Chapter 33
THIRTY-THREE
HENRY
WE’RE SO BACK, SONS OF BITCHES!
The second the puck dropped, the noise vanished.
Not literally. I could still hear the fans slamming the plexiglass, chanting my name like I’d never left.
But in my head? Dead silence. Only the scrape of my skates against the ice, the thrum of my heartbeat slamming against my ribs, and the whoosh of adrenaline reverberating through my veins.
It was like time never passed. Like the fight that put my career on the line and got me benched like a goddamn rookie never happened.
But I had a lot to prove tonight. I needed to prove to Coach I was the same quality player as ever.
I needed to prove to my teammates I was someone they could count on.
I desperately needed to prove to Kennedy I was the kind of man she could be proud of, and that without her, I didn’t think I’d ever see the ice again.
The way I played needed to speak for itself, so I could show everyone I was capable of keeping a cool head, even when the angry monster was trying to rear its ugly head.
I couldn’t let it control me. I had too much to lose.
The puck bounced wildly off the faceoff, and I lunged, cutting off Vancouver’s center and stealing it clean.
My body shifted automatically, remembering every movement and all the hours I’d put into this sport.
I weaved my way between the defenses as my eyes scanned and calculated every possible outcome.
Hayes and Donovan were with me, and it felt so goddamn right and meant to be to play next to my best friends once again.
But even then, I barely saw them. All my attention was locked on the net.
For a split second, I hesitated. Not because I was scared, but because there was this fire burning inside of me.
I was excited and ready to reclaim my spot in this team for good.
After so long being benched, I was ready to put it all out there and show the world why I was the right player for this team and this position.
I could hear my teammates trying to get my attention, and the way the crowd screamed in anticipation. Every sound fueled the fire I couldn’t tame, the same fire that’d kept me going even at my lowest.
With my eyes still on the net, I fired. Low glove side.
There was a second where everything moved in slow motion, where my focus tunneled in, heart pounding, breath caught somewhere between hope and exhilaration. Then everything came roaring back in a flash when the puck snapped past the goalie and slammed into the back of the net.
The red light flashed as the horn blared, and the arena erupted in a roar.
I glided across the ice with a smile so bright, my cheeks hurt. Hayes, Donovan, Parker, and Morgan crashed into me as they tapped their gloves against my helmet and slapped their sticks against my back.
I couldn’t help but laugh when Hayes yelled, “We’re so back, sons of bitches!”
My eyes scanned the crowd, and I inhaled a deep breath as I took everything in, trying to savor the moment and commit it to memory.
My heart nearly skipped a beat when my eyes landed on the first row, just to the left of our bench.
Every fan was slamming the glass, trying to get my attention, but there she was.
Tall, chestnut hair curled and tumbling over her shoulders, wearing my jersey, with her hands tucked under her chin, gazing at me like I was the only person in the arena.
Her eyes shimmered with tears, and her smile, God, that fucking smile.
It filled my chest with something tender and fierce all at once.
I skated closer, the crowd erupting around me, but I tuned it all out. Not because I was trying to be a dick, but because Kennedy was all I could ever see. She was the golden hour, and I never wanted it to end.
I tugged off one of my gloves, not caring if a ref was going to whistle me for it, and pressed my bare palm to the glass.
My eyes locked on hers as I mouthed, Hi, Kenny baby.
Her smile was shy, and she raised her hand to meet mine on the other side of the plexiglass. Her lips moved just enough for me to catch the words. Hi, pretty boy.
Fuck. I was a goner for this woman. Completely. I loved her so much, it was starting to spill out of me in ways I couldn’t control anymore.
Every part of my body ached, and I could barely breathe after the horn blared, signaling the end of the game.
We won against the Vancouver Sharks, 5–4.
It was a grueling game. At one point, I was sure we were headed for overtime, but during our last shift change, I stepped onto the ice just as Vancouver was scrambling through their own line change.
I took off like the speed of light, and Parker swiftly fired the puck my way, and on instinct, I wound up and blasted a slap shot straight past their goalie.
I looked for Kennedy before going into the tunnel, but I couldn’t find her, so I walked in with Donovan and Morgan toward the locker room. The whole place was a zoo, and it buzzed with so much energy, it was infectious.
When I stepped into the locker room, I barely had time to process the cheers before a wave of cold splashed over me. Hayes dumped an entire cooler of blue Gatorade on my head, and the room erupted in laughter and shouting as helmets banged against the lockers.
“That’s the price of glory, baby!” Hayes shouted, cackling as the ice-cold Gatorade soaked my back.
I laughed as I shook the liquid from my hair and grinned like an idiot.
The sweat mixed with the stickiness was awful, but I didn’t care.
We gave it all out on the ice, and we clinched a playoff spot, so I was happy to be the sacrificial victim.
I’d take a thousand Gatorade showers if it meant I’d get to play this game with the people I considered family and bring us one step closer to the Cup.
“Not bad for a welcome party, huh?” Donovan chuckled as he gave my back a solid pat.
“I should have known better than to believe you guys weren’t going to pull some shit like this.”
Hayes draped an arm over my shoulder. “The night’s not fucking over, Anderson.”
“Oh, hell no,” I groaned. “I am not going to Tim’s.”
All I wanted to do was take a nice, hot shower, find Kennedy, and do another kind of celebration with her.
“Hell yeah, you are. It’s tradition. You sure you want to break something so sacred after today?”
I scrubbed my face. “Shit, no. You’re right. But I’ll stay an hour, tops.”
“When did you become such a grandpa?” Hayes whined.
“Since knowing what’s waiting for him at home, I’m sure.” Parker snickered.
“Watch it,” I warned. But he wasn’t wrong.
I was eager to spend every waking moment with my girl if they’d let me, like one sappy motherfucker.
I also missed Captain Sushi, but that was a secret I was going to take to the grave with me.
I’d been traveling so much, I was lucky if I got to spend time with him a day or two out of the week.
“Alright.” Coach clapped his hands as he stepped into the room.
Everyone quickly settled down and faced him.
“I know we’re excited to have Anderson back, and it was a great comeback for him, but this is not the time to be fucking around.
We managed to win tonight, yes, but it was a struggle.
Things that could make us or break us. This is not the time to be distracted.
You all get the next two days off for the gala, but after that, you know how grilling this is going to be.
It’s going to be hard as fuck, but I believe in every single one of you. ”
“Yes, Coach,” we all said in unison.
He nodded. “Great job tonight, guys. Keep it up, and for the love of God, get some rest.”
“Sure you don’t want to join us tonight at Tim’s, Coach?” Hayes asked.
“Absolutely not.”
We all chuckled. Hayes always tried to get him to come out with us, and without fail, Coach Sloane always turned down his invitation.
“If we win the Cup, you have to go with us,” Donovan said.
Coach crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes. After a few beats, he gave us a quick nod. “Bet. If we win, I’ll go celebrate with you all.”
We all broke into applause while Hayes and Parker added to the chaos, whistling sharply with their fingers and shouting, “Fuck, yeah!”
I was still part of the team and participated in every practice and locker room talk during the months I was benched, but there was something that made this moment so much better. Like I was finally back home, where I always belonged.