Page 167 of Seal the Deal

“Of course. We’ll be right behind you.”

Coach clears his throat again, louder this time. “Tick-tock, Brooks.”

I smirk and ignore him, lost in the warmth of the moment.

“You don’t need to stay up here with me,” my mom says gently. “Go with Jake, Charlie. Take the kids.”

Charlie hesitates, but Meadow tugs her hand. “Yeah, I wanna go with Dada!”

“I’ll be just fine.” My mom waves a hand, her eyes twinkling with amusement. “Besides, this is his moment. He wants his family down there with him.”

I glance over at my mom, feeling a surge of emotion at her words. Family. My family.

“Can we go, pleeease?” Noah pipes up.

Charlie looks from the kids to me, then back at my mom. “Alright. Let’s go.”

I can’t wipe the grin off my face as I scoop up Meadow, Noah trailing behind, Charlie’s hand in mine.

As we reach the rink, the chaos of the celebration swallows us—but all I can focus on is the fact that my family is with me. The love of my life and the kids I love like my own. This is what matters.

I let Meadow down to join Noah, and they immediately run toward the boards, wide-eyed with excitement.

Before Charlie can say anything, I pull her in close. “I love you, Charlie. You and the kids—you’re everything.”

She smiles back with that teasing glint in her eyes. “We know. Now go lift that Cup, Brooks.”

I skate back out to the ice, and everything’s a blur. The guys are hugging, shouting, celebrating like crazy. Then the Cup is in my hands. The weight of it is nothing compared to the way my heart feels, full and alive. I lift it high above my head, the roar of the crowd deafening.

As I skate back over to Charlie, I pull her into my arms and kiss her, still trying to wrap my head around the fact that she did this for me. She brought my mom here. She’s given me everything I’ve ever wanted.

“You brought my mom,” I whisper in between kisses. “And we won the damn Cup.”

Charlie laughs, her eyes shining with tears. “You deserve it all, Jake.”

I rest my forehead against hers, everything in me raw and vulnerable. “You know I’m gonna marry the shit out of you, right?”

“You better,” she teases. “But maybe when you’re a bit less stinky.”

I chuckle, lifting my hand to curl my pinky around hers. "Let’s seal the deal then."

She laughs softly. “Deal.”

We lean in at the same time, our thumbs pressed together, and I kiss mine lightly, feeling her lips graze the other side. My heart skips a beat, just like it did all those years ago, but this time I don’t hesitate.

I capture her lips with mine, cupping the back of her neck and dipping her low. She’s the girl I let slip through my fingers all those years ago, and now she’s the woman I’ll spend the rest of my life with.

When I pull back, her eyes are a little misty. "That’s one hell of a deal, Captain Thunder."

"Best deal I’ve ever made, Lady Lightning.”

Before I can even take a breath, I hear Chase’s voice booming from behind me. “Zoe, baby! You gonna kiss me like that, too?”

She rolls her eyes but her grin is wide from celebrating. "In your dreams, Walton!" she calls back, but before she can step away, Chase skates up and sweeps her into his arms, spinning her around as she yelps in surprise.

Zoe shoves him, laughing despite herself. “Put me down, you sweaty idiot!”

Chase smirks, not budging an inch. “Will you let me take you on a date now that I’m a Stanley Cup champion?” He leans in, waggling his eyebrows. “I’ll even let you touch it.”

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