Page 109 of Pucking the Enemy

“Yes, sir!” Cormac saluted his coach with a grin, tugging me out of the corridor.

The rink was full of people. Cold air filled my lungs as I took my seat. The family section was right in front of the ice, and Cormac had guided me to a seat before giving me a quick kiss goodbye.

The few seats around me were empty, but they probably wouldn’t stay that way for long, given how busy the rink was. Pulling out my e-reader, I clicked on a book I had been reading, but was distracted by the players on the ice doing their warm-up before the game would begin.

I was so close to the ice, I could make out everyone with ease. Roman and Phillip had their numbers and names emblazoned on their jerseys. And Seb was hard to miss, since he was the only player without a name on his jersey.

He did have a number, though—sixty-nine.

That made me giggle. I got the distinct impression that he hadn’t picked that number. My money was on Cormac. That seemed like his kind of chaos.

The players skated around the ice with impressive speed. I had watched hockey games multiple times before, so it was all familiar, but this time, I was more interested in watching the interactions between my guys. They gravitated toward each other, even if it was for something silly, like Cormac skating up behind Phillip and tapping him on the ass with his stick.

Seb wasn’t excluded from that, either. At one point, Roman skated up and hugged him from behind, lifting him clear off the ice.

It was like watching a bunch of golden retriever puppies on the ice, playing with each other.

I loved it.

Would they be the same with our child? My mind filled with images of them skating with a tiny toddler, guiding them while they wore all those pads and looked like overly stuffed teddy bears.

“Is the new guy yours?” a sweet voice asked to my left.

I turned to find a tall girl with masses of blonde curls smiling at me. Her scent, sweet lemon, was undoubtedly omega.

“Among others,” I replied with a shy smile. Was it bragging to admit that four of the players were mine?

“My brother, Storm, is number twenty-three. My name’s Sunny. I know, the names are tragic. Our parents are nutjobs.”

“It’s nice to meet you. I’m Hazel.”

She did a double take at the sound of my name. “Hazel?” she asked, then continued when I nodded. “Storm’s talked about you! You’re with the Kingswood pack, aren’t you?”

“I am,” I confirmed with a wince.

“Good for you! I was wondering when you would come to a game. How far along are you?”

“Nearly six months. I was quite sick in the beginning.”

“Oh, totally. I spent the first three months of my pregnancy with my head in the toilet. The motion sickness from the players skating is bad enough already.”

“You have a child?” I asked.

She nodded. “A little boy named Luka. He’s the sweetest—here.” She held out her phone so I could see her lock screen, where a chubby little blue-eyed baby with golden curls stared back at me.

“He’s precious!” I cooed.

“He’s the best. Morning sickness was the worst, though! How are you feeling now?”

“It hasn’t been fun,” I admitted. “I’m finally feeling okay enough to watch them play tonight, thankfully.”

“I’m so glad I finally got to meet you. Here, let’s exchange numbers, and I’ll text you.” I took her phone with a laugh and quickly typed in my number, and she did the same on mine. “Awesome. I’m going to go find my friend—she’s got Luka—but I just wanted to stop by and say hello! Please call me if you have any questions.”

“It was nice meeting you!”

“Same! Oh! There was a staff member a few rows up with a ton of fried food. Was that for you? They were looking for someone. That sweatshirt you’re wearing is so cute, but it does conceal that you’re pregnant rather well while you’re sitting down.”

Glancing behind me, I searched for the staff member, silently praying they were still there. “They were for me. Cormac was gonna get me some because I’ve had cravings, but he had to rush off to the ice. Dang it. I guess I’ll have to go order for myself.”

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