Page 57 of Heartfelt Goals

Laughter erupted from the stands. A pure, unfiltered explosion of joy that cut through the weight of the moment. Dustin’s head snapped toward the sound. He didn’t even need to look to know who it was.

Boucher grinned.

A slow, wicked, knowing grin.

“That’s my daughter.”

And then?—

The gloves hit the ice once more.

And Boucher flew at the other player.

13

LAUREL

As the fight ended,Laurel couldn’t help but gasp as several players were benched and put in the penalty box, and she saw Dustin move to the ice as Larsson was benched to give him a break. To her surprise, he skated toward her and collapsed in a smooth move to his knees, spinning on the ice a few times in a circle before coming to a stop before her… and looked like he was proposing.

She rose shakily to her feet as he pointed at her – and then made a heart with both his hands over his chest. Smiling, she made a heart back, and the crowd went wild around them as Kendall even let out an ‘awww’ at the sweet unexpected gesture.

Only to have Dustin turn around, pointing at his helmet. There, on the back, was a dragon sticker, and her mouth dropped open. He looked over his shoulder at her, winked, pointed at her, and then skated off to take his position at the goal.

“What in the world…” Laurel whispered shakily and then looked at Kendall – who shrugged. “Did you tell him?”

“He lives with us, and your library is full of your own books. Doesn’t take a rocket scientist to guess you are the author. Um,yeah, and all your characters have those pretty blue eyes? I’m gonna say that your secret is out,” Kendall answered almost gleefully. “Now, whatcha gonna do?”

Laurel didn’t answer.

She couldn’t.

Frankly, she was stunned to realize that Dustin knew her books used him as a basis for a character that she had fantasized and dreamed of – and now knew it. If he knew, then that would explain his little comment about a ‘dragon sunning itself’ or why he’d kissed her so aggressively the first time he’d made a move toward her – but that had been two weeks ago.

He’d been so unfailingly polite and quiet, almost like he’d regretted the kiss and just wanted them to be friends. In fact, she’d had to start almost every kiss they’d shared in the last two weeks, including this morning’s kiss. She didn’t want to have to make the first move every time.

In fact, in her books, it was always the guy who made the first moves. The guy kissed the girl, he touched her, he took her, and in none of her books did the girl initiate things between them ever. When she said she needed to talk to him, that it wouldn’t be a quick discussion, it was because she was pretty sure something was broken between them.

And now he knew her secret?

That smile was not the expression of a man who was upset, nor was the sweet little cutesy-heart move that he’d made. Was he a romantic? Maybe he didn’t know how to handle girls? Maybe he was just… weird. She had read somewhere that goalies were weird, quiet loners.

What if it was true?

He seemed normal, a quiet person just like her, and they liked a lot of the same things, and she looked at Kendall.

“Am I weird?”

“You did not just ask me that, did you?”

“Well – am I?”

“Of course, you’re weird. You’re weird. I’m weird. He’s weird. They’re weird,” Kendall said openly, pointing at several other families nearby without hesitation. “I think hockey makes us all weirder-than-weird. I mean, we’re here in a cold arena watching guys beat each other up while trying to catch up to a puck on the ice – and your husband is the one who’s supposed to catch it by leaping on it, hitting it, or throwing himself bodily on it.”

Laurel hesitated, unsure what else to say. Her mind was reeling with the knowledge that Dustin somehow knew about her books, her thoughts about him, and everything her sister was pointing out was technically true. It was a weird life - and she loved it.

Watching the game, she saw the players making their way down the ice quickly amidst the hisses of skates sliding powerfully by aggressive men slamming their way toward the goalie.

Dustin.

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