Page 112 of Sven

Natalie closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “I would be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous about it. But for all they know, I’m just your nanny, so all eyes are on you and Winnie.”

He came and sat by her on the bed. “You don’t have to come to the ice. You don’t even have to come to the game if you’re not comfortable. I know Hillary thinks it will be good to put a face to it, since people will be talking about the article, but if you aren’t comfortable, then we don’t do it.” He put his hand on her leg and searched her face.

Her hand covered his. “It’s okay. Am I comfortable in the spotlight? No. But I can do this. It’s all about you and Winnie.”

As Winnie babbled in his arms, he cupped her face. “No, Natalie, this is real. I want to be with you. That does mean you’ll be in the spotlight from time to time.”

“Sven, I get it. I do. I mean don’t forget granddaughter of Mr. Roper,” she said, pointing to herself. “I understand the spotlight and how to handle it. I might never be comfortable in it, but I can do it.”

“You’re sure?” he asked once again, searching her expression.

She leaned up and kissed his handsome, questioning face. “I’m sure! Now, you get going, and Winnie and I’ll be there for warm-ups.”

***

Later that night, Natalie pulled up to the area and took a deep breath. She was relieved to have a parking pass for families of players, so she was a bit closer and didn’t have to deal with being in the main entrance—because who wanted to deal with that and a baby?

She went up to the family suite and got Winnie’s diaper bag and everything dropped off before making it down to the ice. The team was about to take the ice for warm-ups, and she would be there.

As she made her way down to the ice, the temperature dropped, and the sound of skates cutting through the ice and pucks being hit filled the air.

“What a darling little girl,” said a woman who was making her way to ice. “Have you brought her to a game before?”

“Nope, this is her first one. We’re up in the family box,” Natalie said, smiling at Winnie.

“The family box?” asked the woman. “Are you married to a player?”

Dammit, why did she say that?

“No, ma’am, I’m not. But this little one is Sven Olsson’s daughter.”

“I heard he had a little girl. I can see it. It’s?—”

“In the eyes,” the woman and Natalie said in unison.

“Yeah, she looks like her dad.”

They had made it down halfway to the ice.

“This is me. It was nice to meet you,” she said, giving Winnie a little wave.

They continued her descent to the ice. The interaction did help to calm her a bit. Maybe it would be that bad. They made their way to the ice, and Natalie couldn’t help but smile as Sven was on the ice doing stretches. A small part of her wanted to yellat everyone not to watch him. She wanted to be the only one who knew what those hips could do and while him on the ice stretching his hips you didn’t need much of an imagination to figure it out.

“There’s Daddy,” Natalie said, pointing to Sven. She propped Winnie up against the glass.

After a minute, Sven skated over to them. Natalie could feel the camera trained on them. Smiling, she remembered this was about Sven and Winnie. She would just be the nameless nanny holding Sven Olsson’s baby.

Winnie jolted in her arms as she recognized Sven and banged her little hands on the glass. “Da-da-da-da.”

He smiled at her and tapped the glass. Before she knew it, Conner McPhee and Wes Darling were at the glass, making goo-goo eyes at Winnie, who squealed with glee. The audible “aww” of the crowd around them matched the one in Natalie’s heart.

After the guys took off to finish warming up, Natalie left for the safety of the family suite. She sat in her seat and let out a breath of relief. Before long, a beautiful woman with long blond hair sat next to her.

“Hi, I’m Jenna, Gunnar Thompson’s wife,” she said as she reached her hand out.

Next thing she knew, a blonde girl about eight ran in. “Mom, can I have a coke?”

“Absolutely not. You can have a Sprite, but you are not having caffeine this late.”

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