Page 35 of She Wolf

“That’s good then. Just make sure you keep it up and you’ll be right as rain in no time.”

“Don’t you worry honey, I won’t be missing out on any sessions, he’s a cutie and I like my leg massage at the end,” she winks making me laugh.

Having offered to make them a drink I head back into the kitchen to fix them their usual: club soda and lime.

“It’s wine o’ clock,” Chloe sings as she enters the kitchen, plonking two bottles down on the counter and placing one in the fridge. She has the front door code and likes to let herself in.

“Red and white? Couldn’t you make up your mind?” I ask, pointing at her hoard.

“No, I could, but I want to raid Anna’s stash and this is just so it doesn’t look as rude when I do,” she giggles and heads straight for Anna’s bottle fridge.

Luckily, Anna’s not here, she went to spend time with her best friend, Lex, who is also engaged to my cousin, Theo.

Chloe has come decked out in her Wolves jersey and yoga pants. We are dressed the same except for the names we have emblazoned on the back. Mine says ‘Madden’ along with Knox’s number ‘9’—I'm alternating between his and Casey’s number ‘11’ now that he’s on the team, and hers obviously says ‘Svenderson’.

She grabs a chilled bottle of the Franciacorta while I take out two stemless glasses and then we head into the den. The TV is blasting out the pre-game hype and Jack sits eagerly waiting for them to talk about the team. A few soft toy wolves are scattered around him, part of his watch from home ritual.

“Hi, everyone. Oh, are the boys already out for warm-ups?” Chloe says glancing at the screen. There’s a chorus of hellos and yeses and upon seeing Chloe, Jack abandons his box of Timbits and jumps up for a hug.

“Hey, Jackie. How was school?” Chloe asks him.

“Slow today. I think I was there for one hundred hours,” she laughs, letting him go and takes a seat next to June while Jack goes back to sitting on the floor.

Jack is wearing the new jersey with both his uncle’s numbers on and team jammies underneath. It’s a Friday and I plan to let him watch the whole thing, but he may not make it to the end. Dressing him ready for bed eases the transition of moving him from wherever he crashes to his room.

His exuberance, like always, during a game will be dialed up to an eleven so he’ll pace and chant, shout at the ref, and dance when one of our group scores. By the end of the evening, the den will look like a tornado tore right through it.

The broadcasters start to mention Gunner’s name and even though I’ve seen it a million times, when a little banner with his picture slides up on the screen, cataloging this season’s stats, I can’t help but stare.

The butterflies taking flight in my stomach tell me what I already know—Gunner makes me feel things I haven’t felt in a long time. Maybe ever.

The clapping from Alison and June pulls me out of another Gunner-induced haze and I place the popcorn down on the coffee table.

“You ever seen anyone as bendy as my guy?” Chloe whispers for probably the millionth time since I’ve known her. I mean it is crazy how someone as broad and tall as Rex can contort his body, but with her mouth dropped slightly open and the hazy look on her face I fear she’s probably not thinking about his goaltending skills and more about hisotherskills.

“Mom, will you be as excited as Gramma and Mrs. Grey when I’m in the NHL?” Jack asks clutching the stick Knox gave him after his hat trick. His wide blue eyes hold mine, so unwavering in his belief that he will make it.

“Buddy, I’d be proud no matter what you do, but of course I’d be excited, because I knew you were happy.”

He nods vehemently and then turns to our guests. “I would be happy. I’m gonna be a big star. Everyone will want me to be on their team, but I’ll tell them I’m a Wolf already and they can’t have me.”

Alison and June laugh but I tell him, “Well, Casey and Gunner weren’t Wolves to start with. You wouldn’t remember because you were just a baby, but they were on different teams and Knox only just became a Wolf. There are a lot of teams Jack.”

He blinks a few times, shakes his head like I’m crazy, and then focuses back on the TV.

“Uncle Jason will be a Wolf soon,” he says, mesmerized by the team as the cameras span the ice.

“We’ll have to wait and see, Jack.”

On screen, my cocky younger brother andtwin for lifestand proudly on the ice through the national anthem. Of course, Jack takes the same stance with Knox’s stick, and every time the camera pans to Gunner my tummy does a little flip. Now that I’m watching the game from a new perspective, everything has started to feel different.

Gunner has a focused look in his eye, a fire that screams crush, block, defend. A look that turns the butterflies I usually feel when I’m near him into electric shocks that shoot straight to my core and before I know it the puck has dropped, and the game is underway.

Casey, Knox, and Adam are fluid as a line and have a few shots on goal, while Gunner and Callan do everything a good defense pair should. They’re solid on the back check and work well at controlling Tampa’s offense. When their shift is over, they catch their breath on the bench, waiting for their next shift.

First intermission comes around and while Jack runs off to the bathroom, I collect up the pieces of popcorn that didn’t quite end up in his mouth or stay in the bowl. Making my way into the kitchen I tip it all into the trash and turn to find Alison has followed me in.

“Thank you for having us over, Coralie. We absolutely love spending time with you and Jack.” Her gaze is soft and warm, just like Gunner’s. He definitely gets his dark brown eyes and hair from her.

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