Page 98 of The Nanny Goal

The door swings open and our coach walks in. He’s tense, too. “All right. Let’s keep it clean and focused. We don’t need a circus.”

A few of the guys nod. Rusty cracks his neck with a sound like thunder.

Coach looks at each of us in turn. “Play our game. Be smart. We’re on a roll. Home ice advantage in the playoffs is within reach, fellas, so eyes on that prize. We’re not trying to make a point tonight—wearethe point.”

That lands. I can feel the ripple it causes.

Then a low rumble of agreement rolls through the room.

That’sall we need to prove tonight. That we are one.

Hale stands. “Let’s do this, then. Tonight we’re starting with the beasts. We’ve got Marshie at centre with Rusty and Gusty on the wings. Mo and Smash behind them on D. And in the net, our stoic Russian, Arty’s going for win number seven. Let’s fucking go.”

“Let’s fucking go,” the whole team says as one.

I stand, shake out my legs, then give Hale a fist pump as I lead the team into the hallway. Toward the thunderous noise building in the stands.

At the mouth of the tunnel, just before the ice comes into view, the team always has a few kids waiting to cheer us on.

Tonight, Charlie and Inessa are waiting there, wearing tiny Highlanders hoodies. Becca kneels behind them, holding on tight to both kids as they jockey for space with some bigger kids.

Inessa spots me and breaks into a grin so wide her cheeks puff out. “Papa!”

I crouch down, ignoring the tight pull of my pads. “My good luck charm.”

She holds up her hand. I offer my blocker and she slaps it, then switches and goes for the glove. Double tap. Serious face.

“Win the game,” she says with firm, toddler authority.

“Yes, coach,” I murmur, and she giggles.

I glance up and catch Emery watching me from the back of the crowd, her eyes soft.

I don’t let myself look too long, just long enough that she knows I see her.

And then I turn, tug my mask down, and leave everything but the battle behind.

CHAPTER30

EMERY

It’s not enough for this high-stakes game to be close.

It’s not enough for it to go to overtime.

It goes all the way to a shootout, and the first skater up for Calgary is Max Fucking Tilman, who I bet will be facing some disciplinary action from the league for his unsportsmanlike conduct in the warm-up.

Ironically, I think his most unsportsmanlike conduct was fighting Russ in the second period, since that was purely personal. But fighting is a part of the game, like it or not—and I do like it—and karma made sure he didn’t win that fight. Not that there was much of a chance of it going well for him.

Russ pounded him into the ice and then stood over him like a gladiator.

The crowd loved it.

And they love this shoot-out match-up, too.

Alexei squares up as Tilman starts to build speed, then he tracks back, waiting…waiting… and just as the forward snaps the puck,mygoalie drops his right leg and blocks it perfectly.

The final rejection of the former captain in this building, and the crowd goes wild.

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