Chapter 40

Chapt er 40

Amber

I sit in between Stephanie and Bri and try not to be nervous, when in actuality, I feel like I'm going to throw up. And it has nothing to do with the baby this time. No, this time, it has everything to do with the men out on the ice. I saw Adam out earlier with his team. I've been so nervous for this game. Rico told me again earlier not to worry about it, but that's not possible. I shift in my chair and try to get comfortable as the opening montage for the Green Thunder begins. The excitement in the building is palpable. It always is when these two teams face off. I clap and cheer when our guys are announced, especially my goalie; but it's hard to shake my nerves.

Bri grabs my hand and squeezes as Aiden heads to the center of the ice. "It will be okay," she shouts over the noise. I nod, unable to say anything. My eyes are glued to the ice, but she squeezes my hand again. I look over at her and realize she may not be as unaffected as she's trying to play off. Just like that, my nerves return. The puck drops, and we're off. Aiden wins the faceoff and sends it hurling to Sebastian. Sebastian weaves around a player effortlessly and sends it to Gunner, who sends it right back to Aiden. They take a shot, but it's blocked by their goalie. There's a collective groan in the arena as the other team takes the puck. And then it happens. Adam gets the puck. Aiden is on him in a flash, and he slams him brutally against the boards. Bri's hand squeezes mine so tightly, I'm sure it's going to leave a mark. I refuse to look away from the game to check, though. Aiden steals it away and gets away from the wall. But he's hit hard against the glass before he can do anything with it. He battles against the Devils for possession and comes away with it. He passes it off, and I breath a tiny sigh of relief. We're at our end for a little bit but can't get a score. And then Adam gets the puck again. Aiden's on him in a flash and barely misses getting him against the boards before he's chasing him down again. Gunner comes out of nowhere and slams him against the boards, and Sebastian swoops in for the puck. The crowd goes wild as Sebastian flies towards the goal. He fakes and then slams it into the net, setting off the alarm and the entire arena erupts. Stephanie jumps to her feet, waving wildly as Sebastian points to his ring finger before getting slammed by his teammates.

We get back into the game, and this time it's Sebastian that gets Adam. I cringe, but Stephanie screams wildly for her man. And that's how the first period goes. We're up one to zero, but that's not really the focus of the game. The hits against Adam have been brutal. So far, we haven't had any penalties, but I know they're coming, especially for Aiden if he doesn't back off.

I turn to Bri during the intermission. "He's going to get in trouble."

She shakes her head. "Aiden does what Aiden's going to do."

"He shouldn't be going after him like that. Did you tell him to?"

Bri's eyes widen. "I told him to stay away from Adam. That's all him."

The second period starts out with crazy excitement when we make a goal only seconds in. But then the Devils get the puck. I put my hand on my stomach to try to ease the cramping this game is causing. Rico makes an amazing save, and I can't help but add my voice to the overly enthusiastic audience. Gunner scores right before the end of the period, putting us up three to zero.

I stand immediately to my feet. "I have to pee. I'm never going to make it for another period."

"We'll go with," Stephanie says. We make our way through the insane crowd, wait in a ridiculously long line, and finally make it back to our seats just as they're gearing up to start the third period.

If I thought the last two periods were bad, they were nothing compared to the third period. Aiden finally gets his penalty and spends two minutes in the box, putting the Devils into a power play. They skate towards our net, and I hold my breath. One of their guys shoots, but Rico keeps it out of the net. We spend the entire two minutes of Aiden's penalty at our end, but somehow we keep the puck out of the net. And then Aiden's back in play. And then, the most terrifying thing happens. The puck goes behind the net, and Rico chases it down. Adam comes flying out of nowhere and slams his head into Rico's from behind. Rico's body flips around, his helmet flies off, and he hits the ice. I scream as the arena erupts in anger. Aiden and Gunner come flying in and start wailing on Adam, with Sebastian and Zac right behind. The Devils players join in and it's an all-out brawl. Even their goalie joins in. I feel like I'm going to throw up as I watch. This is all my fault. I shake my head. I turn to Stephanie, who's eyes are glued to the ice.

"I need out," I shout loud enough for her to hear. She must see the look on my face because she sits quickly to get out of my way.

Bri snags my hand before I can leave. "What are you doing?"

I shake my head, swallowing to keep from throwing up. I can't form the words. "I'll go with you." Stephanie joins us as well, and we push through to get to the end of our row. We climb to the top, and then I don't know where to go next.

