Easy Puck

by Belle, Melissa

  I stare out the window of my high-rise apartment building. All I can see in the distance are more high-rises. When I look down, the cars zipping by look like ants from this distance.

  “I’m fine,” I say again. “Work is good. The musical is everything I thought it would be.”

  “So why do you sound so miserable?” she asks me.

  I knew she’d see right through me. That’s why I’ve kept our phone calls so brief whenever she’s called.

  “I don’t know,” I say finally. “I guess because I miss Hunter.”

  “Speaking of, you two haven’t talked at all?”

  “No. We can’t do long distance. It’s Hunter and me—I don’t know, I guess whatever it was we had when I was home was never meant to last.”

  “Or maybe it was,” she says confidently.

  “Charly. Ash said the same thing when she called last night. You two are delusional. Hunter Storm is not a relationship guy. He told me so himself.”

  “Hunter Storm never had you in his bed night after night,” Charly says. “I bet he misses you. And you know what I heard? He lives alone.”

  “What? Hunter can’t live alone. He doesn’t play well when he does.” I don’t mention where his issue stems from, although Charly could probably guess.

  “Well, he is. Cathy takes care of Theo when the boys go on road trips. She isn’t thrilled about it, but Hunter hasn’t found someone else he trusts yet. And the crazy thing? He’s still playing at an MVP level. Living alone isn’t screwing up his game anymore.”

  “That’s so good to hear.” I smile wider than I have since I left New Orleans. “I’m thrilled for him. I’ve tried to catch a few of his games, but my rehearsals are really intense right now, and they’re always running late into the night. I know his stats are still off the charts, though.”

  “Win?”

  “Yeah?”

  “What’s really going on?”

  I sigh. “I’m not enjoying this, Charly. Being back. Being the lead for what I thought was my dream role. I feel so ungrateful.”

  “Maybe you’d rather be happy than a star,” she says.

  “But this was the plan,” I say. “This was always the plan.”

  “Maybe your plans have changed. Maybe you’ve changed.”

  Maybe I have.

  And just like that, I know what I have to do.

  * * *

  Hunter

  Liam and I drive home from the airport in his truck. We just crushed Dallas and clinched the division in the process. I had one of the best games of the season with three goals and an assist.

  All this good shit going on, and I’m in a crappy mood.

  “What’s up your ass?” Liam growls as we stop at a light.

  “Nothing. Fuck you.” I look out the window and smile when I see the storefront of Les Anderson’s studio.

  Everything these days reminds me of Winter. When I come across a hair tie that she left behind in the bathroom. When I smell her shampoo on the pillow she slept on in my bed. When I find her favorite jar of almond butter still in the refrigerator. God, I miss her. And like a stubborn ass, I haven’t called her once.

  “You’re a dumbass, you know that?” Liam turns off the main road and onto the side street toward his house. “Why’d you let her go?”

  “This is the role of a lifetime for her,” I say. “What did you expect me to do—stop her from living her dream?”

  “You’re even dumber than I thought,” Liam says. “I wasn’t talking about holding her back. I was talking about staying together even while she’s in New York.”

  I turn away from the window and look at him. “Like a long-distance thing?”

  “Yes, you stubborn fool. A long-distance ‘thing.’ God, and she puts up with you?” He chuckles.

  “I don’t know if I can do that,” I say as I mull over the concept. “Long-distance.”

  “You haven’t even so much as looked at another woman since Winter left town. You’re seriously worried you’re going to cheat on her?”

  “No, not at all. I just mean that I can’t figure out how we’d work between New York City and New Orleans. Not to mention all the travel that hockey entails.”

  “If you analyze how a relationship is or isn’t going to work, you’ll never get past the starting gate,” Liam says. “Just ask yourself this—do you love her? If so, stop fucking around and go get her.”

  Christ. He’s fucking right.

  * * *

  Winter

  Rehearsal goes extra late tonight. Good thing the New Orleans Fire had the night off so I didn’t miss another game. I stare down at my phone the entire cab ride to my apartment. My finger hovers over Hunter’s contact information.

  I want to call him and hear his voice.

  I settle for a text.

  How are you? I miss you and Theo.

  The message goes through, but I don’t hear back from him.

  The taxi pulls up to the curb outside my building, and I pay the driver and hop out.

  I’m walking slowly toward my door when I see a figure sitting on the front steps. It’s dark, and the shadows of the nearby oak tree block his face from view.

  Hoping it’s not some guy looking to get into the building when he doesn’t have a key, I pick up my pace as I plan to scoot past him. I keep my head down and take a wide angle so I don’t need to get close to him.

  When I’m a few feet away, I hear, “Hey, Princess.”

  I look over at the man who’s in the middle of rising to his feet. As he steps out of the shadowy backdrop, I see him.

  Those unmistakable green eyes that look at me like lasers; a strong jaw with a five o’clock shadow; a smile playing around his lips, and one hand running through his dark hair. His dark suit and white shirt look sexy as hell.

  “Hunter!” I hurl myself into his arms, and he catches me.

  We cling to each other for a few seconds, and when he finally puts me down on the ground, I can’t stop smiling at him.

