17. Dan
CHAPTER 17
DAN
The clock ticks down in the final period, and we’re down 3-1 against the Jacks, the team I want to beat so bad, I can taste it. I can sense the tension in the air, and every member of the Blizzard is pushing their limits. As their captain, it’s my job to lead by example, and that’s what I do as I see an opening, deep in the final period.
Puck on my stick, I skate down the ice, dodging defenders like they’re standing still. Out of the corner of my eye, I spot Nick, our new rookie recruit, fresh from college, in the perfect position near the net. He’s ready, eager, and instinctively, I know this is his moment.
With a quick flick of my wrist, I send the puck his way. It’s a perfect pass, sliding through the chaos of skates and sticks. Just as I’d planned, Nick pulls back his stick and fires a shot.
As I watch, time seems to slow. The puck sails past the Jacks’ goalie, hitting the back of the net with a satisfying thud . The arena erupts in ecstatic cheers as I skate over to Nick and collect his bulky frame in a hug. Nick’s face is a mix of disbelief and pure joy.
“Great job, kid,” I say, proud of him and our team.
“Plenty more where that came from,” he replies with a grin.
We scramble for the next play, taking our chances where we can. At 3-2 down, we’ve got nothing to lose, but as the final horn blares, we’ve lost. Despite it, I’m proud of my team, and I’m proud of myself. What a way to end my career as captain of the Chicago Blizzard, a position I’ve held since returning to Chicago from Maple Falls.
I spot Keira in the stands, standing with Emmy, my parents, and Mimi, who made the journey to Chicago for my final NHL match, despite her health. Alongside my family is Clara with her kids, Benny—who made it onto a team this year and is now officially a hockey addict—and Hannah, still a figure-skating princess. Clara being here is a big deal. She’s not left Maple Falls since she was diagnosed with CFS. But lately, she is managing her health enough that she’s been able to spend more time with her kids, and even hold down a part-time job, doing admin for a business in downtown Maple Falls.
As I always have since those games back in Maple Falls, I skate over to the plexiglass and blow Keira a kiss, and as usual, people swivel to see, and applause radiates through the arena.
It turns out, people love a second-chance love story—and I’m more than happy to have provided them with ours.
It’s become our thing, my blowing Keira a kiss at the end of each game, win or lose. People talk about it in the media and love to speculate over how long we’ll last and when I’m going to put a ring on it.
They’ll get their answer to both of those questions soon enough.
After a team debrief in the locker room, Coach leads a standing ovation for me, thanking me for my service to the team as both a player and, in the last year, as the team captain. There’s a party for me to say goodbye to everyone tomorrow night, and it’s with an odd sense of pride, nostalgia, and a touch of regret that I say goodbye to both the team and the arena, the place where so many of my memories have been made.
But tonight isn’t about the past. It’s about the future. My future, to be specific.
I pull my car into my driveway and take a moment before I head inside. I know Keira is in there with her sister and niece and nephew, along with my whole family, Ethan included. They’ve all been such important parts of my life, each of them, and as I sit in the dark, I say a little prayer of gratitude for them all.
It takes many to make the career of one, and I’ve been so very lucky to have this group of people by my side, every step of the way.
The house is filled with soft music and chatter as I enter it and look around. With its high ceilings and wide staircase, hardwood floors and expensive art, all it is to me is a house. Soon, I’ll be moving back to Maple Falls where I intend to make a home.
I step into the living room, and everyone greets me with hugs and kisses and congratulations. Mom is busy making sure everyone is fed with Emmy as her helper; my brother, Ethan, visiting from some movie set in Europe, is topping off people’s drinks; Dad is telling stories of my youth and expressing how proud he is of his son’s hockey career; Clara is listening dutifully as her kids yawn. It’s way past their bedtime, but everyone knew they wouldn’t want to miss my last NHL game, least of all Benny .
And then there’s Keira. She’s talking to my mom and Emmy, smiling warmly, wearing my jersey, and looking so unbelievably beautiful, it makes me catch my breath. She turns to me and smiles, and I stride over to her to pull her into a kiss.
“How was it?” she asks.
“It was … well, it was a lot of things.”
“I bet it was. Did Coach get all misty eyed as he said goodbye to you?”
I think of Coach O’Donnell, this big, former player, and how he choked back tears as he gave his speech in the locker room. “A little.”
“They’re so going to miss you.”
I press another kiss to her lips. “They’ll just have to come visit us.”
Her face creases into her beautiful smile.
Suddenly, it’s urgent I do what I plan on doing tonight. “Wait right here, okay? I’ll be right back,” I say.
“I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.”
I give Ethan a gesture, and he follows me into the dining room.
“Have you got it?” I ask.
“Of course I do.” He flashes me his Hollywood smile. “You ready for this?”
A sense of peace envelops me. Peace, joy, and love.
“Sure am,” I say.
“Well then, let’s do this.”
I collect a glass and spoon from the sideboard and, holding them up, I clink them together to get everyone’s attention. As all eyes land on me, I hold my hand out for Keira, who slips past Emmy to be by my side.
“Speech time, huh?” she says.
“Something like that,” I murmur to her before I address the room. “As you all know, tonight was my final game for the Blizzard. Being a part of the team, and in the last year, being their captain, has been a dream come true for me, a dream I know many of you have had active involvement in over the years. Mom, Dad, I’m looking at you.”
“We love you, honey,” Mom says.
“Tonight marks the end of one chapter, and it’s also the beginning of another one, one that’s bringing me home to Maple Falls. But there’s one small thing I need to take care of before I get on that plane with you all in a couple days.”
“Sell the house?” Dad asks, and people laugh.
I smile. “There’s that, too, but this is a slightly more personal thing.”
Ethan pulls a small blue box from his pocket and hands it to me. Several people suck in a breath, knowing what’s coming next, and as I turn to Keira and take both her hands in mine, she smiles up at me, softening me to Jell-O.
“Dan? Wh-what are you doing?” she asks, a tremble in her voice.
“Keira. Kiki. You were my first love, and my last, and I cannot imagine my life without you in it.” I lower myself onto one knee, open the ring box, her hand held in mine. “Will you do me the very great honor of marrying me?”
Her hand flies to her chest, her face lifting into the dimpled smile I so adore. “Oh, Dan, yes. Yes! I’ll marry you.”
I slide the ring onto her finger. A perfect fit. I share a smile with Clara, who waggles her brows at me. It was Clara who told me what size ring to get, and I swore her to secrecy, which, judging by the way Keira’s hand is trembling right now, she stuck to.
“Dan, it’s so beautiful,” she says, gazing down into the diamond. She lifts her face to mine, tears tumbling down her cheeks. “Thank you.”
“You’re the one that’s beautiful,” I say softly. “I love you, the future Keira Roberts.” I pull her close to me and brush a soft and tender kiss against her lips as everyone cheers and applauds.
When I’d decided that tonight was the night I was going to ask Keira to be my wife, Ethan had suggested I do it on the ice at tonight’s game, in front of the world. But that’s not Keira’s style. She’s more of a family person, never seeking the limelight, and I know everyone in this room means so much to her. I wanted them to share in our happiness, too.
Everyone congratulates us, pulling us into earnest, loving hugs, raising their glasses to toast us, and it’s impossible not to feel the love that fills the room to bursting.
In a few days we’ll all be back in Maple Falls. I’ll be readying myself to teach kids how to play hockey at Troy and Kelly’s arena and taking my position as coach of the high school team, too. Keira will be back at the Maple Falls Farmers’ Market in the town she loves, and our new lives will begin. And I know I’ll be right back where I belong, with my first love, my only love, my Kiki.