Page 106 of His Jersey

“Ouch.”

“See? You’re awake.” He draws me toward a room with a big hearth containing a crackling fire and a family painting hanging over the mantle. His mother was beautiful with dark hair and the same sparkle in her eyes as in Jack’s.

He takes a box off a table. “When I proposed to you, the sentiment was real even though it was under the auspices of being my fake fiancée.”

My breath catches.

“I wasn’t able to get your necklace back, but I want you to have this.” He opens the box. Inside is a red stone set in a golden heart pendant necklace.

I gasp. “It’s beautiful.”

He gestures for me to lift my hair so he can clasp it around my neck. Standing behind me, his breath tickles my cheek, sending warm shivers through me. “The red diamond was my mother’s favorite and I think you would’ve been her favorite, too. You’re mine.”

Jack kisses me on the cheek. The words seal something between us as the necklace closes around my neck and he faces me.

My fingers float to it and even though it’s not my mother’s, it feels so right, but I hesitate. “Jack, this is so generous. Beyond my wildest dreams, but I don’t know if I can?—”

He shakes his head. “She would’ve wanted you to have it. Trust me.” His lips quirk. “I have a feeling our moms are up in heaven right now, best friends, and cheering us on.”

Tears roll down my cheeks and I wrap my arms around him. Pressing my face to Jack’s chest, I feel the thrum of his heart.

After drying my tears, I meet his gaze. “You said you want people to know that I’m yours by wearing your jersey. But this also makes me yours. You’ve done more than prove that even though this may have started as a wild fake relationship, it’s real. I’ll wear your jersey and be your wife.”

“And you are my puck princess,” Jack says and then presses a kiss to my lips.

I used to toss coins into the fountain at the resort, wishing for my Prince Charming. But I don’t need to anymore. I got my wish. Even if he didn’t have any coins, riches, or wealth, I’d pick Jack all over again.

EPILOGUE

ELLA

It’s beensix months since Jack and I got fake engaged, yet I feel like I’ve loved him since day one. Perhaps I have and it slowly burned its way to the surface.

The hockey season ended with the Knights hoisting the Stanley Cup after they crushed the Reno Rebels.

It went like this:

Twelve guys, six on each team, took to the ice.

The buzzer sounded.

The puck dropped.

The next three-ish hours were a scramble of back-and-forth movements, sticks flying, lamps lighting, and the crowd going absolutely insane. I’d never seen anything like it with the face paint, the towels twisting in the air, and the sheer enormity of enthusiasm the fans have for the game and players.

The score came down to a three-three tie before the Knights’ new center broke away and like a flash of lightning, slammed the puck into the net during facetime, overtime, or something.

Okay, that was a huge oversimplification. I’m stilllearning. In reality, I was biting my nails alongside Leah, who was pounding on the glass, and the others who sat on the edge of their seats—or stood on them. Seriously, this hockey business is next level.

I’m number ten’s number one fan and look forward to next season. Trust me, I’ll be studying all summer. Mostly, Jack in his board shorts, but still. It’ll be hitting the books.

With the game over, the Cup won, and my fiancé recovered, this leaves only two weeks until our summer wedding.

As Cobbiton’s newest resident—which also means I have a proper place to live after over a year of being unhoused and illegally finding lodging at a posh resort’s storage rooms or on the beach—I’ve settled in.

I have a home. Not a day passes when I don’t skip and spin through the halls and rooms, singing like a Disney princess, er, the Puck Princess.

Not only that, I’ve made friends. The embodiment of a human hug with hockey player partner aspirations, Leah welcomed me into her world of friendships, including Heidi, Whit, Delaney, Cara, Gracie, and a whole new nice girl crew.

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