Page 80 of Married As Puck
Their whole attention is on Cameron now. He’s moving so fast it looks unreal, defenders closing in, but he weaves through them like it’s muscle memory, and he was born for this exact moment. The puck’s on his stick, the goalie braced and crouched, and my nails are buried in my palms.
He shoots. Time slows as the puck cuts through the air and then the net.
GOAL!
The fans go wild. My scream comes out so loud I don’t care if I’ll have a sore throat after today. Strangers crush each other in hugs and flags blur in the chaos.
He did it!
Cameron Gray just scored the goal.
I’m grinning like a maniac, tears burning at the corners of my eyes.
I feel a strong pull, like static pulling my eyes away from the rink. Up, higher, into the stands and I see him.
The man that had held Cameron’s attention earlier who is clearly Cameron’s father. He doesn’t clap, doesn’t move with the chaos erupting around him. He just rises slowly and slips out through the side exit like he only came to prove he could.
A cold runs down my spine. I know what that look on Cameron’s face meant earlier, when he froze on the ice. That was the man who once had so much power over him and maybe he still does in little ways, but I’m glad Cameron didn’t let that weigh him down today.
I shake it off and force my focus back where it belongs. Cameron is swallowed by his team, helmets pounding, arms slapping his back, his name chanted like a war cry. The buzzer sounds followed by the final whistle echoing. The championship is theirs.
Before I even register it, I’m running down the concrete steps, across the edge of the rink, ignoring security waving me back. My heart slams harder with every stride. And then he turns, searching, and when his eyes land on me, nothing else matters.
“Brie!” His voice pierces through the noise and almost immediately, the people around him make a pathway for me to get through.
I leap and he catches me, arms locking tight around my waist, spinning me around like I weigh nothing. I’m straddling him, laughing breathlessly, tears spilling hot while he whirls us in circles, and the world tilts until it’s just him.
“You did it!” I choke out, smiling through the tears.
“We did it,” he corrects, his breath fanning my ear. He spins me once more before setting me down, still holding me tight like he’ll never let go.
He leans down and captures my lips in a kiss. My hands fist into his jersey, pulling, desperate, and I don’t care about the cameras or the flashing lights or the crowd screaming his name. This is our moment. I’m done acting like this is all for show because even though I hate to admit it, somewhere along the line, it got real, at least for me.
He pulls back, breathless and rests his forehead against mine. “I love you, Brie.”
My body goes still. My heart pounds so hard it feels like it’s trying to break out of my ribcage. I know he feels it too, right there against his chest pads.
This is the line I swore I’d never let blur, the rule I told myself I’d never cross but look at where we are. I can barely breathe. Is he sure about this?
As if sensing my doubts he clarifies, “This isn’t for the big screens, babe. It’s from my heart.”
That’s all I needed to know. Something inside me breaks open. I believe him and I feel the same way too. Maybe not as much ashe does but enough to want to explore further and see where this leads us, the fake marriage be damned.
I don’t even know when I started falling. Maybe the first night he let me see the vulnerable side of him. Maybe it was the first time we made love.
“I—” The words clog in my throat. I bury my face against his shoulder instead, too scared to say it out loud. I guess he doesn’t need me to because his arms cinch tighter, like he already knows.
Around us, the celebration is on another level now as the fans scream his name, but I don’t see the star everyone else sees.
I see the man who just wrestled with his demons and won. I see the man who has embraced a new beginning, even though it’s not familiar territory.
He loves me, and maybe the future will test that. But right now? That love is enough to carry me through anything.
Cameron’s tongue is down my throat when we enter our apartment. His hands are all over me, tempting me with a good time.
We decided that I would stop paying rent to Nelly Kane and see what will happen if I just ghost on the payments.
My phone buzzes in my pocket, and I jolt from the feeling. I grab it out of my pocket because my butt feels numb.
