Page 25 of For the Win

Her eyebrows lift.

“He’s our goaltender.You told him he was really flexible and doing great.”

“Oh.Right.”She tips her head.“Yoga’s not a competitive sport.”

“Ha ha.Lifeis a competitive sport in my family.”I roll my eyes.“I know it isn’t, but I want to do my best.I appreciated it when you corrected me during that class.I could feel the difference, even when it’s just a subtle thing.”

“You’re very strong.And actually pretty flexible, for a guy.”

My shoulders go back.“Thanks.Those balancing poses are tricky.”

She smiles, her features loosening into relaxed lines again.Goddamn, she’s pretty.Her blue eyes are big and expressive.Her mouth has a sweet curve to it, even when she’s not smiling, her lips just the right amount of full and soft.And when she smiles, her face lights up and her eyes glow.“They can be.But balance is something you can train.”

“Yeah.Even when you told me to focus on a spot on the floor, that helped.Youmake it look easy.”

“When I’m not being dumped into the water.”

“Aaah.You had to bring that up.”

She’s laughing, and I have to laugh too.“It’s okay.I’ve let it go.”She places her palms together in front of her chest.“Inhale the future.Exhale the past.”

I’m still smiling, but her words hit me in the chest.“Yeah.Words to live by.”

“I try.”

I’m curious about her past but I won’t ask more questions.She said she doesn’t want to talk about it.

“I need to remember that,” I say.The meatballs are gone and I offer her the last piece of broccolini.She shakes her head, so I take it.“Just because I’ve been sent back to Pasadena every other time doesn’t mean it will happen this time.”

“Exactly.”

“And the guy I’m replacing is out for the rest of the season, and we’re in the playoffs, so I should be playing for a while.Assuming we can go deep.”

She lifts her eyebrows.

“I mean, make it through a few rounds of the playoffs.”

“Ah.”

“This team hasn’t made the playoffs in years.This is a big deal.We really want to do well.”I shrug.“Some would say it’s impossible, but we want to win the Cup.”

“Nothing’s impossible.”She studies me with warm eyes.I love how her interest seems so real.I mean, it is real.I think.She seems like a very honest person.And she makes me feel like I’m fascinating.Like I’m not just one of the famous Wynns—I’m me, I’m Harrison, and I matter.“Is it hard to stay motivated when you know the games don’t matter?”

“Well, they do matter in that we want to get home-ice advantage.”

“What does that mean?”

I ponder this.I know what it means, but in my life, so does everyone else.“Well, each round of the playoffs is seven games.If you have home-ice advantage, you play four of the seven games at home, assuming you play all seven.You travel less, you don’t have to stay in hotels, and you get to play in front of your fans.”

“Ah.”

“Also, the home team gets last change.”

She looks at me blankly.

Right, this is another thing I assume everyone knows.“So, when there’s a stoppage of play, the visiting team has to put their lineup on the ice first, and they can’t change it until play is resumed.That gives the home-team coach a chance to see who’s out there and put the players on he wants to match up against them.”

“Oh, okay.So, if there’s a player who’s a good goal scorer, the coach would want to put someone out who could stop him.”

---