Page 93 of Off Season

He also built a bookcase to store all my grandpa’s records and sat with me for hours while we organized photo albums.

He may not be good attellingme, but he’s incredible atshowingme, and actions speak louder than words.

The lights go up, illuminating the ice, and the players step out. Alex hoots and claps his hands when Blaine steps onto the ice. I search for Ethan as they appear one by one, but he steps out last. He’s so graceful, skating like it’s as natural as breathing. I suppose it would be, as he’s been doing it for so long.

I tried during family skate day at the start of the season, but I wasn’t any good. My legs wobbled like a newborn calf, and I held onto his arms for dear life. Thankfully, he didn’t drop me, but that was my first and probably last time.

Blaine skates over, throwing himself into the boards before squishing his face against the glass.

Alex tips his head back and laughs.

“He’s such an idiot,” he sighs happily. “But he’s my idiot, and I love him.”

Elliot is doing a little dance, and when he spots me, he waves his glove comically before hitting Ethan on the butt with his stick. My man turns around, his eyes scanning the rows, and when they land on me, he knocks the breath out of my lungs.

I will never get over how beautiful he is when he smiles. Those dimples. How the fine lines around his gorgeous eyes crease. He’s so damn handsome, and he’s all mine.

When warmup finishes, he gives me a wink before stepping into the tunnel. When he comes back out, my stomach churns with nerves.

The lights dim, and the announcer's voice booms through the speakers.

“The Chicago Thunder are proud to announce that tonight, your captain, Ethan Parkes, will play his sixteen-hundredth professional hockey game. Hailing from Toronto, Canada, Ethan was drafted to the Thunder at eighteen, when he was the number one draft pick twenty years ago. He has delivered the Stanley Cup to Chicago five times, and we are honored to call him our captain. Please direct your attention to the video board as we look back on Ethan’s career so far.”

Images and videos of a fresh-faced, eighteen-year-old Ethan appear on the jumbotron from the night he was drafted to his first NHL game. The footage spans across his career with the Thunder and each time he lifted the Stanley Cup. It even included some of his rare fights, which I’ll be having words with him about later. Tears fill my eyes as I watch, my heart swelling with so much pride I could burst.

Alex wraps his arm around my shoulders, bringing me in close as I suck in a shaky breath.

Once it’s over, the camera shifts to Ethan, and the twitch in his jaw tells me he’s trying to rein in his emotions. His beautiful dark eyes are glassy, but he’s saved by Elliot throwing himself onto him, followed by the rest of the team surrounding him as the fans erupt in cheers.

When he found out this would be happening tonight, he informed his head coach that he didn’t want them to make a fuss.

“I don’t like being the center of attention,” he’d grumbled.

So the team held a private presentation in the locker room before warmups, giving him an engraved silver hockey stick and framed photo of his most memorable moments.

I clap until my hands burn. I’m so freaking proud of him, of everything he’s achieved.

I knew he was afraid of retiring, but I didn’t truly understand it until now. Seeing that footage, seeing his legacy on the screen spanning across two decades, I can fully appreciate his reasons. His professional career was such a prominent part of his life for so long, and I’m sure he’ll mourn it in a way when he hangs his skates up.

I’ll be there for him. Whatever he needs.

The game gets underway, and I’m a bundle of nerves. Alex chuckles every time I suck in a breath when someone gets close to Ethan. I don’t know how he does this every time Blaine has a game because I don’t think my heart can cope. When the game ends with the Thunder winning 4-2, we make a quick stop at the team’s store where I pick up Ethan’s jersey, before Alex leads us toward the area where we wait for them to shower and change.

I quickly slip it on, smoothing it down my stomach.

“It looks so good! He’s going to love it,” Alex grins.

I chew on the inside of my cheek. I know how much Blaine loves to see Alex in his jersey, so hopefully Ethan likes seeing me in his too.

When Ethan appears, my heart flips in my chest,because one thing I didn’t know I’d enjoy this much about hockey is game-day suits.

Ethan fills out a suit like a dream. His navy blue tailored pants fit his strong legs, hugging each muscle perfectly. A few buttons of his white dress shirt are left open at the neck, giving a peekaboo to his chest hair underneath, and when he spots me, his chocolate eyes sparkle from behind his black-framed glasses.

I meet him halfway, and he scoops me up in his arms, wrapping them around me as he captures my lips in a toe-curling kiss.

Wolf whistles echo down the corridor, but nothing could tear me away from the most magnificent man I’ve ever known.

“I’m so proud of you,” I murmur against his mouth.

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