Chapter 21 #3
Connor jumped at the opportunity, a surprise to Daisy, since he’d refused to bet last time they all played. “I want the San Jose jersey gone. You can keep it, but it should never grace another Freeze game.”
Daisy mulled the idea over. Patrick wouldn’t like it. “If the stakes are my quitting a decade-long tradition with my best friend, you’ll need to deliver. What are you offering?”
A cocky gleam filled Valentine’s eyes. “Beanie is going to get a hatty, and both me and Hazy will have assists. But Hazy and I get to pick a reward too.”
She contemplated the offer. Connor hadn’t had a goal in months.
Let alone a multi-goal game. And a hat trick was a rare occurrence for any player.
Getting three goals in a single game was improbable.
The risk was pretty low. She never let herself do sports betting, so this could be fun.
“What do I get if you don’t meet the terms? ”
Connor answered, “We’ll never bring up the wagers again. You can wear your San Jose jersey to every game.”
Never having to argue about it again was a tempting offer. “Fine. I’ll agree to that one. What about you two?” She waved a finger between Valentine and Hazy.
Hazy pointed to her wrist. “You get that tattooed on.”
Daisy had gotten far dumber tattoos for less. “Done.”
All eyes fell to a maniacally grinning Valentine. “If we do this, you have to go on a date with Beanie. And me and Hazy get to plan it.”
The wager left Daisy speechless. She’d coveted a date with Connor for years, but it wasn’t something she could agree to alone.
It took her a few seconds to process, and a few more to formulate a response.
They were staring, but her attention stayed focused on Valentine.
Her mouth opened a few times to answer before she blurted out, “Forcing Connor to go on a date with me doesn’t seem like a good reward for getting a hat trick. ”
Connor cleared his throat, and attention shifted to him. “A date with you is the perfect reward for getting a hat trick.”
Her face got hot, but she stuck out her hand, shaking each man’s. “Deal.”
Daisy got dressed for the game the next day as usual, but she put a little more reverence into it.
On the off chance it would be her last time wearing Patrick’s jersey to the arena, she savored the process.
She wore a Seattle Freeze sweatshirt underneath.
Put a little extra glitter on her cheeks. Refreshed the numbers on her wrist.
It wasn’t until she got to the arena that she realized she’d made a mistake.
Sometimes when you go to a game, there’s a certain feeling in the building.
It’s like electricity in the air, a tension you can feel with your entire being.
It feels like the sheer force of will of the crowd will ensure a home team win. That night was one of those nights.
Daisy and Grayson took their spots on the glass a few minutes after warmups had already started. She scanned the ice, her anxiety spiking when she found Patrick at center ice talking with Valentine. At least their posture seemed relaxed.
She’d told Patrick the stakes, but he hadn’t been worried.
“There’s no shot in hell Beanie gets a hat trick after a seventeen-game cold streak.”
“Okay,” she had shrugged. “But I won’t hear a word of complaint or see any on-ice fighting if he does.”
When warmups were almost over and Patrick still hadn’t brought her a puck, she got nervous. He was never last on the ice. Everyone disappeared into the tunnels except for the Connors and Patrick, and only then did Patrick bring her puck. He tossed it over the glass.
Tonight’s puck had 32 4eva written on it. She rolled her eyes at him, and he smirked before holding one finger up, indicating for her to wait, and then he skated off the ice. She frowned after him, confused about why she was waiting instead of going to buy her drinks and getting to her seat.
She didn’t have to wait long before Valentine skated to her, a puck in hand.
He tossed it, and Grayson caught it, handing it to her.
She examined the puck and found familiar silver marker on it, in unfamiliar handwriting.
His said, ‘Believe’ a reference from Ted Lasso that he couldn’t shut up about.
He skated away right as Hazy appeared and tossed yet another puck over the glass for her.
Grayson caught that one too, her hands too full to try.
The surrounding crowd gave them dirty looks, but Hazy had two more with him and tossed them to some kids with signs.
Hazy’s puck read 67-3, 49-1, 3-1. A promise of the points to come.
Daisy handed Grayson the three pucks so she could catch the last one she had no doubt was coming.
Connor patted Hazy on the back as they passed each other.
He skidded to a stop in front of her and tossed his puck.
She read it, and her face flamed, the temperature in the stadium rising about twenty degrees.
‘You’re mine’, the puck said. She met his eyes, and he winked at her before he skated away.
All the air had been sucked out of the arena as she watched him leave the ice.
Who knew two little words and a wink could have her so mixed up.
Grayson reached for the puck to add it to her pile, but she yanked it out of his reach and stuffed it into the pocket of her leggings. It added unnecessary bulk, but no way would she let her brother read that.
“I’m going to need a tattoo guy,” she told him.