Page 84 of Hockey Wife

April waved both hands. “A zillion. But the playoffs are where it’s at.”

“Yeah, even this first round is exciting.” Georgia had read up on the playoffs structure as well as Banks’s history in them. He’d never won the Cup, though he’d come close a couple of times in the last fifteen years. “Must be heartbreaking for him to not have won the big one. And for you guys, too.”

Sandy looked a touch emotional as she checked to see that Connie and Trish were distracted, chatting with a woman and her teenage daughter behind them. “To be honest, it’s toughest for Mom and Gran. He’s got a few years left in him, but he’d love nothing more than to win it for Gran this year. It’s kind of weird that he’d mess with his routine like this.”

April shot a glare at her sister. “Quit it,” then to Georgia, “Don’t mind her. She’s filter-free sometimes.”

“No, it’s okay. I understand why this would seem an odd choice.”

Sandy shook her head. “Not you. I mean, you’re amazing. But hockey players are creatures of habit. And our brother has always been a slave to his regimen. To see him go a little, well, mad is kind of out there.”

April cut in. “What’s weirder is that he kept it on the down low for so long.”

“Probably because we hate everyone he dates.” Sandy grinned. “But the ones he marries … that’s another story.”

“Thank God for that,” Georgia said, keeping her tone light. “But he did think we were finished. The paperwork said otherwise.”

“Yeah, but he usually tells us stuff, even his supposed mistakes. Still, I’m not surprised he was quiet about you. We were not kind to Stacy.”

Stacy again.

“She was such a bitch.” April was definitive. “And we knew her! We don’t know you, but if you made it down the aisle with our boy, you’ve got to be an improvement.”

Trish leaned over. “You okay, Georgia? Not letting these two browbeat you into revealing all your marital secrets?”

“They’re just protective of their brother. It’s sweet.”

Trish raised an eyebrow. “These girls are a lot of things, but sweet is not one of them.”

“Mom!” Sandy winked at Georgia. “We need to see if she can handle the Bankowski Babes in all their glory. Membership is pending.”

“Only pending?” Georgia asked. “What do I need to do to make the grade?”

“Don’t fuck up our brother.”

“Sandy!” April leaned over to thump her sister, which had Sandy reaching behind Georgia to pull on April’s ear, who then started complaining that Sandy was the problem.

Georgia really missed her sister.

Connie let out a piercing whistle that brought everyone to attention. “Quit your tomfoolery! The boys are here.”

The lights dimmed and the announcer launched into introductions. It was all very Vegas, which appealed to Georgia given her history with Banks. First the players of the opposing team, the Boston Cougars, came on, then the hometown boys. When Banks’s name was called, the Bankowski Babes went wild—and Georgia was right there with them.

After all, she was being judged for membership.

26

Banks was tired.

He’d barely slept. Waking up to find his wife wrapped around him was both excruciatingly torturous and absolutely amazing at the same time. Which made no sense. How could he be enjoying this drama that had taken over his life when he was the least drama-free person on the planet?

It was hard to say which gave him more pleasure: the easy roll into the morning conversing with Georgia or the fact she’d let him taste her. And not just chaste kisses, but his tongue inside her, his lips drenched with her come, his?—

“Banks, you’re up,” Coach called out.

Clearing the boards, he skated into position, on the same line as O’Malley and Petrov. He won the face-off—his 67% winning percentage still stood—and they were off. Two minutes later, he was back on the bench with a shot on goal and the satisfaction of having acquitted himself decently on his first shift.

Every playoff series, his family came to as many games as they could. He took comfort in their presence, but he didn’t feel a need to check on them every thirty seconds. Tonight should be no different, except all he could think of was Georgia.

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