  “You look so good,” I say.

  “So do you.” He touches my cheek. “You’re tired, though.”

  “I am.” I’m exhausted, actually. I didn’t realize how much until just now. I tilt my head and take him in. “What are you doing here?” I gasp. “You’ll get fined for missing practice tomorrow! You can’t stay!”

  “Relax.” He puts his arm around my shoulders and guides me inside my building. “I talked to my coach. It’s all good. I’ll be back in time for practice. I never changed out of my travel suit from the game earlier today. I just went straight to the airport.”

  “You weren’t at the airport?”

  He runs his hand across his jaw. “I was at the airport. Then, Liam and I started for home. We were almost there, but we were talking…about you, and…”

  My heart comes up into my throat. “You were talking about me?”

  “Yeah. Liam helped me realize what an idiot I was in letting you go.”

  I freeze in the middle of my apartment lobby. “He did?”

  “He did. I…” Hunter shoves his hands into his pockets and tilts his chin toward the elevators. “Can we maybe go up to your apartment and talk?”

  “Oh.” God, I’m so flustered. “Yes. Of course. Let’s go.”

  We head into a waiting elevator car, and I press the button for the nineteenth floor.

  “Winter.” Hunter’s eyes hold mine. “Here’s the thing: I love you.”

  I stare at him. “You do?”

  He nods, his serious gaze holding mine. “I’ve loved you for a while. I just didn’t want to hold you back, and I didn’t want to fuck up what we had, and…well, I was a coward. I should have told you before. I love you so much, Win.”

  A love declaration in an elevator. I don’t think I ever pictured this moment with Hunter. I never allowed myself to. But the truth is that I think I’ve always loved him.

  I reach for his suit jacket and pull him closer. “I love you, too, Hunt. Honestly, I loved you when we wer
e teenagers. I didn’t let my heart speak too much on the matter, but you were always it for me.”

  His eyes darken as he swallows hard. “You’ve always, always been the only woman for me, Winter Allen. Nothing has ever changed that.” He puts his hands on my hips and tugs me closer to him. “I want to make this work. Long-distance. We’re not kids anymore. We can do this.”

  “We can,” I agree. “But we don’t have to.”

  He furrows his brow as the elevator comes to a stop and the doors open. As we step out and head down the hall toward my apartment, he says, “I don’t get it.”

  “I’m coming home,” I tell him. “To New Orleans.”

  His brow creases with concern. “But the show—it’s your dream.”

  “It was my dream,” I correct him. “I have bigger dreams now. Like being happy.”

  I unlock my door, and we step inside.

  “Are you sure?” he asks me. “It’s a lot to give up.”

  “I’m going to stay through the limited run of this show,” I say. “Because I owe my younger self that closure. But then, I’m packing up and leaving Broadway for good. It’s what my soul needs. You were right—my musical is my passion. I want to write my own roles and songs from now on. And I don’t want to do that living in a city where I have no ties and where I feel like I have to join the race or I’ll be run over. I want to slow down and actually enjoy life again.”

  “I’m happy for you,” he says, his green eyes lighting up. He picks me up and swings me around. “You’ll kick ass at whatever you do.”

  I wrap my legs around his waist. “I’ve missed you so much. I’ve tried to keep up with your games but it’s been hard. I know you’re still a scoring machine, though.”

  He brushes his lips against mine. “True.”

  “What about living alone?” I ask him. “Has that been hard?”

  “You know what?” He kisses me lightly. “You said I helped you to heal. You did the same for me. I don’t have a housemate right now. And I’ve been okay. Other than how much I want you back home with me. But no nightmares or scoring slumps.”

  “I think it’s because you got closure when the killer was caught,” I say. “I’d love to say it was because of me, but I don’t think that’s the truth.”

  “Both things are true,” he says. “I’m a better man with you in my life, Winter.”

  “You’re sweet.” I kiss him back.

  “Where’s your bedroom?” He pats my ass. “I want to make up for lost time before I leave tomorrow.”

  I point him toward the hallway. We barely make it through the doorway of my room before we’re in a full-on make-out session.

  Hunter has both our clothes off faster than I can blink. He backs me up against the wall and lifts me up. As he slides into me, I know this won’t take long. He’s hard and urgent, and his powerful energy surrounds me. He only thrusts a few times before I feel myself clench around him.

  He grips my ass, and I’m all the way there.

  “Fastest orgasm…on…record,” I pant out as I finish coming.

  “Damn, Winter.” His head drops to my shoulder. “I’m right behind you, babe.”

  I lock my ankles together as he comes, and as soon as he raises his head to meet my gaze, I say, “We’re not going to sleep tonight, are we?”

  He kisses me for a long time, and then he murmurs into my lips, “No fucking chance.”

  We may not get any sleep, but Hunter and I definitely make up for lost time. And every second of missed sleep is worth it.

  He’s worth it.

  I love him. All those years apart, and we’re both finally ready for the real thing.

  Letting go of old dreams for new ones has never felt so good.

  Epilogue

  Three Months Later

  Hunter

  I glance up at the clock. Less than a minute left.

