Page 12 of Cross Check Hearts

He waves me away. “Nothing to apologize for. Better you ask one of us than Dunaway himself.”

“Right,” I say and take another sip of my beer while I weigh what I want to ask next. I’ve got to be careful here because I don’t want any of them getting even a hint that Hannah and I already have a connection. I set my beer down carefully on the table in front of me. “Does Hannah hang around the arena like that a lot?”

I make sure to keep my tone casual, conversational—just a new guy trying to learn the dynamics.

Noah shrugs. “She comes to games sometimes, but from what I hear, she’s pretty busy with school and her side job.”

Theo laughs. “Yeah, and I’m sure Dunaway is thrilled she’s so busy with her own shit that it keeps her away from the arena. Poor guy. I can’t imagine being a hockey coach with a daughter.”

Reese nods. “Yeah, seriously. He’s made it abundantly clear to anyone who comes near her that he’d never let her date a hockey player. I’m surprised he hasn’t pulled you aside and given you ‘the talk’ yet.”

I raise my eyebrows at him. “‘The talk?’ What the hell does that mean?”

Noah laughs at me over the rim of his glass as he takes a drink. “Oh, don’t worry. I’m sure you’ll find out soon enough.”

“Yeah, especially since you’re one of the few guys on the team who isn’t partnered up yet,” Theo says. “Tread lightly, rookie.”

I nod as the guys change the subject, but I’m barely paying attention to what they’re saying because my mind’s stuck on Hannah. She said almost the exact same thing earlier—that her dad has forbidden her from dating hockey players—but as far as I’m concerned, that’s not going to stop me.

It’s not that I don’t respect Dunaway. I do. The man’s a legend, and he’s given me the opportunity of a lifetime. But some connections are too rare, too important to ignore. And what Hannah and I shared that night wasn’t just physical chemistry. It was something… bigger. Something worth fighting for.

I’ve finally found my mystery girl, and I’m not about to let her go that easily.

Chapter6

Hannah

I enter the arena with my heart pounding faster than it normally does here. The Aces are about to play their first game of the preseason, and I’ve always made an appearance to support my dad, but I really wrestled with whether I should come. As much as I didn’t want to have another charged run-in with Declan, I couldn’t think of a reason that wouldn’t make my father suspicious, so I decided to just suck it up and tough it out.

Still, as I make my way to my seat, the Aces stream out onto the ice to start their warmup and my stomach flutters at the thought of seeing Declan. We haven’t crossed paths since he chased after me a couple weeks ago, but I knew it would inevitably happen again at some point. I haven’t been able to get him—or what he said—out of my head.

As if he can sense me thinking about him, Declan sinks a practice shot and turns on the ice in a wide arc. His amber-flecked eyes sweep across the crowd like a bird of prey and land directly on me. Awareness zaps through me, an intense and physical sensation, and it feels like every vein in my body opens wide as adrenaline rushes through my limbs.

It’s not fair that one look from him still affects me this way. Not fair that in an arena full of people, he can find me instantly, as if there’s some invisible thread connecting us.

It’s hard, but I wrench my gaze away from his with my heart thudding in my chest and my breathing labored. Thankfully, I spot my mom in a seat right by the glass, so I make a beeline for her. My mom spots me on the way and smiles at me, which takes the edge off a little bit. She stands to hug me when I reach her side.

“Hi, sweetheart,” she says with a wide smile as we part. Bracing her hands on my shoulders, she looks me over, frowning. “Are you okay? You look a bit pale.”

“I’m fine. It’s just first game jitters,” I cover, and she blinks in surprise.

“Since when do you get jitters? You’ve been watching these games since you were in pigtails,” she teases, and I force a laugh that I hope sounds natural.

“I know. I guess I just really want them to do well this season.”

She grins. “Don’t we all. But I know your father is feeling great about the team’s odds this year, especially after he snapped up that new rookie he won’t stop talking about. He’s convinced the kid is going to be a breakout star.”

My stomach swoops at the mention of Declan, but I do my best not to let it show on my face as I sit down next to her. “Really? That must be the new guy I saw in the locker room the other day,” I say vaguely.

“So you’ve met him?”

I shrug. “Sort of. I stopped by the arena a couple weeks ago to see Dad and noticed a new face in the locker room, but I didn’t talk to him or anything.”

“He’s handsome, isn’t he?” she asks, nudging me with her elbow, and I choke on my next breath, disguising it as a small cough. This is the last thing I want to be talking about with her, especially given who we’re talking about.

“Oh, how are your classes going?” she asks, mercifully changing the subject but still making me wince inside.

Law school is no joke, and even though this semester just started, it’s really been kicking my ass. I feel like I’m already super far behind, but I’m not about to tell my mother any of that. I smile at her instead.

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