Chapter 10

CHAPTER TEN

Brantley

T he shootouts begin and it’s intense.

Nolan is skating side to side, carving up the ice in front of his net as the Vipers players get ready to start.

It will be a five-round shootout. The best score after five shots wins it all.

Their power forward starts first. He takes a deep breath as the referee skates over, ready to blow his whistle.

Nolan looks locked in as he stares the player down.

Now, more than ever, I’m happy I paid the money to get a first-class goalie like Nolan Barlowe in. This is his opportunity to earn every cent of his giant paycheck.

The forward takes off and dekes to the right before shooting to the left. Nolan is not fooled and he catches the puck in his glove.

“ Yes! ” I shout as the arena bursts into cheers.

Now, it’s our turn. Sebastian is first, of course, and he takes the puck out like the natural he is. He skates up to the goalie and fakes a shot. The goalie bites, lurching forward, but Sebastian pulls it back and flicks it in. God, he makes it look so easy. The crowd explodes as we go up 1-0.

They score on the next shot and Riley leaps out of her seat. I look up at those beautiful breasts bouncing and feel a swell of happiness despite her team tying it up.

Tucker comes out second for us. He tries to sneak it through the goalie’s legs, but the goalie is not fooled. He stops the puck and we’re tied 1-1 after two rounds.

Nolan misses the next one, but I can’t blame him for it. It’s a beautiful low fake, which the Viper then shoots up high. It hits the crossbar and slips inside.

Edvard finishes the third round for us. I hold my breath as he takes the puck from center ice and skates with it to the net. He’s the weakest of all five players chosen, and unfortunately, he misses. He gets the goalie out of position with his deke, but then just misses the open net.

“ That’s it ,” Riley whispers, clenching her fist.

Round three is over and we’re losing 1-2.

Luckily, the Vipers’ next player misses in round four. Nolan deflects the puck with his stick and it sails into the crowd.

Harris Sutton comes skating out to chants of “Flamethrower!”

He winks at his son and then goes after the puck, bringing it into the zone before easily flicking it into the bottom corner.

“Fuck yeah!” Zara screams as he ties it up 2-2.

One round left.

Riley takes my hand and squeezes it as her player, Zuccarello, skates out. He takes the puck and skates near the boards on his way to the net.

Nolan turns and faces him.

An empty feeling hits the pit of my stomach when I see what Zuccarello is setting up. He fakes the backhand and Nolan takes the bait.

“No!” I gasp when Nolan slides out, doing the splits to stop him, but he’s leaving most of the net open.

Zuccarello pulls the puck back quickly to his forehand. He flicks it to the open net.

I hold my breath as I watch the puck summersault forward.

Nolan contorts his body and yanks his leg up at an unnatural angle and the puck smacks into his blade. It bounces up and sails over the net.

The arena goes nuts .

My girl drops her head with a heavy breath. I rub her back, trying not to seem too excited even though my heart is pounding.

That goddamn goalie. I’m going to buy him a helicopter for that brilliant save!

All eyes in the arena turn to the last man up, our star rookie Austin Gambill.

“Come on, Austin!” Zara hollers.

“Let’s go Vipers!” Riley screams.

I rub my jaw and say a little prayer as Austin gets going. He picks up speed and grabs the puck with his stick.

The goalie is staring him down as he approaches.

Austin abruptly stops and then hammers a wrist shot so fast, I can’t see it. It flies past the goalie’s stick, but it hits the crossbar and bounces back.

“No!” I shout, but I react too soon.

The puck hits the goalie’s back and then bounces into the net.

Twenty-four thousand fans scream so loud my head feels like it’s going to explode. I jump up and give Zara a high-five. I hug my general manager.

The boys have swarmed Austin on the ice. He disappears under the mob of celebrating players.

And then my heart sinks when I see my girl with her head down. I put my hand on her back and drop to my knee.

“I’m sorry,” I say to her.

She looks at me and smiles sadly. “It’s okay. I’ll get you next year.”

I’m sure she will. She’s done so much in such little time. I’m sure she’ll be back better than ever next year to give my team all sorts of new problems.

“I love you so much,” I say, kissing her forehead.

“I’m okay,” she says, smiling at me as everyone celebrates around us. “I’m proud of the season we had.”

She looks at the Stoney Cup being brought onto the ice and takes a deep breath. I can see the fire in her eyes. She’ll be back next year, stronger than ever.

“Go celebrate while you can,” she says with a grin. “That cup will be coming home with me next year.”

I kiss my girl on the lips and then sprint down to the ice.

Nolan is skating around the rink, holding the shiny cup over his head.

“We did it, boss,” Sebastian says, giving me a friendly slap on the back. “Just like you said we would.”

I think back to the moment when we first met. He was sitting in my office, very skeptical of my plan to turn the Hyenas of all teams into a dynasty, and I was very skeptical of his commitment to the game. I’m just so happy it all worked out.

“We couldn’t have done it without The Sniper,” I say with a grin. “That was a beautiful goal.”

“It’s why I get paid the big bucks.” He leaves with a smile on his face, skating up to the group of guys taking turns holding the cup.

The crowd roars in excitement as Sebastian takes it from Nolan and lifts it over his head.

He skates around the rink and then comes over to me with a grin. “Your turn, boss.”

“Really?”

I’m staring at the shiny silver trophy in awe. It’s beautiful. After Riley, it’s the most stunning thing I’ve ever seen.

I take it and shiver. Wow. The Stoney Cup… It’s mine for the year…

Sebastian lets go and I’m surprised by the weight of it.

I can’t help but smile as I lift it over my head and everyone cheers. The players, the fans, my employees attending… They’re all cheering for me.

And even though my girl lost, I know she’s in the crowd cheering for me as well.

Just like I’ll be cheering for her when she kicks my ass next year.