Chapter 22
COOPER
Dad Joke Of The Day:
How many tickles does it take to make an octopus laugh?
Ten-tickles.
As a goalie, you don’t go into a game expecting to get thrown around on the ice or end up in the penalty box because of a fight.
It’s actually pretty uncommon for a goalie to get involved with fights out on the ice.
It’s even more rare when it’s the goalie who’s the target of a fight.
That’s not usually a smart move because anyone who knows anything about hockey knows that if you fuck with a goalie, you’re fucking with the entire team.
But apparently this fucking pathetic excuse of a man, Wilson Mudgett, never learned that little tidbit of information. I'm currently pinned on the ice on my back with him straddling me, his gloved fist coming down on my cheek.
He gets in a few good ones, but nothing major because, well, he hits like a bitch and I blocked almost all of them.
I just look up at him and smile, pissing him off even more as he swings with his other fist. They come down on my helmet at just the right angle so it slides off, my head barely missing the ice.
Levi finally breaks away from a player on the other team and skates over my way, yanking Mudgett off me and throwing him down on the ice.
About fucking time. I was getting bored and my cheek was getting more and more tender with how cold it was.
I look around at the chaos the refs are currently breaking up, and anyone who was on the ice was in on the fight, but with less than half a period left, we’ll see what they end up doing.
Out of the corner of my eye, I see a bright blue foam finger bouncing around, and can’t help but chuckle when I see my parents with Lucas waving wildly at me.
A moment of panic hits me as I look around for Ally, my mind racing, except…
Ally should be next to Lucas? Instead, I see her rushing up the stairs, a flash of brown hair moving quickly. Wait, what happened? Is she okay?
Is she…leaving?
Before I even realize what I’m doing, I skate over to where Levi and Wilson are being broken up by the refs.
I take a cheap shot on Wilson because he doesn’t deserve anything better.
Fucker. Clocking him in the jaw with an ungloved fist, I’m pleased when he drops to the ice, out cold.
Levi looks almost bummed out that it wasn’t him who got to do it—better luck next time.
“Fucking pussy,” I spit out right as the refs skate me away, right past our bench towards the penalty box.
“Johnson, get your ass over here,” Coach grumbles, getting the ref’s attention.
“He’s going back for concussion protocol,” Coach shouts as he shakes his head at the guys all skating in from the fight.
Every last man out on the ice got involved in one way or another.
Like I said, you go for the goalie, you get the entire team.
“Keep him out then; he’s done for the night. By the time he gets back and serves his penalty, game will be over,” the ref says before skating off.
“Hear that, Johnson, you get out of the media circus tonight. Head to get checked out then go home and rest,” he says before turning to see Nash wiping off his bloody hand.
“Not mine, Coach—don’t worry,” Nash says with a wink before taking his seat while we wait for the call.
Coach Sullivan turns back towards me and checks me out. “What did he say anyway?” he finally asks, and I assume he must be talking about what started the fight with Wilson.
While I have no desire to tell him everything, I need to tell him enough that he understands what the fuck just happened for a goalie to get in a fight. Definitely can’t bring up how I pissed him off when I mentioned how he failed in the bedroom.
That’s what made the fucker really hit me. But I’m still kind of curious what caused him to go after me in the first place. My bets are on something with Ally because the man always seemed a little off and possessive. Especially since he won’t leave her alone.
The second time was because I might’ve tripped him, but that was only because he was shit-talking me during the first period and told me that he saw Ally earlier today just to get under my skin, and it worked. And well, fuck, I don’t trust him.
“He was just talking shit about Ally, and I didn’t think it was appropriate. I think he’s mad she’s not answering his phone calls.” I tell him the first thing I come up with.
“Little shit. He needs to take a hint before he’s forced to meet Ally’s Uncle Ronnie.
Not to be confused with Coach Sullivan. Two very fucking different people,” he grumbles, and I agree.
“I guess you’d get it more than most,” he says with a chuckle, and he’s not wrong.
I’m one of four guys on the team right now who has a kid, so I do know a thing or two about being protective.
