Page 72 of Misconduct Zone

Coach sends Lars over the boards without me. It’s a privilege to watch him from the bench. He takes a dirty hit and yells to the ref, who signals to play on. They scuffle behind the goal, and the defender whacks Lars’s knee. The ref does nothing, and I’m screaming my head off.

Benz and Ace flank me like they think I’ll do something stupid and retaliate. The seconds tick down, and Lars takes a wide shot from outside. It bounces off the defender and drops in front of the goal. King taps it in with five seconds on the clock. On the ice, the Enforcers skate together for a celly.

One last face-off and we’ve won. Almost everyone has turned away from the game, both the team and fans celebrating the win. Lars gets in position, but his counterpart crosses the line before the puck drop, so the ref blows the whistle, but it’s too late. Lars doesn’t move for the puck because it’s a dead play and the opposing center barrels in and throws an elbow, hitting Lars with the force of his entire body weight.

His helmet flies off, and he hits the ice, unmoving. Most people remain unaware, but I’m on the ice, gloves already off since I wasn’t going in again. I tackle their center as he skates away from the neutral zone.

There’s a patch of red around a motionless Lars. The entire team finally realizes what’s happening and it’s mayhem. Whistles blow but they’re ignored.

I shove their center and skate through the protective circle around Lars. He blinks at me and swears in Swedish. “Dyl,” he croaks, and I drop to my knees in relief. He’s pissed off but fine.

He wipes his bloody nose with his glove while Grayson tries to examine him.

It takes a few minutes to assess penalties, and true to my nickname, the refs didn’t see me hit their center. Lucky.

After Gray gets Lars off the ice, we replay the last few seconds and win the game.

“I was worried,” I say to Lars in the training room.

Lars holds out his hand, and Grayson pretends not to notice. Once Gray declares Lars healthy since he hit the ice with his shoulder, not his head, we walk to the dressing room.

We nod, agreeing to tell the team, and bang the door open to loud music and celebrations. The media is still here so we have to wait.

My hands sweat as the reporters start to leave. “Hold up for a minute after the birds fly.” Some guys snicker because I call the press vultures and codename them birds. Gradually, everyone but the team leaves.

“Lucky strikes again.” Benz waggles his brows. “I knew you were gonna lose your shit.”

“You guys know Lars is the Enforcer here. He’s got our back, and I’ve got his.” I take a deep breath. “And now more than ever since he’s my boyfriend.” The reaction is mixed. Benz whoops, Ace claps along with a few other players, while some stand with their mouths open.

Liska smiles with a shrug, looking very smug.

Lars stands behind me and wraps his arms around my waist, resting his chin on my shoulder. “Any questions?”

“I knew it, bow-chicka-wow-wow.” Benz stands on the bench and dances to his sounds.

“He did suspect,” Griffin vouches.

“How long?” Ace asks. “I mean, before Germany?”

Before we can answer, one of our veteran defenders says, “Lucky, I thought you were straight.” It’s interesting because he didn’t think that about Lars.

“I got my head out of my ass and recognized my feelings for him,” I reply.

“And then you put something else in your ass.” Benz does a pelvic thrust.

“Baby Benz, that’s enough,” Liska scolds but winks.

“Don’t ‘Baby Benz,’ him. That’s uncalled for,” Griffin yells.

And just like that, our coming out turns into no big deal. Everyone goes about their business of showering and dressing for a night out.

A few guys come over to offer congrats, which, granted, I nabbed one of the NHL’s top bachelors, so it’s appropriate but hilarious, and some ask questions. Lars and I exchange grins before heading to the showers. All in all, it’s an uneventful announcement, and that makes me deliriously happy.

Chapter 36

Lars

Dylon and I connect to score three out of our four goals in a win against Pittsburg. It is a relief the team remains unaffected by our relationship. It’s a surprise when Ace and a defender are chosen for the post-game interviews instead of the obvious choices of me, Dylon, or Liska.

---