Chapter Seventy

Even with Natalie urging Darcy to take a nap, the flight was too short, and they were too excited to sleep. They held hands all the way to baggage claim.

Darcy swung their hands while they waited. “So, don’t be mad, but I called a friend who might have a job for you.”

Natalie stopped their hands mid-swing. “You did? Why?”

Darcy looked at the floor. “You said you wanted to get into coaching. I’m not nearly as big of a name as my dad, but I do know a few people in hockey. I figured it couldn’t hurt to see if any of them needed a brilliant hockey mind on their bench. So if you get a call from Yale, answer it.”

Natalie’s smile was all the thanks Darcy could have hoped for. “Yale’s not very far from New York is it?”

Darcy shook her head. “Okay, maybe I hoped that if any of my plan worked out that maybe you’d be working close to the City.”

Natalie bumped her shoulder against Darcy’s. “Pretty sure of yourself, huh?”

Darcy shook her head. “Not at all. But I wanted to help you even if you never spoke to me again.”

Darcy’s phone buzzed in her pocket. “Kit’s here.”

Natalie squeezed her hand. “You okay?” She looked up at Darcy.

Darcy pressed a kiss to Natalie’s forehead. “This isn’t a dream, is it?”

Natalie shook her head. “No but we should buy Kit and Grace something good as a thank-you.”

“Grace would look good in a Mountie hat.”

Natalie snorted. The conveyor belt whirred to life and a bag tumbled down the chute. “I’m sure Kit would love a Team Carpenter jersey. I can get one for you, too.”

Darcy laughed so loudly she scared the man standing next to her. “Sorry, sir.” Darcy grabbed her bag and walked next to Natalie toward the exit. “I will not wear a Team USA jersey but I will consider Team Carpenter as long as it isn’t red, white, and blue.”

“Fine.” Natalie shivered against the blast of frigid air that hit her as soon as they stepped outside. “Fuck Canada.”

“Watch your mouth or you’ll get deported.” Kit’s voice found them amid the beeping, police whistling at drivers, and the bustle of families being picked up.

Kit popped the trunk and hurried back to the driver’s seat. “Let’s go, it’s freezing!”

Natalie opened the passenger door for Darcy, but she shook her head.

“I want to sit with my girlfriend.” She bent down to look through the window at Kit. “Thanks for the ride.”

“You’re welcome but I swear to god if you puke in my car because you chose to sit in the back, I will kill you.”

“Deal.” Darcy slid into the car, letting her thigh press into Natalie’s. “Home, Jeeves.”

Kit glared at Darcy in the rearview mirror, but her eyes softened when she saw Darcy lean her head against Natalie’s shoulder.

Natalie pressed a kiss to Darcy’s forehead and wrapped her arm around her. Darcy relaxed against her, wishing for the first time in her life for her sister to take the long way home.

As soon as they arrived at the LaCroixs’ house, Kit hopped out of the car. “Mom and Dad are probably going to sprint out to see you as soon as they realize you’re home.”

Darcy looked up at Natalie. “You sure you’re ready for this?”

Natalie smiled. “I’ve met them before, remember?”

“But not as my girlfriend.” Darcy placed a soft kiss at the corner of Natalie’s mouth.

Natalie grabbed her phone. “I have to tell Grace I made it, okay?”

Darcy nodded and fiddled with her phone while she waited. She opened Twitter and found her account flooded with mentions. What the hell?

“Holy shit, Nat.” She scrolled through hundreds of tweets on the #PuckingHotties hashtag. There were three different videos of them from the airports. She recognized pictures and videos from Boston and even a few of them walking through the Toronto airport. They’d only been in the car for forty-five minutes and the internet had lost its collective mind.

She turned her phone to show Natalie. “I think we may have to say something.”

Natalie smiled. “Look at this.” She showed a text from Grace with a link to an article: “Marty LaCroix’s daughter comes out with epic airport PDA-fest.”

Darcy scowled. “I don’t know what’s worse, that they call me his daughter like I don’t have a name of my own, or that they think that was epic PDA.”

Natalie kissed her gently. “You okay?”

Darcy nodded. Something red caught her eye. “What the hell?”

Natalie looked out the windshield. Darcy’s dad, a tall, fit man with graying hair, was striding toward the car in a Team Canada jersey.

Darcy and Natalie climbed out of the back seat. “Hi, Dad. What’s with the outfit?”

He grinned and gave her a bear hug. “I need your mom to take a picture of me. It’s for social media.”

Darcy looked at her mom and sister. “What?”

He smiled and held his arms open for Natalie. “So good to see you again, Natalie.” She allowed him to hug her.

“Hi, Mr. LaCroix. Thanks for letting me crash your party.”

“Marty. No one calls me Mr. LaCroix unless they want something from me. By the looks of it you’ve already got what you want.” He smiled at the two of them, looking less like a famous NHL player and more like a proud papa.

“Now, time to take this picture.” He stood with his back to his wife and pointed to the name on the jersey.

Darcy’s mom, Joanna, handed him the phone and a pair of reading glasses. He fiddled with the phone before handing it to his daughter. “You okay with this?”

Darcy took the phone. Natalie stared over her shoulder. He’d drafted a tweet with him wearing his daughter’s jersey responding to the crappy headline. “You spelled NCAA champion, four-time Olympian, three-time gold medalist wrong.” He added, “Proud to be Darcy LaCroix’s dad.”

Darcy smiled, the corners of her eyes prickling. “Dad.” She hugged him and kissed his scratchy cheek.

She stepped back. “Mom, Dad, if it’s okay with you, my girlfriend is going to be staying with us this weekend.”

Joanna screeched. “Finally! Natalie, I’m so glad you’re here and that my daughter stopped being a dumbass long enough to convince you to be her girlfriend.”

Natalie looked at Darcy and they both cracked up. “Thank you for having me.”