Page 169 of The Husband Game

“No. I mean, him quietly dating a more femme guy, sure. Marrying one? Not so much. But it’s great. And I mean that sincerely. All I want is for my brother to be happy but if he can do it in a way that’s him being true to himself? So much the better.”

“You think I make him happy?”

Emily gave him a disbelieving look. “Charlie, I have never seen my brother look at anyone with heart eyes before. But he is head over heels for you.”

“Did you ever meet any of the people he dated in the past?”

“A few. Men and women. And he liked them, don’t get me wrong. But he wasn’t … invested the way he is with you.”

“Obviously he’s invested, we’re married,” Charlie said lightly.

“Ehh, a piece of paper and some jewelry isn’t what makes a relationship a marriage. It’s … it’s looking at someone like your heart is walking around outside your body. It’s exactly the way he looks at you, like he’s dumbstruck you even exist and he’d do anything to keep you.”

“No one’s ever looked at me that way before,” Charlie admitted quietly.

“You look at him that way too.”

“I—I do?”

That was good, right? If Charlie wanted to sell this relationship to Dustin’s family …

But no, it didn’t feel like Charlie was selling anything. Mostly it felt like he was letting people see what only felt natural inside the quiet, private space of their home.

It was them seeing what Charlie actually felt for Dustin.

God, was he really that transparent?

He must be.

Emily smiled. “It’s different, somehow. But yeah, I can see how much you care about him too. And it’s nice to see my brother so happy. It’s good to know he’s smart enough to realize he shouldn’t take you for granted. He did with other people in the past, I think.”

“I’ve never known anyone who’s tried harder,” Charlie admitted. “He’s gone above and beyond for me in every way.”

“That’s the real Dustin,” she said with a laugh. “Loyal, hard-working, and willing to give whatever he loves everything he’s got.”

“I hope I can live up to that,” Charlie said.

Emily gave him a searching look. “Do you care about him and want him to be happy?”

“Of course I do,” Charlie said firmly. And that wasn’t a lie. Not even a little bit.

She tucked her arm through his. “Then I think you’re going to be just fine.”

* * *

After more blocked shots than Dustin could count, and another goal by Ottawa, he finally got his scoring opportunity in the third period.

Ottawa’s defense broke down and Dustin whipped around the net, sliding the puck in with a wraparound goal before Poole could even blink.

The crowd hollered and although Dustin knew it was impossible, he wanted to believe he could hear Charlie shouting his excitement.

He pointed up at the box where Charlie sat, lifting his stick in triumph as his teammates crashed into him, shouting with joy.

The 4-3 lead wasn’t an easy one to keep.

Ottawa put pressure on the Cats, trying to goad them into taking stupid penalties but they held it together and as the final minutes of the period ticked down, Dustin skated hard, snagging the puck and sending it down the ice toward their empty net.

It slid in and he let out a whoop of triumph.

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