Epilogue
Ellie
“Thirty-two seconds left in the third period! We’re tied at four.”
I don’t think I’ve taken a breath in at least a minute.
My heart is pounding so fast, and the adrenaline rush I have right now is not helping.
I’m jumping up and down, screaming my head off.
I’d say I probably look like an idiot, but almost everyone’s doing the same thing.
Including Lainey, Gwen, and Adaline, Gwen’s baby.
She looks just like her mom, with her rosy cheeks and turned up nose. She’s also stubborn like her dad. I love her. She doesn’t seem to mind the loudness of the crowd or the chaos around her. She’s been asleep in Gwen’s arms for an hour now.
I was never into sports. My brother played rugby, so I’d go to his games just for something to do on a Friday night, but I never really understood what was going on.
So, for me to be here in the front row right now is crazy.
Thank God Jamie gave me a crash course about hockey.
I still don’t get all the lingo, but I’ve learned enough to know what certain positions are and what they do.
I’ve also learned I love it when they fight.
I especially enjoy watching Jamie fight.
I’ve never seen something so hot and violent in my life.
The Rhode Island Storm have been on a winning streak for weeks now, and I’ve been to every single game since Jamie got back on the ice.
It was definitely challenging at first, and there were days where I thought Jamie would just give up, but he never did.
Now we’re at the last playoff game of the season to see who’s going to the Stanley Cup finals.
I never realized how intense this was. People really go crazy for this stuff.
My attention goes to the ice as one of Jamie’s close friends, Connor Grieves leans in for the faceoff.
“And Grieves wins it clean!”
The puck slides back to Wilder Ranslavic, who banks it hard off the boards.
“Ranslavic clears the zone!” the announcer says over the loudspeaker.
The other team, the Louisville Lazers surge forward again, but the guy I now know as Theo Cramer moves faster.
“Cramer closes the gap! Beautiful poke check. Here comes Callahan flying down the right side!”
The crowd rises all at once, and I watch as Callahan cuts toward the middle, one of the Louisville guys right on him.
“He drops it back—” the announcer begins. The pass glides perfectly into open ice. “And Jamie Patterson, who’s had a tough season this past year with a knee injury really steps up!”
My breath catches as I watch Jamie with the puck.
Come on, baby. Come on…
“There he goes with a breakaway, and—"
He skillfully pulls the puck through his skates, not looking at all worried or rushed and when he gets close, he fakes a slapshot.
“The goalie drops!”
He shifts left, dragging the puck into a narrow lane, and my body feels like it’s on fire. I’m like a freaking live wire.
“Patterson shoots—”
Oh my god, oh my god….
The puck lifts, and it snaps right into the top corner of the net.
“He scores! Jamie Patterson with seven seconds left! And that’s a win for the Rhode Island Storm!”
The arena explodes and I watch as Jamie rips off his gloves, his teammates crashing into him along the boards. Billy tackles him from the side while Theo shouts something into his ear. Connor and their friend Wilder slam into the pile and it’s nothing short of pure chaos.
Tears fill my eyes. Watching him come so far with his healing, seeing him doing the thing he loves, and witnessing him score the winning goal to get to the freaking Stanley Cup finals? I am so freaking proud of him.
As the crowd chants his name, Jamie’s head lifts, but he doesn’t look around to take it all in. He looks directly at me, and he points. My cheeks heat like they’re on fire. Heads turn to looks at me, and I fight the urge to cover my face.
Jamie crooks his finger, indicating for me to come closer to the ice. I hesitate for a moment before finally getting my feet to move. He meets me at the door and pulls me onto the ice.
Is he really doing this right now?
He picks me up and spins me around like no one is watching, and I feel like I’m finally completely in his world. Everyone can see us, how stupid in love we are. All I ever wanted was for Jamie to allow me to be by his side while he succeeds, and now I’m here. And it feels pretty damn good.
When he sets me back down on the ice, I look up at him with a huge grin.
“You did it,” I tell him, my voice shaky from crying. Jamie’s grin grows wider.
“Hell yeah, I did. And I did it for you, Sweetheart.”
Chuckling breathily, I say, “I’m so proud of you.”
His eyes flicker with admiration and relief, as if he’d been waiting to hear me say those words to him his whole life.
“You came,” he states.
“Of course I came,” I tell him, reaching up to cup his cheek. My thumb moves back and forth slowly.
“I didn’t think hockey was your thing,” he shrugs sarcastically.
A single tear runs down my cheek as I stroke his. “You are my thing.”
“I love you, Ellie Monroe,” he says, leaning down until he’s inches away from my lips. My eyes bounce between his blue eyes and his lips.
“I love you, Jamie Patterson.”
His lips crash onto mine, and the whole world disappears. The sounds of the arena, the chaos around us, it all freezes. It’s just Jamie and me.
Since I came back to Ellington, since I saw Jamie again, I fought with myself over how I felt. I told myself I couldn’t love him. I couldn’t possibly give him another chance after what he did. I thought loving him meant risking everything I’d rebuilt.
But loving someone doesn’t erase who you are, it shows you that you can still be who you want to be, you’ll just have someone there by your side to cheer you on.
Jamie pulls away, his hand tangled in my hair. “You ready for a lifetime with me, Sweetheart?”
I look around us at the fans cheering, the confetti falling, Jamie’s teammates celebrating and nod.
“You sure that’s what you want, Hockey Star?” I ask with a smirk.
“I’ve never been so sure of anything in my goddamn life.”