Page 60 of Getting Lucky Number Seven

The puck slid through, crossing the line a mere second before the buzzer went off, signaling the end of the game. Sirens erupted, along with cheers from the crowd. The team rushed me, swarming the ice, and for a moment, I could hardly believe it. We’d done it. We were in the Frozen Four, with a chance at becoming national champions.

Cheers and the high of winning filled the locker room air, and the rest of the guys continued to celebrate as I rushed to shower and dress. When I burst out of the locker room, a large crowd waited. My phone bumped my thigh with every step, a steady reminder that my night was only beginning. The images on there had tortured me for days, but now I planned on using them to help make my case—I was going to need all the help I could get, and I was afraid it still wouldn’t be enough.

If she won’t give me another shot…I immediately shut down that thought, because I couldn’t deal with even the possibility, not now that I knew how empty my life was without her.I’ll do whatever it takes to fix it, no matter how long it takes.

“Beckett!” Megan barreled into me and I hugged her tight. Aunt Tessa nodded from behind her, looking completely out of place, but she’d come anyway. Ever since finding out the truth about Dad, she seemed to be trying extra hard with Megan and me. She’d even apologized for the things she’d said about Lyla and Mom, which I could tell had been hard for her to do.

“That was seriously awesome,” Megan said. “I’ll admit I covered my eyes there at the end, because I was so scared it wouldn’t go in, but I saw the replay, and wow. I’m really happy for you. Still a tiny bit annoyed aboutotherthings, but happy.”

Of course she had to get in that last jab. “Thanks,” I said, and then I ruffled her hair since I knew she thought she was too old for it. On cue, she batted my hand away.

A man in his mid-thirties approached us. Through the years, I’d gotten pretty good at telling who the scouts were, and this guy fit the profile. The skill checklists in his hand confirmed it. The fact that he had on a Bruins cap sent my nerves into overdrive, and after the beating they’d taken during the game, short-circuiting was sure to follow. I needed to get it under control, because I didn’t have time for that.

“Great game,” he said, then stuck out his hand. “I’m Jeremy Alexander. Been watching you play for a while.”

The line between my brain and mouth must’ve shorted out, too. I shook his hand, incapable of speech.

“That last period was a bit better than the first two.”

Finally I found my voice. “Yes, sir.”

“The pressure can mess with your head, but you pulled out of it when it mattered.”

I wondered what he’d do if I said it wasn’t the pressure, it was because of a girl. And that she was the same reason I’d turned it around there at the end, too. Even when she wasn’t with me, she was. God, I’d been so stupid and blind.

The rest of the team spilled out, and their family and friends pushed in to see them, interrupting the conversation.

Under other circumstances, I would’ve tried to chat for a while and celebrate more with my boys, but my skin felt too tight and my feet grew desperate to bolt. The girl I loved was out there, and I needed to find her—I didn’t want to waste one more day not having Lyla in my life. Funny how the thought of being denied a committed relationship now scared me a hundred times more than the alternative.

“Nice meeting you,” I said to the scout, backing away before I got gridlocked and stuck here any longer. I turned to Megan and Aunt Tessa. “Thanks for coming to the game. But I gotta go.”

I only hoped I wasn’t too late.

Chapter Thirty-Three

Lyla

Okay, Whitney and I had a game plan for this.With my rapid heartbeat pounding through my head, I just couldn’t remember what the hell it was. The people crowded around me weren’t helping either. Add to that the memories from my first party here with Beck and this was a disaster waiting to happen.

I’d known there was a chance Beck would be at this party, just like Whitney knew Matt might be here with his new girlfriend, who I disliked on principle—I felt bad about it, but still. Honestly, the possibility of having to face him again was one of the reasons I’d worn my embroidered dress with my over-the-knee brown boots.Oh yeah,thatwas part of the game plan. Show him what he’s missing.

As the music and multiple conversations in the Quad buzzed around me like a tornado, I stared at the back of the maybe-Beck guy. I thought I’d somehowjust knowif it were him, as if my body was so attuned to his it’d scream at me. It was screaming all right, my pulse now skittering under my skin, but it was still more of a that-might-be-him scream. With the dimmed lights, I could only make out that the guy was tall, the same build as Beck, and that his hat was black and possibly a Bruin’s cap. What with us being in Boston, that wasn’t even a sure sign it was him.

“Hey.” Whitney extended me a red cup. “See any hotties?”

Maybe the one I’m desperately trying to get out of my head.I glanced at where maybe-Beck had been standing, but he’d gotten swallowed up in the crowd. The place was extra crazy tonight, so many people crammed inside it was hard to move, and if I hadn’t stayed rooted in place, I doubted Whitney would’ve found me again. “Not really,” I shouted over the music.

“Well, don’t give up. We’re at least finding apossibilitytonight—that was what we agreed to. Our first step to get over those douchebags we’re not mentioning.”

Part of me wanted to ask,What’s the point?There was only a month and a half of school left, and while I missed sex—I couldn’t believe how much, considering it was such a little part of my life pre-Beck and his damn mind-blowing sex—I was done with casual hookups. For a while anyway.

Whit and I made our way through the mass of people, and when we caught a good vibe, or a cute enough guy smiled at us, we’d introduce ourselves. I forced myself to use the small-talk skills I’d learned over the past few months, and I was getting pretty good at managing it without embarrassment, if I did say so myself.

We’d just grabbed another round of drinks when Whitney started up a conversation with a tall guy with bronze skin and black curly hair—most definitely more jock than nerd, despite last week’s vow. Which left me to come up with something to say to his cute friend, Noah. He was also super tall, but more on the scrawny side, with a great, easy smile that instantly made me glad we’d stopped to chat.

My attention drifted when I caught sight of the black cap again. The guy glanced to the left, and my heart seized. Bruins cap. Beck’s profile.

Beck.

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