Page 20 of Puck Your Neighbor

"Or maybe your team just sucks!" Blake calls back.

The third period is a nail-biter. The score is tied, and both our teams are playing their hearts out. We get a power play with five minutes left. We cycle the puck, looking for an opening. I get a pass from Leo, fake a shot, and slide it over to Maverick. He winds up and blasts it past their goalie. Go-ahead goal!

The Vipers pull their goalie in the last minute, but we hold them off. Finn makes a huge glove save in the dying seconds to seal the deal.

The final buzzer sounds. The scoreboard: Iron Wolves 5, Vipers 4. We won a hard-fought battle. We mob Finn, helmets flying, gloves in the air. The crowd chants our names. It's the best feeling in the world. We came, we saw, we conquered. And this is just the beginning. We're not just a team; we're a brotherhood, and we're here to stay.

I can't wait to get home and tell Anya all about it. First, we have to get out of here, but that will be at least another hour.

VIP fans wanting autographs and photos line up near the hall entrance for our dressing room, and I don't have the heart to be short with any of them so we can get out of there, even though it feels as if my inner alpha is pulling on my navel to get a move on. The sooner we're done, the sooner we can bring her food and make sure she's okay.

Having these many fans want things from us is exhilarating. It wasn't like this for the last two years, when we kept losing every game we played. And then something just clicked for us and our Iron Wolves teammates.

Leo, Maverick, and I make it through all the requests. One omega puck bunny wanted me to sign her boobs. Which I normally would jump at, but I talked her into her shoulder instead. The thought of Anya possibly seeing me do something like that puts the fear of God into me. I don't want to risk losing her before I've even had a chance to court her fully.

We make it back to our lockers, and I don't bother stripping before I go for my phone. I want to know what she's picked for her dinner tonight.

Only, there are no new texts from her at all, and our game and the fans after took over three hours. That's more than enough time for her to get back with us, even if she's working. She's always been fast, all week.

I whistle to Leo and Mav, holding up my phone so they'll check theirs. Perhaps she texted one of them privately. They both shake their heads.

Coach comes in with his assistant trailing behind him. "Get presentable, boys. The press wants to speak with y'all."

I sigh. I'm worried about Anya, but we can't leave yet. It's going to be into the evening before we can make it back. All I can hope is that she got sucked into her work and will get back to us by then, and that she's not going through her heat and in pain.

But what will we do if she is? The thought of leaving her to suffer when I could help her is almost too much to bear.

Leo comes over to me. "Put a smile on, bud. We just won against one of the best teams in the league. We'll leave as soon as we're cleared to do so and check on her. Trust me, I'm nervous, too. But we have to get through this so that we can have a successful season."

I nod. I know he's right, but it doesn't make my inner alpha any less twitchy.

Our omega needs us.

Soon we'll be able to provide for her, and it will calm down. Even if it feels like it will take forever. It's nice to have an omega to focus on.

Chapter 11

We need our alphas.

I kick off the blankets over me. My skin burns as sweat drips down my brow and tickles my ears. As soon as I kick them off, a chill sets in, and I shiver. It's been a vicious loop for the last hour; hot then freezing, and there's no relief of the happy middle.

I let out a sob as a cramp takes hold of my uterus. Rolling over, I curl up into a ball, trying to get my body to release its muscle spasm.

This doesn't make sense. I've been religiously taking my heat suppressants. I should just be moody and slightly uncomfortable and horny right now, but this feels like my first heat, when it came on without notice and I had no time to prepare. That had been agony, and this feels like a thousand times worse than that.

We need our alphas. Text them. Tell them.

I let out a hoarse, wheezing scream. Shut up, shut up, shut up!

They're the only ones who can relieve this pain. We feel this way because we know we've found our mates.

My phone chimes.

That has to be them after their game. Answer them.

I flip over the other way, trying to ignore my inner omega. I know she's right. The only way this pain will end is if I have sex with them and give over to my instincts. They're sweet, and in my heart, I know they won't hurt or try to kill me like the alphas did in the past. But the fear of the "what if" still wins in the battle of my two halves.

I know their game was a few hours ago. I managed to wish them good luck before my heat fully took hold.

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