"Come on. We'll just go to the family and friends area," Stephanie says, taking charge. We make our way there. The security guard on duty recognizes us and lets us in. Stephanie and Bri both sit in front of the huge screen. I can't even watch; I'm too sick. They talk quietly between them about penalties and power plays, but I don't bother to ask. That is until I hear Stephanie say, "Oh shoot."

I turn around and stare as Rico and Adam circle. "What are they doing?" But I know what's about to happen. I stare in horror as Rico goes after Adam.

"Wow, I didn't know the goalie had it in him," I hear somebody in the room say. I don't stick around to watch. I head to the bathroom and unload the contents of my stomach. After sitting there a while, I finally stand up and wash my mouth out with some water and wash my hands before making my way back out.

"Is it over?" I ask in a shaky voice.

Bri turns to me. "Hey." She stands up and comes over to me and rubs my arm. "It's okay. The game's over."

"The fight?"

She smiles. "Rico's fine."

"Did we win?"

"Yes. It was a shut-out. Your boy did good. We won four to zero."

I take a shaky breath and try to settle my racing heart. The door opens and sweaty hockey players begin making their way inside wearing matching grins. I take in the split lips, bruised faces, and shake my head. Sebastian grins and tries to kiss Stephanie, who squeals and pushes his sweaty face away. Aiden gives Bri a kiss, but I wait for my man to walk through. He finally comes through the door. I take him in in an instant. He's okay. I run to him and throw my arms around him as tightly as I can, which is pretty stinking difficult both with my belly and all his padding. "Hey," he says in concern. "Are you okay?"

I lean back and glare daggers up at him. First off, he's so stinking tall in his skates and massive with all his padding on. I poke him in the chest, not that he feels it. "Am I okay? You fought with him."

His eyes darken, and his smile slips. "Yeah, Baby, I did. And I'd go several more rounds if they'd let me."

"Rico."

He grins at me. "I tried to tell you to sit this one out, remember?"

I shake my head. "I will never understand hockey players."

"We're a wild bunch," Sebastian says, joining us and punching Rico in the chest. "Did you see your man out there throwing down? I'm so proud of my boy." He ruffles his hair and Rico grabs his wrist and twists. I back out of the way, so I don't get stuck in the middle of it.

"Go shower, Sebastian," Stephanie says loudly.

He turns to her with a grin. "Yes, Ma'am." He turns back to us. "I love it when she uses her sexy teacher voice on me."

Rico shoves him. "Go away." Sebastian all but skips over to Stephanie and hauls her in for a kiss.

I stare up at my man. "Are you sure you're okay?"

He grins. "Never better." I release the breath I feel like I've been holding all night. "I'll go shower, and then we can get going, okay?"

I nod. "Yeah."

He pauses. "You good?"

"Yeah." I give him a weary smile. "I'm good." He walks into the locker room, and I sit down to wait. The door to the waiting area slams open and crashes into the wall. I turn in surprise to see Chloe storming into the room, which is a feat in those crazy high heels she's wearing.

"Hey Chloe," Stephanie says with a saucy wave. "Whatcha doing here?"

"I'm here to talk to those boneheads in there," she says, marching forward. We all watch openmouthed as she walks right over to the locker room and throws the door open. "Cover up. I'm coming in!" The door shuts behind her, and we all stare at each other.

"I think she's the bravest woman I know," Bri says.

"Or the dumbest," Stephanie adds.

My eyes widen when I hear shouting coming from the locker room. Seconds later, the door opens, and she comes storming back out. "Uh, are you okay, Chloe?" Bri asks tentatively.

"No, I'm not okay. Those idiots are going to be the death of me." Without another word, she storms off.

"Well, at least she's not intense or anything," I mutter, causing Stephanie to bust a gut. "I'm going to head out to the car," I tell them suddenly feeling like I can't stay awake another minute. I think my adrenaline is crashing after this crazy night. "Can you tell Rico I'll meet him at home?"

"You sure?" Bri asks.

"Yeah. I'm really tired."

Her eyebrows knot in concern. "Why don't you wait for him to drive you home?" That suddenly sounds like a much better idea.

