Chapter 19
MADDIE
“Hey, you came!” Dinah cheered and raised a beer when I found all the wives and girlfriends in their section in front of the glass.
In some cities, a lot of the families used a box, but in Philly, all the WAGS liked being down right behind the glass.
I stopped in my tracks when I saw a baby in her lap. “Umm…”
Dinah laughed and bounced the cute little redheaded girl while I took a seat next to her. “This is Scarlet. Fiona and Riley’s daughter and my goddaughter. Fi asked me to hold her because she went to go vom.”
I laughed and waved at the baby. “You look pretty good with a baby.”
She wrinkled her nose. “Now that Fi’s pregnant again and after watching Max go through hell with the twins…I think I’m good.”
“But you could adopt,” I said. “Or foster.”
“Noah and I talked about it. We like adopting the rookies instead. Plus, Fi said it’s almost like being a single parent at times, and I barely remember to eat dinner if Noah doesn’t text me reminders.”
“Are you going to take in more rookies?” I asked with a laugh.
She shrugged. “We’ll see next summer at training camp.”
“Mama!” Scarlet cried.
I turned and saw Fi coming back over to our seats. She looked sick, but she smiled at her baby. She took Scarlet into her arms and sat on the other side of Dinah. “I know, baby, you missed Mama, huh? Thanks, D.”
“How do you feel?” Dinah asked.
Fi blanched. “Like I’m never doing this again. Two’s enough.”
I hid my grin behind my hand and looked down at the ice where the players were coming out for warmups. I saw Matt skating around one zone. He looked so focused that I didn’t think he saw me.
Riley skated over to the glass, and Fi held Scarlet up for her to wave. “Look, it”s Daddy, Scar.”
Riley’s face broke out into a huge grin, and he waved to his baby. It was so adorable. Fi blew him a kiss, and he pretended to catch it before he skated off to the other side of the ice.
“They’re so cute,” Dinah said.
My brother skated over and slapped the glass while Dinah raised her beer at him.
I found my eyes glued to the ice, watching Matt as he weaved the puck up through Metzy’s five-hole while he warmed up. Then he got down on the ice and stretched next to Benny. Was I thinking about how his body moved on top of mine last night? Definitely. I couldn’t wait to let him torture me with impatience as he tied me to my bed and had his way with me later.
“Maddie,” Dinah’s voice cut through my horny thoughts.
I felt the blush creep up my neck. I thought, having finally lost my virginity, I’d be less of a horny mess, but nope, Matt brought out the horndog.
I turned back to my sister-in-law. “Hmm?”
She gave an amused look. “How’s school going? You’re not holing yourself up, right?”
I shook my head. “No, it’s great. Hard, but good. I like to be busy.”
Fi bounced Scarlet onto her other hip. “D said you’re doing work for her. Are you looking for any other authors?”
I stared at her for a second. It hadn’t occurred to me to take on more than Dinah’s admin work. I did quite a bit for her, but it wasn’t uncommon to have more than one client. I had some book blogger friends who assisted for more than one author, so it was doable.
“I haven’t thought about it, but I’m open to it,” I told Fi. “What do you need?”
“I have a signing in a couple of months. I could use a second set of hands.”
“I’d love to help.”
Fi smiled. “Great. I need help, especially since I’m probably gonna have pregnancy brain.”
I laughed. “I’m down for more experience. I’d love to work for a PR company for authors.”
Dinah nudged me. “You’re so organized, you could start your own.”
The thought had crossed my mind. I had a big presence on social media, and it could be something I made a career out of, but I wanted to finish my degree first.
We watched the players go back down the tunnel for a couple of minutes, and then the starting lineup was announced on the PA. Pride swelled in my chest when I saw my brother taking the faceoff at puck drop.
Noah was so good at what he did, and he deserved all the money on his contract. The Bulldogs have been a struggling team for years, but they had so much potential. The past couple of games had been good, but there was still a lot of hockey left to be played. I was confident they could at least make the first round of the playoffs this year.
“Come on, come on,” I muttered under my breath as I watched the New Jersey captain bat the puck away from Noah.
“Dammit,” Dinah muttered next to me.
