Page 55 of Defensive Zone

Which means one step closer to him getting back on the ice.

I don’t really know how I feel about it yet. I’ve loved being with him these last couple of weeks, taking care of him,lovinghim. He goes in for a few hours every morning to train lower body, and when he’s given the green light to play again, he’ll be back training every day and going on the road, and the needy part inside me is anxious about being away from him. About what might happen when we’re separated.

I thank Kendrick as he hands over a beer, and Zach moves to stand in the middle of the living room, jerking his head at me when he realizes I haven’t followed him.

“I’ve got something I want to tell you guys,” he announces as I step up beside him, and the room goes quiet.

“You’re not retiring, are you?” Peyton asks with a frown.

Zach shakes his head. “No, as soon as I’ve been cleared by the doc, I’ll be back out on the ice.”

Elliot lets out a sigh of relief. “Oh, thank fuck for that.”

“I… uh…” Zach stammers. He throws me a quick smile and grabs my hand. “So, me and Carter are dating.”

There’s a moment of complete silence, and my heart rate begins to kick up in panic. Are they going to disapprove and tell him this is a terrible idea? Try to talk him out of it? These guys are like his family. He often tells me how they are more like his brothers than Brody is. I know their opinion is important to him.

Fuck. What if they hate me for what I’ve put Zach through over the years?

But before I can spiral, the silence is broken by a flurry of excitement. I sag in relief, feeling the weight of their approval like a physical thing.

“I knew it!” Blaine beams, wrapping his arms around us both in a hug. “Wait until I tell Alex, he’s going to be so stoked.”

“Does this mean you’re boyfriends now?” Elliot asks, bouncing on his toes.

“El!” Blaine scolds.

“What? It’s a valid question!”

I’m about to open my mouth to confirm, but I’m cut off.

“I thought you were already dating?” Kendrick asks, a puzzled expression on his face. “I thought you had an open relationship or something.”

Zach huffs out a laugh. “No. I was just an idiot in love for a long time.”

I squeeze his hand. “We’re both idiots in love now.”

“Aw! You’re so cute, it hurts.” Elliot hoots, placing both hands on Zach’s face and squishing his cheeks together. The goalie takes a step in front of me, and gone is his playful expression. His eyes narrow as he crosses his arms over his chest. “What’s your intentions with my favorite D-man?”

“Hey!” Kendrick protests. “What about me?”

“This isn’t about you, Kenny,” Elliot says over his shoulder before glaring back at me. “So?”

Pressing my lips together, I cast Zach a quick look before focusing on Elliot again. “My intentions are good, you don’t need to worry about that.”

Unconvinced, Elliot cocks his head to the side, brows arched.

“Since I was six years old, he’s always been my favorite person in the world, but I’ve come to realize that he’s more than that.”

I’m aware that his teammates have stopped talking and are all listening intently, but I ignore them. My eyes find Zach again. He’s chewing on the inside of his cheek as he listens.

“He’s my entire world. My soulmate, in every way. It’s like for my entire life, I’ve been building this LEGO set, and I’ve always been missing one piece, but it’s always been there, right in front of me. I just wasn’t ready to see it.”

Zach visibly swallows, and I continue.

“So, Elliot, the answer to your question is… I’d really like to love your favorite D-man for the rest of my life, if he’ll let me.”

Elliot grins widely, knowing he achieved exactly what he intended to and have me say the words out loud.

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