Page 74 of Heart Checked By the Hockey Heartthrob

Then comes the bridal shower. Not just any shower—a full-on Sunset Cove community couples shower, complete with bingo, grilled cheese stations, lawn games, and one very excitable accordion player.

For the first hour, it’s mostly the ladies mingling—trying lavender lemonade mocktails and laughing over bridal trivia. But just as Liz is lining everyone up for a highly competitive game of bridal charades, we hear cheering and whooping from the street.

That can only mean that the guys are here.

Wes, Griff, Beckett, and a few of the other rink regulars stroll in looking like they just stepped into enemy territory. Beckett’s holding Jake’s hand and glancing around like he’s preparing to dodge flower petals, while Griff is eyeing the grilled cheese station like it might bite him.

“Oh boy,” Wes says as he reaches me. “Is that man… actually playing ABBA on the accordion?”

“Welcome to the party,” I say, handing him a cup of the lavender lemonade. “You’re officially on Team Bride now.”

He raises his eyebrows. “I’m going to need a sash or something.”

Savannah hears that and disappears, only to reappear five minutes later with a glittery pink ribbon that says “Mr. Quinn.” She fastens it around his chest with a flourish.

Beckett laughs, pointing at the sash. “Never thought I’d see the day. The big bad hockey star felled by tulle and twinkle lights.”

“Bet he still hits the rink harder than you,” Griff adds.

“You guys are just jealous cause you didn’t get a sash,” Wes fires back.

Jake tugs on Beckett’s shirt. “Dad, can I wear a sash too?”

“Only if you win the bridal bingo,” Beckett says solemnly.

The guys, to their credit, jump into the spirit faster than expected. Griff ends up refereeing the lawn games like it's the Stanley Cup playoffs, Beckett is crowned Grilled Cheese Champion after a surprise grilled jalapeño combo, and Wes gets pulled into a couples trivia contest where he somehow remembers the exact date we first kissed, earning him a standing ovation.

Then the gifts start. Mixing bowls, matching towels, a scrapbook.

Then we’re handed a large pink box and something black and fluffy springs out.

I scream. Everyone screams.

It’s a puppy.

Savannah is already filming as Abby reads the card aloud. "To the best team we know—Quinn and Wes—because every hockey household needs a mascot. Love, the Sunset Cove crew."

Liz adds, “We voted on the name.”

“Unanimously,” Savannah says with a grin. “Meet Wag. As in… Wayne Gretzky.”

The puppy yips, wags furiously, and then promptly pees on my shoe.Nothing I haven’t had happen many times over at work,I think.

“I think he likes you,” Wes murmurs, appearing beside me with a paper plate of sliders.

I scoop up the wriggly fluff ball. “We have a puppy.”

He leans in close. “We have a life.”

And suddenly the tears are back.

The rest of the evening is chaos in the best way. There are sack races, someone sets up a spontaneous karaoke round, and Wes gets dragged into a three-legged race with Griff, which ends in grass stains and competitive grumbling. Jake somehow wins the egg toss with one of the bookstore clerks.

I sneak off for a few minutes just to breathe, watching the string lights twinkle between the trees and the moon rise over the water. When Wes finds me, he just stands there for a minute, hands in his pockets.

"You okay?"

"I think I’m too happy. Is that a thing?"

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