts as much as she can while I wedge pillows in around her. “We’re becoming pros at this.”
“Yeah, but in two weeks, I’ll be able to sleep like a normal person.”
Before I can open my mouth, my Cinderella frowns. “I don’t think I’ll ever sleep like a normal person again.”
Instead of answering her, I start rubbing her back. Slow, tight circles stretch into larger, looser ones. I’m doing my best to make her feel good without paying too much attention to the sounds she’s making or the way her tits beg for my mouth when she arches her back. It’s been a week since we’ve had sex-sex, and I’m hard as hell. We got each other off in the shower yesterday morning and even the memory of that has my cock leaking.
