Page 16 of Penalties and Proposals

“That’s why the Comeback King is so important to this team.” He winks at me, trying to hide the grin that creeps across his features, but he can’t. Like some of my teammates, even the coach can’t help but poke a little fun.

“Yeah, I guess that’s going to be my legacy, huh?”

“Better that than the millions of other names they can call you,” he teases, shoving his hands in his pockets. “How are you feeling after today?”

Practice was intense today, a lot of physicality, but it was good. “I could feel the depth of our crew today, like it felt as if we were one unit when we were on the ice, you know?”

Coach Strickland bobs his head in agreement. “Onehundred percent. It’s taken a heartbeat to get you boys on the same page, but it feels like we’re headed in the right direction.”

I let my gaze wander slowly around the rink. I can still feel the rush of the drills, the intensity of each moment lingering in my muscles.

“Yeah, it’s like we’re starting to anticipate each other’s moves. The chemistry’s there,” I say, my voice echoing in the empty arena.

Coach Strickland claps a hand on my shoulder. “That’s what makes a championship team. Skill is one thing, but trust and synergy are what take you to the next level.”

Absorbing the coach’s words, I nod. The silence of the rink feels almost sacred, a moment to reflect on the progress we’ve made.

“It’s a good feeling, knowing we’re finally clicking.”

Coach Strickland smiles, a rare moment of unguarded pride on his face. “We need to keep building on this. Keep pushing each other, keep communicating. What we did out there today was just a glimpse of what we’re capable of. Tomorrow, we go even harder.”

“Yes, Coach,” I say, giving him a salute as I turn my attention back to my skates. “I’m gonna cool down, then hit the showers and head out myself.”

“Good. Get some rest, don’t need you burning out before the first game.” Then with a nod of his head, Coach spins on his heel, waving a hand over his shoulder as he goes.

Making my way through the team tunnel, down the corridor of the arena’s underbelly to the changing rooms, I’m not the least bit surprised when Willa pops up in the forefront of my thoughts again. This woman is officially on repeat in my mind, like hearing a song you can’t get out of your head. Only this time, I’m wondering if I should invite her to meet me at this Maple Fest—maybe we can have some more time to talk. I liked talking to her that night, we seemed to get along once we spoke aboutthe past. We had banter. We flirted … isn’t that something?Flanter?

“Stop it, Noah,” I scold myself out loud. Instantly, I look around to see if anyone’s heard me, only to catch Murray smiling as he walks past, possibly pretending he didn’t hear me. That man seems to be everywhere.

What I didn’t tell Willa was the part that I do remember from that fateful photo shoot years ago was that the moment I saw her, I was smitten. The moment her emerald-green eyes had locked with mine I was a goner. Of course, that crush was long forgotten in the ensuing events that took place. But am I wrong in thinking that I’m feeling something for her, even now?

Throwing open my locker door, I start stripping out of my gear, reaching for my sweats and T-shirt so I can do some cool-down stretching before I shower. I’m about to pull my sweatpants up when the sound of a bird chirping pulls my attention. Grabbing my phone off the top shelf, my heart does triple time. When I tap on the message to see who it is, I feel like I'm about to have a heart attack when I see it’s Willa.

WILLA: Hey Noah, sorry for the delay. Looking at the week, I was wondering if you’d be available to take some photos at Maple Fest this weekend?

Would I? I want to type back OF COURSE, but instead, I’m going to play this cool. One thing I learned from that dinner is that Willa was coming into this thing hot and not happy to be stuck with me. After hearing about her side of things, I can’t blame her, but I also can’t assume she’s going to be as receptive to me as I am to her.

Holding the phone in my hand, I pull up my pants and sit down on the bench slowly, considering what to text next. After a few false starts, I finally settle on the simple.

NOAH: Sure

I wait for a moment to see if she’s going to reply, willing those dots to pop up that show you when someone is writing a text. They do, then they stop. Then they start wiggling again … then they stop. When they start again, I decide I’m overthinking things and put my phone down.

“It’s been like a week, Noah, since you ran into each other and she wasn’t a fan of yours,” I start scolding myself yet again. “Just because you’re okay with things and want to move on doesn’t mean she is.”

The sound of someone coughing sends a bolt of surprise through me. Turning around, of course I find Murray holding a bag of trash.

“Not trying to eavesdrop, but,” he says with a shrug, “here I am. Hearing you talk to yourself.”

I can feel heat hitting my cheeks. “I have an insane habit of doing that, and apparently today is the day I get busted.”

“We all have our things. I like playing bingo down at the fire hall on Thursday afternoons. Mostly women there, but they play for money, and they can be vicious.” His eyes light up as he stops to think. “But I like it. That Mary-Ellen, she may be known as the town gossip, but she sure is a looker.”

Nodding, I hold back a laugh. “Okay then, Mary-Ellen is off-limits for more than one reason.”

“I’ve had a thing for Mary-Ellen for a while, but I’m taking my time. My time, my pace. If the timing is right, I’ll say something to her when I’m supposed to.” Murray grins at me. “I’m just trying to say, without knowing fully what’s going on with you and why you’re mumbling to yourself, that if you’re trying to impress someone, keep showing up. You never know what will happen.”

With that, Murray turns around and disappears from sight as quickly as he snuck up on me. My phone whistles and alerts me to the arrival of another text. Flicking it open, the triple beat of my heart is back.

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