Page 40 of Love in Overtime

“Yes, I think so too.” I yawn as we approach Cooper’s room first.

“Do you want to come in, or … should we go somewhere else?” He gives me a wistful look.

“Sure. Let’s hang out.”

I’m not worried about it because I’m a mature woman who can handle herself around the man she’s falling for.

As soon as Cooper closes the door, he gently pulls me into his arms. I rest my head on his chiseled pecks, allowing myself to sink into him.

“So,” he says into my hair.

“So,” I repeat.

“Are we doing this?” he asks, looking down at me.

“You mean working together and …” I tighten my arms around his neck.

“Yep. I’m game if you are,” he says.

Every cell in my body is shouting yes. I still have some concerns, but I also can’t ignore how I feel when I’m with him.

“Definitely.”

CHAPTER 11

COOPER

Here we go. It’s usually my favorite day, but I’m not sure what the outcome will be. The arena is a sea of number 29 jerseys, and cheers for Dan Roberts are filling the air. Honestly, I couldn’t care less because there’s only one person I want cheering for me—Blair.

I’m grateful for her because the dancing otter mascot and the obnoxious “Ice Ice Baby” song have me second-guessing most of my recent life decisions.

It’s been a whirlwind since my dinner with Blair when we basically decided to throw caution to the wind. We haven’t officially discussed our status, but I don’t need a label. As far as I’m concerned, Blair is my girl.

It’s been a long time since I was in a relationship. I’ve dated, but when things started getting serious, I was out. Having grown up without healthy relationship role models didn’t help, so a long time ago I accepted that I may not find someone to spend my life with.

“Okay, this is it,” Coach Strickland shouts. “This is whatwe’ve been preparing for. Remember that there are a lot of people depending on you, so bring your best out there.”

Ha. No pressure.

I zone out as Coach goes over some plays, and before I know it, we’re heading into the tunnel. The Vanilla Ice song comes on again, and I roll my eyes.

“Who chose this song?” I ask.

The emcee begins announcing our names, and one by one we race out onto the ice. The energy in the arena is unreal, maybe because the spectators are so invested in our cause or maybe it’s Dan Roberts return to his hometown. Number 29 is everywhere, but there are cheers and banners for the rest of us as well.

I quickly scan the crowd, and then I spot Blair on the sidelines. She waves and then points to her mouth, urging me to smile for all the adoring fans. It takes all my strength not to skate over to her and kiss her in front of all the town residents, Puck Bunnies, and Dan Roberts groupies.

I flash her a quick smile, and now I’m ready to play.

The next few minutes are intense as we meet the Lumberjacks for the first time. After intercepting the puck, Nate passes it to me. With a quick scan of my surroundings, I pass the puck to Dan. He sends it toward the Lumberjacks goalie and scores.Yes.

The crowd goes wild when they see their local hero make a goal. I glance at Blair who’s cheering loudly and giving high fives to everyone around her. I skate over to Dan and give him a fist bump. I’m sure it feels good to give all the fans what they want and I’m glad I could assist. Then I watch as he moves to the glass and blows a kiss into the stands.

The rest of us exchange looks. There’s some juicy gossipfor the town to dig into. That was a bold move to make in front of a packed arena, but Dan can do what he wants here.

The game continues, and the Lumberjacks score a goal to tie it up. We’re fighting hard, but the Jacks are there to meet us at every turn.

Noah and Ted move to protect Dawson who’s waiting to block anything that comes toward the net. One of the Jacks manages to evade them, and passes the puck to his teammate, who then hits it into the goal.

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