Page 142 of Bleacher Report
Come down to the ice. One last surprise.
And that’s when I see him.
Hunter Reed—skating out onto the ice in the darkness and spotlights of the stadium…with something in his hands.
The announcer’s voice booms. "Can we get Peyton Collins to center ice, please? Peyton Collins? We promise this won’t take long."
My body moves before my brain catches up.
The usher waves me forward, and I climb over the railing to the players tunnel, with help from a couple of players, to get down.
Hunter’s there.
Skates on, helmet off, jersey half-untucked.
And in his arms... A French bulldog puppy.
I gasp.
He grins, crossing the ice until he’s right in front of me.
I reach out to scratch behind the ear of the little puppy.
“What is going on, Hunter? The notes, the announcer, your mom and my family being here…this puppy?”
"I didn’t take the trade, Peyton. Bethany and her ex are out. My mom got into a trial here, and this is where my life is."
"Hunter..."
He steps closer. "I fell for you the second you rolled your eyes at me at the charity event while you were ordering your drink. I should’ve seen it then. I should have known what was standing right in front of me. But I was too drunk at Oakley’s, and I was too stupid, and my vision was too clouded after everything Bethany put me through to see that you were about to flip my life upside down—for the better,” he says, leaning in closer, and I welcome it. I miss him so close. “I should have asked you on a real date. I shouldn’t have needed a charity auction or a fake dating pact. But I don’t regret it, because it brought me here.”
“And the puppy?”
He hands the sleeping pup off to me, and I cradle it in my arms.
"You said your life was too chaotic for a puppy. I figured we could try chaos together."
Tears spill freely now.
“I don’t care where we live, Peyton. In your townhouse, in the house I bought for us, in New Jersey, in Seattle. None of it matters to me. I just want to be with you.”
I laugh through the tears. "Did you bring me out here in front of all these fans to give me a puppy?” I ask with a smirk.
He smiles. "No. I brought you out here to ask you once more…to bet on me. One last time.”
"Okay," I whisper. "I’ll bet on you. Again and always."
He kisses me.
The crowd erupts. I get a glimpse up in the owner’s box where the girls are jumping up and down, and then down to where Jesse, my brother, Abby, Mom, and Carly are all applauding and hugging.
Our family just got bigger, and there’s nothing more I want.
It hits me that this is exactly what my father always wanted for me. He wanted me to find my voice, and most importantly, to find love and passion in life again. To find my place in this world. And I know that with Hunter and our family by my side, that’s exactly what I have.
Trade contracts and network deals aren’t what make you happy. It’s the people in your life that make every day worth living, and that’s what I have here.
And there’s one more final truth. That nothing between Hunter and I was ever fake. Not for a moment.