If Riley and Blaise did their job and got it out of our zone, we could still get possession back. But I watched in agony as the team spent way too much time in the Bulldogs’ zone trying to play keep away. I felt the air release out of my chest when Jersey went in for the kill, and then our Metzy made an aerobic save.
“Metzy, you beauty!” I cheered.
Dinah laughed. “Yeah, I mean, he’s the only one showing up today.”
I belted out a cackle. Most WAGs would not say that, but Dinah didn’t give a fuck. She had been a desperate Philly fan way before she and my brother ever got together. Her marrying him didn’t change that, and I loved that about her.
Nothing happened on that first shift, but I noticed Matt out on the second line, and that made me happy. He was so worried about whether he was good enough and would stay on the team, but Coach LaVoie wouldn’t put him on the second line if he didn’t see his potential. Matt was far too hard on himself. I watched every single game while they were on the road, and I saw how he was pushing himself. He was hungry to keep wearing the red and black, and I admired that about him.
Dinah gripped my arm as we watched the Bulldogs set up a play. Hallsy had the puck, and he was trying to find an opening, but a Jersey defenseman screened him. Matt was wide open. He could do this. Hallsy deked the shot and passed to Matt, who took the chance.
In a split second, the puck flew into the back of the net, and the crowd around us let out a relieved cheer. The red light lit up behind the Jersey goaltender, and Benny and Hallsy were grabbing Matt into hugs. The arena was buzzing, and I felt it all throughout my body, excitement for Matt coursing through me. I was giddy as I watched him skate down the bench, high-fiving all his teammates before play restarted.
“That was such a sick goal,” Dinah said.
I grinned. “He’s too hard on himself. That was a beauty.”
She and Fi pinned me with raised eyebrows.
“How do you know that?” Fi asked.
“We’re friends,” I explained.
“Does my husband know that?” Dinah asked but with mirth in her eyes.
Shit. I couldn’t let her think there was something more than friendship between me and Matt. If Noah found out…we’d be screwed. I wasn’t ready to tell him yet, and he and Dinah didn’t keep secrets from each other, so I couldn’t confide in her. It wasn’t time to open that can of worms yet.
I lifted one shoulder weakly. “We’re just friends.”
She gave me a hard look. “So you know nothing about his new girlfriend?”
I played dumb. “What new girlfriend?”
“Maddie,” Dinah said with an edge to her voice. “I know all about overprotective brothers, okay?”
Fi nodded in agreement.
Dinah lovingly called her brothers the meatheads, and they kinda were. I loved them all, but yes, overprotective and scary, they certainly were. They tried to scare Noah off with their protectiveness, but Dinah told them to fuck right off with that bullshit. She didn’t let anyone intimidate her. I wished I could stand up to my brother like she did to hers, but I wasn’t as blunt as her.
If I told her about me and Matt, I was afraid of what my brother would do. She didn’t know what it was like to be constantly compared to your more talented and famous brother. That was par for the course with women’s hockey. We couldn’t have the media talk about us without bringing up our famous brothers or dads or cousins. Like our own merits didn’t matter unless they were tied to a man. Matt and I were still so new that I wanted us to enjoy this happy little bubble before all hell broke loose. Before he realized what a mistake I had been.
“Maddie,” Dinah said again.
“I told you. We’re just friends,” I lied again.
Dinah didn’t look convinced. She put a hand over mine. “Tell me if that changes. I have pull with that brother of yours, okay? If you want to date Cally, go for it. Don’t let your meddlesome brother control that. He loves you and wants the best for you. He’ll deal.”
“It’s your life,” Fi agreed. “Cally’s a cutie. So if you want to date him, it’s none of Noah’s business.”
Their words were heartfelt, but I still didn’t feel like I could tell them the truth. Matt breaking the code was a big no-no, and I wasn’t sure how my brother would handle it. Definitely not well. Noah Kennedy was a force to be reckoned with on the ice and when it came to guys wanting to date me.
I shook off the feeling of dread and guilt and watched the team fight hard in the first twenty minutes of play. And then I watched with a giddy grin on my face when my secret boyfriend scored a second goal of the game.
I sat back and enjoyed what I knew was going to be a superb game while trying to forget my worries.