Page 101 of Chasing The Goal
I screamed.
The entire suite detonated.
Ava flung her foam finger across the room and grabbed me by the shoulders. “HE DID IT! YOUR MAN JUST WON THE FREAKING STANLEY CUP!”
People were crying, hugging, jumping. Glasses were tipped, phones out recording, strangers embracing. Someone’s toddler ran across the suite barefoot, trailing a streamer. I laughed and sobbed at the same time, every nerve in my body lit up like it couldn’t handle the joy.
I turned to the ice in time to see Jaymie drop to his knees, arms lifted, helmet flying off as his teammates tackled him into the boards. Connor was on his back. Logan was hugging him and yelling in his face. Darren was screaming something indecipherable as he flung his gloves in the air.
And Jaymie?
He was beaming. Sweaty, flushed, breathless—and completely lit up.
Like a man who’d just won the whole damn world.
“Oh my god,” Ava choked out, wiping tears from her cheeks. “Logan’s going to cry. I know it. I feel it.”
“You're crying,” I said, laughing.
“So are you!”
True.
A stream of congratulations came at me from all sides.
“Oh my god, Mallory, that was Jaymie, right?”
“That was your guy?! He won the game!”
“You must be so proud!”
Someone handed me a glass of champagne. Another person hugged me before I even realized who they were. There was confetti on my boot somehow. The suite had become a bubble of euphoria, untethered from gravity or rules.
And in the middle of it all, Lola stirred.
Her eyelids fluttered open, lashes fluttering like they were still unsure about the bright lights and loud world.
“You missed it,” I whispered, kissing her forehead. “Your dad just made history.”
Ava leaned in, peering at her like she was sacred. “She looks smug.”
“She is smug. She knows exactly what just happened.”
I turned back to the glass, watching as Jaymie hoisted the Stanley Cup above his head, teeth bared in a grin that could’ve lit up the whole city. The camera zoomed in and for a second I imagined he was looking straight at us.
Straight at her.
Straight at me.
“I love you,” I whispered, even though he couldn’t hear it yet. “We love you.”
I pulled out my phone with one hand and typed through tears:
You freaking did it. That goal was everything. Lola and I are so proud of you. I hope you’re ready for the most chaotic, love-filled life ever. You’ve earned it, superstar.
I hit send and closed my eyes.
And let it all sink in.