"Yeah, that sounds even better. Can you tell him I'm in his truck?" He gave me a key to his truck for this very thing. I can go sit in his truck and get the heat going and just relax while I wait for him. I make my way out to the parking lot and go to my car first so I can get everything I need for tomorrow. I'll see if he can drop me off here tomorrow to grab my car. My stomach knots when I think about what tomorrow is. I can't believe I'm getting married tomorrow. I try not to think about it because I'll get sick again. I open the backseat and grab my bag. When I turn around, I let out a small scream. "Adam! You scared me. What are you doing?" He grabs my arm, and I tense. I'm suddenly aware that I'm outside by myself in a dark parking lot with a man I don't trust.

"You need to call off your guard dogs," he seethes.

"Hey Amber," Bri's voice sounds from somewhere behind me. "You left your phone. I brought it..." her voice fades. "Get away from her!" she demands.

My panic doubles when she comes into view. "It's okay, Bri; we're just talking."

Adam shakes me hard. "No, we're not. I'm warning you what will happen if you don't call off your guard dogs. I haven't done anything to you. I stayed away just like I was warned by that psychopath."

Bri comes and stands next to me. "Go away, Adam. You're just upset because you lost. Go home and cool off."

He gets in her face. "Back off, b—" And then he's ripped away from both of us.

Aiden's here. Aiden spins him around and throws his fist into his nose faster than I can blink. "Aiden, stop," Bri says. She puts her hand on his shoulder. "Just let him go. Call security and let them deal with him." Aiden's breathing hard, and I know he's having a hard time letting him go.

"It's okay, Aiden," I add. "He's not worth it."

That was the wrong thing to say. Adam throws Aiden off and comes after me. He grabs my arm and wrenches it to the side, causing me to cry out. And then Adam's hauled away from me, but this time it's not Aiden. Rico slams him against the car. Adam strains against him, but Rico has him pinned. "You listen very carefully to me. You don't touch her again. You don't talk to her. You don't contact her. Ever. If you want to have contact with the baby, you go through me."

Adam scoffs. "Like I would ever want that."

"Then sign papers and give her full custody and then stay out of her life. Forever." He leans in closer. "And know this. The only reason I'm not beating you right now is because she's standing here watching and hates fighting. Touch her again, and I won't be this gracious twice."

"Thank you, Mr. Garcia. Security can take it from here."

I turn at the sound of Chloe's professional voice. Two security guards step up next to Rico. I put my hand on his back, and he steps back, releasing Adam. Adam sneers at me as he walks past, but I put my hand on Rico's chest so he doesn't respond. Chloe smiles at him. "Mr. Grey, have we had the pleasure of meeting? I don't think we have," she continues before he has a chance to say anything. She takes a step backwards, right into Gunner. She doesn't even bat an eye and pretends that Gunner's not right there.

"Who are you?" Adam practically spits.

"Me? Why I'm the woman who's going to make sure your hockey career is over." She smiles as she says the words. He spins towards her, but Gunner steps in front of her. She waves at somebody, and I turn to see a police car entering the parking lot with its lights flashing.

"What did you do?" he growls.

"Oh, I just made a call," she says with a smile that is anything but sweet.

Rico gently turns me to face him. "Are you okay? Did he hurt you?" His eyes scan me head to toe.

"No, I'm fine." He pulls me into his arms, making me feel safe and protected. "Thanks for protecting me."

He kisses my forehead. "Always. You're mine to protect now, remember?" I smile up at him for a moment and then lay my head on his chest and watch as the police officer talks to Adam while Chloe looks on. Gunner stands just a few feet from her. "She's scary, but man I really want to be like her when I grow up," I say softly.

He chuckles. "Yeah, she's terrifying. Gunner's going to have his hands full."

"Are they together?" I ask in surprise.

"Not yet," he admits.

"Gunner seems to be protective of her," I point out.

"Yep."

I shake my head. "Like I said, she's terrifying. I don't know if she'll let him close."

"He won't let that stop him," Rico says.

"No?" I question.

Rico grins down at me. "What can I say? He's a Green Thunder player, and we always get our girl."

I laugh. "You guys do have a pretty good streak going."

He kisses me. "Yeah, we do."

"I don't know, though. She could be the one to break this winning streak." My words couldn't be more perfectly timed.

Chloe's voice rises. "Don't even think about it, Gunner Coftman!" She strides away in those four-inch heels as we stare after her.

"You were saying?" Rico asks with a grin. We both watch as Gunner follows her at a distance, making sure she gets inside the building safely before he turns back and heads to his car. With a wave at us, he climbs inside and drives off. "Yeah," Rico says easily. "Cap'll get his girl."