Page 68 of Lose to Win: Lost Trilogy: Part 3
“Yeah, I haven’t heard anything different, so I’m sure they’re both okay.”
I stand in the middle of the room, chewing on my bottom lip and refusing to meet Puck’s eyes.
“So, things are not over for me then.” That is the only viable conclusion I can come to. If not, why wouldn’t I be free to call whoever I wanted? Why would I have to sneak into the hospital to make sure my baby is okay?
“They’re not,” Puck sighs when he confirms my fear. “But I hope they will be not long after we’re done with this part. One thing at a time, yeah?”
“Okay,” I whisper, despair taking over my mind once again. If I had an inhaler available, taking a hit right about now would be amazing. The sudden kick inside my belly reminds me of what a bad idea that would be.
Puck notices my sharp intake of air and comes closer. His hand goes to where my hand is, and he presses it lightly over mine.
“The three of us will have the best life, babe. I swear to you. Never doubt that.”
I nod, but I’m not sure that he is right. Whatever he is doing tonight, I have a feeling that it’s not safe. Bad things are about to happen, I just know it, and he may not make it back.
I just stare into his eyes, pushing the always messy hair out of his eyes. He needs a haircut for sure, but he looks so handsome disheveled like this.
“Hey,” he presses his lips to my wrist, right over my pulse. “I want to give you something before I go.”
“What is it?”
He lets go of me and walks to his travel bag that’s on the floor in the closet. I frown in confusion when he comes back with a box. My heart is about to jump out of my throat when I think he’s about to give me a ring. I try to swallow down my disappointment when I realize that the box is not the right size.
“I never told you how I got my nickname,” he grins at me. “I was in college. My best friend at the time was playing hockey for the school team.”
“Oh, did you play, too?” I’m not sure where he’s going with this.
“Just for fun,” Puck shrugs. “But Bran would ask me to practice with him once in a while. And this last time we played, I almost scored. That was huge because the fucker was really good. He said I got lucky. And later, he gave me this.”
He finally hands the box over to me. I open it with shaky fingers, only to find an actual hockey puck in it.
“This is your lucky puck,” I read out loud. “Bran Karlsberg.”
“He signed it for me,” Puck grins at me. “It was a big deal.”
“I think I’ve heard of him. He plays professionally now, doesn’t he?”
“He does,” Puck confirms with pride.
“What is this indentation in it?” I run my finger over the deep hole that’s in the middle of the letter O inyour.
“On the day he gave me this, as I was walking through the campus, I was shot at,” Puck explains in an even tone. “The puck was in my chest pocket. It stopped the bullet.”
“Your lucky puck.”
Tears start running down my face, one of them rolling down my cheek and falling on the hockey puck.
“In more ways than one,” Puck’s voice is soft now. “It led me to you, babe.”
This has got to be the sweetest, most loving thing anyone has ever said to me.
“I love you, Puck.”
I jump in distress when there’s a loud knock on the door. With a heavy sigh, he lets go of me to go open it. Dad is standing right there, with a teary faced Arlene right behind him.
“We need to go,” he tells Puck. “And I need to hug my best girl before we do.”
I fly into his arms when he opens them. The sobs taking over my body are just too much. I was trying to stay strong so that Puck wouldn’t worry about me, but now, seeing that my father is going as well, I feel broken.
