Page 104 of Puck You Very Much
Still, the Lions scored in less than the two minutes I spent in the box. That didn’t matter. Coach Mack had told us a hundred times if he’d told us once to stay cool when the chips were down.
Only, the chips weren’t really down. It was one lousy goal, and it’d only come during a five-on-four. They didn’t exactly have a leg up on us. The Lions should cherish that goal, I decided, since it would probably be their only one of the night.
Sitting in the penalty box didn’t feel like a punishment. It fueled my drive, making me hungrier to get back out onto the ice and kick some serious ass.
The Lions came dangerously close to scoring again when the refs freed me from the penalty box. Let’s face it, the Riptides had come back from worse to win games. The only reason I didn’t go straight for Jakob again was the fact that their coach had pulled him off the ice and sent out the next shift. He was lucky. I might not have knocked him flat on his ass the first time, but I would make totally sure he wouldn’t be so lucky the next time.
I won the next faceoff, swept up the puck, and raced down the ice. My first shot on goal bounced the puck right off the post but I wouldn’t be deterred. I swung around the net and slippedthe puck in, leaving Ryan Detenbeck standing there with his thumb up his ass.
The crowd roared and I raised my arms high like I’d already reached victory. I didn’t care that we had another two periods of hockey left to play. I wanted to rub that goal in the Larkin’s face as much as humanly possible.
When I returned to the bench, all the guys slapped my hand, shoulder, and pretty much every other body part they could reach.
Jax smiled at me, saying, “That was fucking awesome, brother. I’ve been waiting for you to unleashthatversion of Zane Hirst.”
Jax sounded like he wanted to say something more, but the words wouldn’t leave his mouth. Also, I didn’t know if he only meant to compliment my goal or the hit I’d laid on Jakob. Or both. Either way, it made me think that the real Zane had been missing for far too long. You know, the months on end I’d spent fucking Jakob Martin senseless and letting him wake up in my arms. Pulling the plug on that made way for the real Zane Hirst to make a comeback and win it all.
Before my next on-ice shift, the buzzer sounded, ending the first period. The Lions and Riptides were tied at one. FYI, the only reason we were tied at all was because I’d spent two minutes in the penalty box for nearly knocking my ex-boyfriend on his ass.
When we returned to the locker room, Coach Mack told us how great we were doing, but that it still wasn’t enough. He wanted us tocrushLarkin and make them sorry they’d shown up. That sounded like a very Coach Mack thing to say. He complimented our physical play but reminded us that we could get even more intense.
He offered no financial incentive this time, but I understood his meaning. He wanted us to go out there and put a hurt on theLarkin Lions. It didn’t matter which player as long as we got the job done.
Coach Mack didn’t have to tell me twice.
I absorbed little else of what our coach said. My focus had grown that intense and unrelenting. When we returned to the ice, my eyes never veered from Jakob Martin. I wanted him badly, and not in the way I’d wanted him for months. He looked so sheepish, so weak, and I saw my opportunity.
The puck dropped again, kicking off the second period. Jax fired the puck to me, and I darted down the ice. Jakob got in my way, and I stiff-armed my ex to keep him at bay. Then he snatched the puck right out from behind my stick.
The little son of a bitch.
I chased him up the ice and drove my shoulder into him for the second time. That blow didn’t come closer to knocking him over, but at least I didn’t get penalized for the simple act of playing hockey.
Anyway, it was only the start of the second period. I had plenty of time to deliver a shot thatwouldcount.
42
JAKOB
Iknew what Zane was up to. He wanted to play rough because the last few months had caught up with him and shined a light on the man he really was. He wanted to forever strike out those parts—the good things, I mean. The parts of Zane Hirst I’d fallen in love with.
I wasn’t born yesterday.
At this point, I didn’t even care who won the game. Though a competitor, part of me had always cared more about the truly important things in life. Zane was forever focused on its superficialities. I loved him anyway. In a weird way, I guess I still did. You can’t just turn your feelings on and off like a faucet.
On the other hand, he’d been a total asshole. I shouldn’t have been expected to deal with anyone who would cheerfully display his childish and cruel behavior. Even if I didn’t want other guys per se, I could still do better than him. After all, he didn’t have the biggest and best cock in Buffalo. I didn’t know who that distinction belonged to but felt sure I could do even better than Zane’s eight inches.
When the horn sounded, we returned to center ice. I took the face off, snatching up the puck, and raced toward the Riptideend of the rink. At first, Jax chased, prompting me to fire the puck off to Levi Dunn, who held onto it for a few paces before shooting it back to me. And then it happened. I couldn’t have seen it coming. Well, Ididsee it coming, but only for a split-second.
Zane Hirst rocketed toward me like a mad man—mayberocketedwas the wrong word. Helookedlike he was moving at breakneck speed, but in reality, he seemed to move in slow motion.
You would think that would leave me an opportunity to defend myself, but it didn’t. It felt like being in a car accident. I was once involved in an ugly one, so I’m qualified to say. The whole world slows to a painful crawl while you await impact. But you can’tbraceyourself for it. You feel helpless to do anything about it.
And then the other car finally hits.
Zane hurtled towards me in that very same way. Helpless, all I could do was hope the impact wouldn’t match my fears.
And then the lights went out.
