Page 28 of Cross Checks

“Goodnight, love,” I whispered as I climbed into bed beside Chase. I gently rolled him over on his side and spooned up behind.

I lay there, listening to the gentle snores, and my mind wandered, imagining our lives in five or ten years. Would we still be living in Cold Pines? Or would Chase be in the NHL, playing in a different city? The possibilities seemed endless, and I knew I would follow him anywhere. Everywhere in the world needed firefighters.

I closed my eyes and imagined us in a cozy house full of warmth and laughter. I thought perhaps we would have a dog, maybe a golden retriever. It would be big and lovable, and Chase would take it on his morning runs.

Picturing Chase dashing through a park with a playful pet at his heels made me smile. They would arrive home together, and I’d get breakfast for both of them.

Chase stirred slightly in his sleep. He didn’t open his eyes, but his lips parted, and he whispered, “Love you.”

My heart skipped a beat. “I love you, too.” While he drifted off again, I pulled him close, pushing my face against the side of his neck.

Holding onto Chase felt like holding my entire world securely in my arms. I knew he was unlikely to hear me, but I had a little bit more to say. “Thank you,” I said softly. “Thank you for loving me and being brave enough to share your true self with me.”

With one more kiss on the cheek, I whispered, “Goodnight, my love.” It took only seconds for sleep to claim me, too, happy that I could spend the night next to Chase, feeling lucky to have found such an extraordinary love.

Chapter9

Chase

The only sign of our locker room rebuilding project as I pulled into the arena parking lot was the construction company trailer parked just behind the building. Otherwise, it all looked the same.

After weeks of being displaced to Portland, we could finally call the Cold Pines Arena home again. My teammates and I arrived bright and early for practice, eager to say hello to our new, old locker room.

As we waited for the doors to open, Jensen teased about the possibility of upgrades. “What if they put in a sauna or whirlpool?” His eyes lit up.

“Or one of those high-tech training rooms like the NHL teams have,” Waller suggested, rubbing his hands together in anticipation.

When our maintenance guy unlocked the arena doors, we streamed inside with adrenaline pumping through our veins. Bracing ourselves, we charged forward, expecting to find a sleek, modern sports oasis.

What we found was something that looked the same as it did before the fire. We viewed the same old style of lockers, a concrete floor, and cramped showers. Nothing obvious changed.

“Seriously?” I muttered under my breath. “After all of this construction time, it’s the same?”

“Looks like it,” stated Jensen, his shoulders slumped in disappointment. He reached up and ran his fingers through his hair while he turned all the way around. “Sure, it’s great to be back, but I was hoping for something a little…more.”

I grumbled. “You would have thought they might do something.”

“Yeah, a few massage chairs or a smoothie bar would have been nice,” Waller agreed. “At the very least, some USB ports to recharge our phones would have been thoughtful.”

“Come on, guys. Let’s not dwell on it,” I suggested, forcing a smile as I clapped my hands together. “We’ve got something more important, our next game, and that’s where our focus should be.”

Everyone nodded in agreement. “At least it won’t be hard to find our new old lockers,” laughed Jensen. “The layout is exactly the same.”

Coach Z joined us with Coach Hoss at his shoulder. “Hey, what’s going on here? Why all the glum faces? We’re back home.”

We all hesitated for a moment. None of us wanted to be the first to appear ungrateful for having our arena back. Still, it was impossible to completely contain the disappointment.

While we unloaded, Coach Hoss smirked slightly and nodded outside of Coach Z’s view.

I nearly laughed at his antics before Coach Z gave us his assessment of the situation. “Maybe this will help you all remember that character is what builds winners, not fancy gadgets or luxury services. This is the place where we captured a league championship last year. It’s where you became the players you are today.”

A small smile began to spread across my face. Coach was right, even if his little speech was primarily meant to cover the team administration’s ass. As much as we all craved a state-of-the-art facility, it wasn’t what would give us the grit to repeat as champions.

I spoke up for the team. “Thanks, Coach.” My teammates agreed, and we all began to gear up for practice.

Before heading out onto the ice, I glanced around the locker room one more time. My gaze lingered on one particular spot. It was where I lay, choking on billowing smoke, when my savior appeared.

“Hey, Taylor, what’s up?” Jensen asked. “You look like you spotted a ghost in there.”

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