“Coach, you know I’m—” I start but he cuts me off.
“Not tonight, Johnson. Please. The helmet came off. Whether or not your head hit the ice, it was too close to call. I’m not fucking around when there’s less than ten minutes left in this game and my starting goalie could be at risk.
Now, go. Go get checked out and then go home and get some rest so I don’t have to fucking worry about you and can worry about finishing this game with the rest of my guys in one piece. ”
“Yes, sir,” I say with a one finger salute that earns me an eye roll before turning and heading to follow his directions.
Concussions are something that, in the league, people take really fucking seriously, as they should.
Sometimes I want to laugh at everyone because half of it feels ridiculous.
Tonight, for example, my head did not hit the ground, and even if it did, it was barely hard enough because I didn’t feel a damn thing.
But none of that mattered to Coach, which is why I ended up going through concussion protocol and had the wonderful opportunity to spend some time in a dark office before they finally evaluated me and said I was concussion free.
Just like I knew I would be.
But it’s probably in my best interest not to tell Coach I told you so. At least not about this one.
Everything was quick and painless, and I was able to text my parents to come meet me down by the locker rooms so that I could say hi to everyone. I’m also hoping they might have a little insight into why I saw Ally running up the stairs.
When they make it down, Lucas runs and gives me a big hug before immediately grabbing my face with both hands and checking to make sure I’m okay.
“I’m fine, buddy,” I tell him with a chuckle as I mess up his hair.
“Good. I was worried! So was Miss Ally,” Lucas says, and I glance up at my mom who just nods.
Shit. I had a feeling she was upset.
“It’s okay, Lucas. I’ll talk to her and make sure she’s okay,” I promise him, knowing he’ll worry about her until he knows.
“Promise?”
“Pinky promise,” I say and hold out my pinky finger until he crosses it with his.
Looking up at my parents, I smile, still so excited they’re here. It’s been too long.
“Glad you guys could come out. Sorry it ended the way it did,” I tell them, wishing it hadn’t ended with me out for a suspected injury, but that’s the joy of this sport. Shit happens, all the damn time.
“Don’t be silly,” my dad waves me off. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, he hits like a wimp,” I tell him, and Dad laughs.
“Then we’re fine.”
“You sure?” I ask, this time directing to my mom.
“Yes, sweetie, promise,” she says.
“Grandpa, can I order an ice cream when we get back?” Lucas asks as he hugs my dad, puppy dog eyes on and everything in full force, and I already know my dad’s a goner.
“Of course, kiddo, as long as you save me a few bites!”
“Of course! Can we go now?!” Lucas practically cheers, and I have to laugh.
“I’ll let you guys go have some fun. I’ll see you tomorrow around lunch?”
“Deal. See you then,” my mom says as she hugs me tightly.
“Great game, Son. I’ll see you tomorrow,” my dad says. I still feel the same swell of pride I got when I was growing up and he’d compliment me. I guess it doesn’t matter how old you are; kids always want to impress their parents.
With them off, I grab my stuff and head out. I grab my phone and hope I have a text, but to my dismay, there’s nothing. Where is she?
Quinn texted Ally for me and confirmed she was leaving, but I didn’t have any other information. I assumed she probably would be heading back to my house to get her car, so my hope is that I’ll be able to leave here quickly enough to catch her.
She wasn’t supposed to leave.
How can I talk to her about any of this if she’s not here.
This wasn’t the plan.
A notification on my phone from my home security system catches my attention, and I can’t stop the little smirk from forming on my lips.
Gotcha, Ally Cat.
What is going through this girl’s head? It feels like we take two steps forward and three steps back.
I thought I finally had confirmation that she was interested in me, at least for my body, and for now, that could be enough, right?
We could have a lot of fun. I enjoyed spending time with her, and fuck, the tension has been so thick.
I felt like it was damn near impossible to breathe without choking.
So why, after I gave her the first orgasm of her life, did she run?
Well, Ally Cat, blame the adrenaline from the game, the fight—I don’t fucking know. But I hope she knows I’m up for a chase.
And I hope she’s ready for what happens when I catch her.