Page 129 of Reach Around

“I love that you tried so hard.” Her voice gets quiet. “No one’s ever tried that hard for me.”

“I didn’t try hard,” I say. “It was easy. You’re the easiest decision I’ve ever made.”

Her eyes shimmer under the setting sun, and she stops, facing me. “Even if I hurt myself again?”

“Especially if,” I say, pulling her in for a kiss. “You’re the one who tied my shoelaces in second grade when I had the stomach flu and almost puked on my Velcro.”

She gasps, eyes wide. “I thought you forgot that.”

We’re still kissing when Shep yells, “CAN I LIGHT MORE FLARES NOW?”

“NO,” Joely and I shout in unison, breaking apart in laughter.

Bennett grumbles something about “public safety” and “restraining orders,” but it’s all background noise now.

Beneath all the chaos, a different kind of anticipation buzzes. I can’t wait to tell my mom a seagull shit on Bennett’s head—she’ll never let him live it down. And we’ve got to get moving anyway, because Lynsie, Gisele, and Beth have an engagement party waiting for us back at Power Play. I can already picture the confetti, the cupcakes, the girls plotting their speeches, and my mom hugging Joely so hard she might break a rib.

I know we’ll walk into a madhouse of hugs and speeches, but for one perfect second, it’s just us—Joely’s in my arms.

My ring’s on her hand.

And for the first time in my life, I know exactly who I am and where I’m meant to be.

Not on the ice.

Not chasing someone else’s dream.

But here.

With her.

As her forever.

Keep the Sorrowville Steam Rolling…

Bennett Foster never needed anyone to fix him. He’s the rock of the Slammers, the guy everyone relies on—except when the weight of it all turns him to stone.

He’s Sorrowville’s most beloved grump, and Gisele LaRue is the only person with the guts (and glitter) to call him on his crap. She’s the vibrant, sharp-tongued owner of Glamboozled Salon—known for fierce style, hotter gossip, and her inexplicable ability to make even Bennett Foster crack a smile.

But after a late-night meltdown leaves Bennett sitting catatonic in the middle of Main Street, the entire town agrees: Gisele is the medicine he desperately needs. Led by Shep and a ragtag squad of hockey players, Sorrowville launches OperationSoft Boy—a mission to teach the Slammer’s biggest brute that having a heart doesn’t make you weak.

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