Page 145 of The Home Game

They—or at least Dustin—knew that this marriage wasn’t entirely legitimate.

So why were they all treating it like it was?

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

“Alright, boys!” Matty shouted, throwing his arms in the air. “Who’s ready to play some hockey?”

“Ow, ow, ow!” Nico hollered and the shouts of their team rose around them, blending with the music thumping through the speakers.

Dressed in nothing but his jock and socks, Matty whooped as he shook his ass, dancing by his teammates and getting slaps as he passed.

They were good luck ass slaps, of course.

The first time Matty had danced half-naked in a locker room, he’d been buzzing at playing in the NHL for the first time. When the team blew out their opponents 6-0 that night, Matty had decided why mess with something that brought the team that kind of luck.

And so it became a part of his routine.

Tonight, after he’d made the rounds in the room, he returned to his stall next to Nico’s and dressed for the game.

His skin buzzed with excitement as he laced his freshly sharpened skates.

Doug, their equipment manager, always shot Matty an amused smile when he did the work himself, but he never seemed to mind. Matty had been tending to his own skate blades since he was a teenager, plus, he’d worked at a rink sharpening skates and driving the Zamboni to pay for the ice time and equipment his parents struggled to afford.

By the time Matty made it to the ECHL and then the AHL, it was a firm part of his routine and well, the equipment guys knew not to mess with players’ routines.

As Matty tightened his laces, music pumped through the locker room speakers—Nico’s kickass playlist already bringing up the mood of the room.

Not that they needed much additional excitement for the first game of the season.

The pre-season games had been a little rocky. But that was to be expected with a new coaching staff and new systems to learn. They’d probably lose quite a few of their early games until they found their rhythm.

There hadn’t been a ton of turnover in the off-season at least. A couple of guys had gone elsewhere in free agency but their core was together and the new guys would slot in wherever there was room or need for them.

What the exact lineup would look like was still up for grabs and with Gilly’s reputation for benching even seasoned players whenever he felt like it, they’d likely see a lot of movement throughout the season.

Matty wasn’t sure how he felt about that. He’d have to wait and see how it went, but he had to admit, a part of him was hopeful that it would give this team the kick in the ass it needed.

Doing nothing for most of last season sure hadn’t worked, so why not mix it up a little and see what happened?

“You psyched to play tonight?” Matty asked Nico, whose stall was right next to his.

“Fuck yes,” Nico said with a wide grin, his blue eyes lighting up. “I can’t fucking wait. Pre-season was good but this …”

Matty nodded. This was their first game that would count toward points for the season and it always felt more meaningful.

Veteran guys didn’t always play the first few pre-season games—those were used to evaluate new roster additions, but Nico had been in the lineup for every one of them, just to get his legs under him after such a long time off during his recovery.

Nico could skate like the wind and from what Matty had seen of him so far, he hadn’t lost a step there. He’d worked his tail off with his dryland training since late last winter and it definitely showed.

Matty would be glad to have Nico beside him on the ice again.

The two of them couldn’t possibly look or play any differently if they tried, but they made a hell of a solid d-pair. Matty had done his best with all of the guys who’d filled in for Nico while he was out last season but man, it would be good to have Nico in their lineup again.

Honestly, it wouldn’t surprise Matty if somehow Nico came through this whole brain tumor thing better than ever. He was the kind of guy who always seemed to have luck smiling on him, so even if his time out had been a frustrating setback in his career, Matty was sure it would all work out in the end.

Hell, Nico would probably wind up winning the Norris trophy for best defenseman this year or something.

Matty sure wasn’t going to win it.

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