Epilogue
JP watched the kids playing in the kiddie pool, splashing and jumping, shouting and having the very best time in the water on this very hot and humid day.
He himself was feeling gross and sweaty, and he’d just been sitting out here.
In the damned shade even. Days like today made it hard to believe that there was ever going to be a wind chill day again.
Ian had gone to make lemonade so they could all hydrate. He would have offered to help, but it would have meant moving and while he was pretty mobile these days, he did not want to move in this heat. He was thinking tomorrow they needed to go to the arena during open ice just to cool off.
His phone rang, and he glanced at it, frowning when he didn’t recognize the number. “Hello?”
“Mr. Terrebonne? This is Sandra Grenier, general manager of the Ottawa Fireworks.”
He blinked, shook his head. The Fireworks were a solid women’s team. He’d watched some of their games with Tori, letting her see her heroes playing, letting her know people who looked like her were kicking ass on the ice.
“Hello, Ms. Grenier. Call me JP. What can I do for you?” Holy crap, what could he do for them?
“Well, I was talking to Angus Castlewood — he’s a good friend of mine — and he suggested you were looking for a coaching position here. I have an assistant coaching position open, and I was wondering if we could chat.”
“Absolutely we could chat.” Damn, he owed Angus another steak dinner. Maybe a dozen of them.
“Excellent. We could use someone who understands offense on a deep personal level, and we are excited to hear you’re here and available.”
Available?
He’d be Tori’s hero. He’d be traveling, which he loved, but home most of the time, and he’d be able to bring his family along a lot too, he bet.
“It sounds like a wonderful opportunity.” He kept his voice calm, but inside he was jumping up and down.
“Excellent. Can you come down to the practice rink tomorrow? Say ten a.m.?”
“That works.”
“Excellent. Don’t bother with a suit and tie. We’ll of course travel with them, but this is a casual meeting to greet the team.”
“Good to know.” He hesitated for a just a second, but if this was casual and not a full day or anything… “Would it be possible to bring my daughter? She’s a huge fan and future member of the team.”
“Of course! Bring your family. We’d love to meet them. Angus showed me pictures. The twins are beautiful.”
He beamed, even though she couldn’t see that through the phone. “Thank you very much; I will bring all three of them. And thanks for this opportunity.” He couldn’t wait to tell Ian. And, of course, Tori.
“Thank you. I’m so looking forward to this. Have a great day.”
They hung up, and Ian came out with the lemonade. “Everything okay?”
He nodded slowly, then gave Ian a huge grin. “I just got off the phone with the general manager of the Ottawa Fireworks.”
“The women’s team?” Ian frowned. “Whatever for?”;
“They’re looking for an assistant coach. Apparently Angus knows the GM, and he mentioned I was looking for something here in town, and they think I might be a good fit.” He watched Ian’s face, waiting for it to dawn on him.
“Here? Like you’ll be home except for away games?” Ian’s eyes went wide.
He laughed. “Yes. I’d be able to be involved with the game. And be home with you guys except for away games. I’d be coaching Tori’s heroes.”
“And we could come with you, sometimes?”
There was his husband.
“Hell, the kids’ll only be in kindergarten, right? You could come with me every time.” They could totally afford to pay their way.
“Wow.” Ian shook his head. “Tori’s going to pee herself. When do they want to interview you?”
“I’ve been invited – hell, we’ve all been invited – to go to practice at 10:30 tomorrow.” He had such a good feeling about this. Maybe he was fooling himself, but he didn’t think so.
“Oh. Oh, how fun is that? I’d love to. The kids will be so excited. So, this feels…good.”
“It does. I kind of feel like I did right before I first got drafted. I knew it was coming. I just knew.” He pulled Ian close and hugged him tight.
“You always know. You’ve got that IQ.” Ian stole a kiss.
“This is going to be good, Chou. For all of us.”
“It is. We’re together. That’s all we need.”
He had to agree. Ian and Tori and Peter were all he needed. That he was going to also get to stay in hockey was icing on the cake.
He’d thought it was over — his life, his career, his world. He thought the puck stopped here.
But the game hadn’t ended at all.
In fact, it had just begun.
Thank you for reading The Puck Stops Here. I hope you enjoyed Ian and JP’s story. I had so much fun writing it.
Looking for more in the Heart Goals world? Angus and Mike’s story is coming up later in 2026.