Page 9 of Three Pucking Wedding Dates

5

REID

The ice rink vibrates with the ecstatic energy of our victory, and I can’t help but bask in the afterglow. The crowd roars, a sea of adoring fans chanting my name as my teammates swarm around me, clapping me on the back and pulling me into tight embraces.

“Reid! Reid! Reid!” The chant starts low, building to a crescendo that sends a shiver down my spine and lights a fire in my chest. I raise my arms in triumph, feeling invincible in this moment.

“Great game, Reid!” Coach Williams bellows as he makes his way through the throng of players. His grin is wide, eyes shining with pride. “You really stepped up out there tonight.”

“Thanks, Coach,” I reply, unable to keep the grin off my face. My heart races, adrenaline still coursing through my veins from the final moments on the ice.

“Such a shame Gray couldn’t be here,” Coach continues, his smile dimming slightly. “Think about the win if he could have been.”

Gray is thought to be the best player not only on the team but in the country right now, but I like to think of myself as a close second. Regardless, I think we held our own just fine without him.

“We had a bit of a family situation come up,” I respond, thinking about the message we all received from Oakley. “He’ll be back at practice tomorrow.”

“Good.”

The second he takes a step back, I see a few of my teammates coming toward me with a barrel—they waste no time in dumping ice cold Gatorade on me. I shouldn’t be so surprised, considering we’re the sponsor for them right now. Luckily, I manage to close my eyes so none of it gets in them. I wipe my face, the red liquid everywhere, wearing a huge grin.

“You look like you could use a shower.” Theo raises an eyebrow at me.

“I bet I do.”

“Come on.”

As I follow Theo back to our room, his phone starts ringing. He grabs it out of his backpack and pops it to his ear with a quick “Hello.” I can’t hear what the person on the other line is saying, but by the way his face turns into a scowl, I know it’s not good.

Then again, he does frown half the time anyway.

“Sounds like him.” He rips the phone from his ear and tucks it back into his pocket. “Gray was seen at the airport.”

I sigh. “How did they even find out he was there?”

“Who knows?” All three of us have issues with reporters, but Theo has a true grudge against them. If there’s anyone that likes their privacy it’s him, and he has almost lost his temper in front of them before.

Our publicist has told us to lie low with the championships around the corner, so everyone will be focusing on the game and not our love lives…or lack thereof.

But, when Theo shows me the headline about Gray on his phone, I realize that may be harder to do than we thought.

Utica Legend: Gray Archer waiting for a special someone at the airport?

And now they’ve dragged Oakley into it.

“I told him not to go,” Theo growls, shaking his head. “I told him to just have someone go and get her.”

“You know he doesn’t listen.” I shrug. “Especially not when it comes to Oakley.”

We don’t say anything more. We don’t have to, because we both know the truth. Gray has been in love with Oakley since we were kids, and he would do anything for her. We should honestly just be glad they didn’t take pictures of her too.

I think about the text she sent out to us again. I’m dying to hear more details. We need to get home quickly, because she’s waiting on us.

Theo opens the door, and we’re both shocked to find a woman sitting on the couch with one leg crossed over the other, looking toward to the television which is replaying my winning shotfrom moments ago. She turns around to face us, and my eyes take in every detail of her.

Saying she’s gorgeous is an understatement. She has the fullest head of thick and wavy brown hair cascading down her back like a waterfall. Her eyes are bright and green, and when she smiles upon seeing us, I can see the dimple in her left cheek.

I don’t know who this woman is, but I’d like to.

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