Page 44 of Your Pucking Mom

I narrowed my gaze at her crude words. “We weren’t eye-fucking.” I held up invisible quotations to further prove my point.

“Hey”—she leaned back—“I’d climb that tree too if I’d seen him first.”

“Ew,” I said, then the players left the rink so the opening ceremonies could start.

“You know,” Emma said softly, “it’s okay.”

I wrapped my hand around hers. “I know.”

Aside from that one time when I was seventeen, I hadn’t imagined myself with anyone else. I had to remind myself it was okay to look, but I couldn’t touch…not again, anyway.

Austin piled in right behind Ledger, and it was hard for me to see anything other than them. I could never get in the middle of them, no matter how much I deserved it.

* * *

“Holy shit,” Emma exclaimed. “That was the most intense game I’ve ever seen in my entire life.”

We stumbled hand-in-hand toward the locker rooms where the players spilled out after the game. We were slightly tipsy and buzzing with excitement from the fast-paced match. It was exhilarating. The game went into overtime and was tied until Ledger’s assist to his teammate secured a last-second goal, clinching the victory.

“I can’t believe our guy won his first national game,” Emma squealed as we stepped into the hallway, stopping where the rest of the families were gathered.

I pulled her in. “You can’t call him that. He already catches enough flak for being the youngest player.”

Emma held up the jersey she had been wearing throughout the game as she stood in a plain black top and pant.

“I got it. I’m behaving, just like you said.”

I chuckled, giving her shoulders a reassuring squeeze as Austin emerged from the locker room.

As we surged forward, Emma and I couldn’t contain our pride and rushed to give Austin a massive, sweaty hug.

“Wow, Austin, that was incredible,” Emma exclaimed, her eyes shining with excitement.

“Yeah, you were amazing out there,” I added, feeling a surge of exhilaration.

Austin looked around, as if about to scold us for the commotion, but then he caught sight of our beaming faces. He couldn’t help but grin and pulled us into a warm embrace. “Thanks, guys,” he said, his voice filled with genuine appreciation.

After the adrenaline rush of the game, Emma suggested we all grab dinner to celebrate. Austin’s eyes lit up at the idea, and he nodded eagerly.

“I’m starving,” he exclaimed, his grin widening.

“Sushi?” I proposed.

Emma looked over at him.

“Yes. I love sushi,” he said, his eyes sparkling. “It sounds like the perfect way to cap off the evening.”

As we strolled down the hallway, reliving the game's highlights, Austin halted, a realization flashing across his face.

“Oh man, I forgot my extra uniform inside in the box.”

Without hesitation, I volunteered to retrieve it for him.

“Don’t worry, I’ll grab it,” I said. “Can I get back into the arena?”

“Yeah, you should be able to. Just go through the same tunnel you came to see me.”

I smiled at them. “Okay. I’ll be ten minutes tops, then.”

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