  We’re running out of damn time.

  I hustle my ass down the boards and slam into Declan Wild as he keeps the puck and maneuvers across the ice. Wild’s a stickhandling master, and he’s been successfully wasting time for over a minute already. No one from our team’s been able to take the puck away from him.

  The Montana Wild Kings are kicking our ass tonight. We won our first playoff series for our franchise in four games and then made it through the next one in six games before meeting the Wild Kings in the finals. We’ve taken them to seven games, but they’re up three to one in this seventh and final game of the series that will determine the league champion.

  Declan continues to skate around the ice like he’s not being chased by six angry men. We cleared the goalie already, so it’s all hands on deck to try to bring down Goliath.

  But it won’t be happening today.

  The buzzer sounds, and the Wild Kings start celebrating on their home ice as my teammates and I skate over to our bench and exit the ice for the last time this season.

  To get all the way to the end like that and then lose…

  Stings like hell.

  But when I glance up into the stands and see Winter clapping and looking right at me, I realize how damn lucky I am.

  I hold up my stick and point it at her.

  * * *

  In truth, I have very little to complain about.

  This has been a crazy-good year.

  I win my first league MVP. And I know New Orleans is going to get their own championship trophy soon. I’m going to be sure we bring a championship to my home city. I won’t let that story end any other way.

  And even more importantly, I have the love of my life by my side.

  Winter stayed in New York for a month like she planned, and I flew there for opening night of Summerset Nights. Charly and Ashley joined me along with Winter’s parents.

  Winter was phenomenal in her role. I know how hard she worked to get back to this level. To get over what that asshole did to her and stand on a stage again. But she told me she had no second thoughts about leaving when the show’s run is over.

  And so, when she was ready, I helped Winter pack up, and we came home to the bayou. She moved in with me. Some people may think we’re moving too fast, but for Winter and me, it feels like it took a decade to finally end up where we belong—together.

  She reached out to Les Anderson, and they were on the same page. Seems he’d been going around the city, trying to find a home for her musical. And he got one at a cool theater right off the French Quarter.

  Winter asked Les if he would direct it, and he agreed but only if Winter played the lead. She said yes, and the two of them went about casting the rest of the characters.

  Now, tonight is opening night, and I have a special surprise planned for afterward.

  I sit with Liam, Murph, Charly and Simon, Declan and Callie, and Ashley. Winter’s parents are directly in front of us. Her mama’s so thrilled; as she keeps telling me, if she’d known she could have the best of both, she would have urged her only child to stay in New Orleans years ago.

  Winter nails her performance. She bows for the standing ovation at the end of the night, and when I catch her eye, she gives me a little wave.

  I wink, hoping she knows how proud I am of her.

  She was willing to change plans and follow her heart. To learn how to be kind to herself and still follow her ambitions.

  I also know what it took for me to open up my heart again after losing both my parents. And the only woman I could ever love is standing on that stage before me.

  After the show, I go backstage with a bouquet of roses for her.

  We’re in her dressing room, and Winter thanks me as she buries her face in the roses to sniff them.

  “Ouch!” She brings her head up and stares into the roses.

  I hide my smile. “Everything okay?”

  “Yes, it’s just that I banged my nose on someth—” She pulls out a shiny piece of jewelry. “Hunter? What is this?”

  I take the ring out of her hand and drop down on one knee. “It’s exactly what it looks l
ike.”

  She puts her hands over her mouth.

  “Winter Princess Allen, I love you. I will always love and respect and cherish you. Will you marry me?” I didn’t think I’d be nervous. I’m used to being in the spotlight and needing to deliver in the clutch. And yet, here I am with shaking hands, hoping the woman I love will say yes.

  “Yes.” She drops to her knees, and I slip the ring on her finger.

  I take her chin in my hand and kiss her to seal the deal.

  We’re still kissing when there’s a loud bang on her dressing room door.

  “Can we come in?” Ashley’s voice says.

  Winter laughs. “Sure.”

  Ashley and Charly barge through the door with Murph in tow.

  “Well?” Murph stares at us. “I got his plan out of him, Win. So you may as well tell us first—are y’all getting hitched?”

  “We are,” she says.

  He scoops her up in his arms for a hug, and then he pounds my back. Ashley has some gold squares in her hand, and she takes her water bottle and starts soaking a paper towel from the stash on Winter’s dressing table.

  “What the hell are you doing?” I ask Ashley.

  “Giving us all some temporary tats. To celebrate your engagement in style.” She presses a square onto my upper arm and holds a wet paper towel over it.

  When she peels off the backing, I stare down at a glittery gold NOLA Groom design on my arm.

  “NOLA Groom?” Murph breaks into laughter. “That’s pretty funny.”

  Ashley grabs his arm and presses a square and then a wet paper towel onto him next. When she peels off the backing—

  “For Better or Worse?” He squints at the design tattooed on his arm. “Is that a gold dick pic below the words?”

  Ashley smirks at him. “It’s not an actual picture. It’s a design to match the slogan. That’s what you get for making fun of my business accessories.”

  “I wasn’t making fun!” he protests as he tries to wipe off the tattoo.