Page 32 of Puck Me Secretly

During the end of the first period, another player, with an assist from Max, scored. The stadium went wild. They screamed so loud, we couldn’t hear the goal song.

Heading into the back of the 3rdperiod, the Wolves tied the game up. It was neck-to-neck with equal shots on goal. Max, two against one, battled his way down to the end of the ice. He needed someone to pass to, but the rest of the team lagged. He swung to one side, gave a fake shot and then slid the puck in between the goalie’s legs.

It was a brilliant goal.

The horn echoed, reverberating throughout the stadium.

People cheered, but it sounded muted, unlike when the other player had scored.

My heart sunk. The crowd didn’t like Max.

I glanced up behind me, at the family box. My dad stood on the balcony, his arms crossed, with a hard-to-read expression. He sensed it too.

I swung back to Max who skated back to the bench. His eyeswere on the ice and he didn’t look up at the crowd.

Katrina seemed oblivious. She spent most of her time on her phone uninterested in the game that played out in front of us.

Two minutes later, Dad appeared and sat down beside me.

“Hi Katrina,” Dad offered a friendly smile.

“Mr. Ashford,” her voice sounded warm.

“Your name didn’t show on my list of guests approved to sit in my private seats.”

She flushed a deep red. “Rory invited me. At the last minute.”

I turned, wide-eyed to stare at Katrina. She wrapped her arm around mine. “We’ve become friends, haven’t we?”

I had no response. I didn’t want to make it awkward for her, but I refused to lie to Dad on her behalf. Especially after she had been such a bitch.

Dad saved me from answering. “That’s great. Would you mind giving us some privacy?”

She beamed a smile at him and stood up. “Of course. And thank you both for your generosity. Are we still going to talk to Max after the game, Rory?”

I worked to keep the shock off my face. “I don’t know.”

Her voice sounded patient. “You promised we’d talk about releasing his media ban.”

What was she even talking about?“Wait for me on the Concord. I’ll be right up.”

She gave Dad another inculpable smile. “Night.”

Dad watched her walk up the stairs and then turned back to me. “You didn’t invite her to sit with you, did you?”

I shrugged. “She was here when I got here.”

“Did you tell her this was off limits to staff?”

“I thought it’d be an opportunity to bond.”

“How did that go?”

I ignored him. “What did you think about tonight?”

“You tell me.”

I discussed my concerns with our second offensive line.

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