Page 24 of Sew Matcha in Love
“I can skate,” she said. “And maybe shoot. I have gloves on under this.” She pulled a hand out of the muff. “See?”
I grinned. “Okay then. Hockey Lesson 2: Shooting.”
“But Daddy!” Amelie protested. “You skipped a lot of stuff. And she needs a bucket.”
“A bucket?” Arwyn asked. “You play hockey?”
“Helmet. Sometimes we play.” She shrugged. “It’s not hard. But it has a lot of rules.”
“I’m sure. What are the rules for shooting?”
“Hit the puck and get it in the net.”
“Okay. Got a stick for me to try?”
Isla skated over holding one of my sticks. “It’s too big for you, but you can try it.”
“Okay. Why is it too big?”
“Because you’re short.”
I watched the exchange intently. Arwyn didn’t seem bothered or offended by Isla’s directness.
“This is how you line up a shot.” Amelie had her stick now and seemed comfortable enough taking over for me. “It’s a lot like mini golf, but you need much more power.”
She demonstrated, and her puck sailed straight into the net.
“Woohoo!” Isla cheered, holding her glove up for knuckies. “My turn!”
Her puck followed a similar path to Amelie’s to the net, and the knuckies ritual was repeated.
“Great job, girls,” Arwyn praised. “You make it look easy. All right, right hand low, left hand high, bend, pull back—andwhack!”
The elbow of her stick made contact with the puck and slid a few feet toward the goal.
Amelie and Isla looked horrified. I held in a laugh and waited to see what they would say.
“I think I missed something,” Arwyn mused.
“Daddy.” Isla’s tone was rueful. “Youhaveto help her.”
“Yeah,” Amelie agreed. “That was a total hack job.”
Arwyn snorted. “It was, wasn’t it?”
“So bad!” Isla agreed. “But don’t worry, Daddy is the best at shooting, and if anyone can help you, he can.”
“Is that so?” Arwyn regarded me curiously, a hint of a smile playing at her lips. “I thought Kingston Brewer was the best shooter on the Edge? And Xavier is pretty good, too. Didn’t he win a big award last year?”
“ButIhave my face on merch bags,” I bragged. “That should say something, no?” I teased back.
“All right,Marshy,work your magic. Instruct me in the ways.”
My heartbeat kicked up. The way Arwyn said that …Instruct me in the ways.I didn’t know her that well, but I had a feeling there were lots ofwaysI could instruct her in, if given the opportunity.
I needed a moment.
What were we doing?
