Page 44 of Bad Wolf

It’s everything he deserves, for the whole world to see just how amazing and talented he is.

Anna messages me with a meeting spot and an ETA of ten minutes, giving me a chance to pop into the merch store. I’m eager to see rails of jerseys with his name on the back.

I spot the signed pucks straight away, the mugs and beer glasses, stuffed animals, and the tiny hockey sticks, taking it all in.

When I see how many people are buying his #9 jersey though, my heart takes flight.

He really did it. He really made his dream come true.

I leave the team store with a massive smile on my face and head to meet Anna. She waves when she sees me and I shake my head, taking in her appearance.

Wolves beanie, jersey, puffy vest, and fingerless gloves.

“Mittens, really?” I laugh when I’m close enough for her to hear me.

“I get cold so easily. At first, I tried to play it cool, but after we’d been together a while, I had to tell him I couldn’t trot around in just the jersey and a pair of leggings. He came home the next day with all of this. When I’m not in the family suite I come decked in all my layers.”

The smile falls from my face, “I’m sorry. Did you want to go in there instead? I can sit on my own, it’s no problem.”

“No way. We sit in the stands when Jack comes. It’s fine.”

She leads me to the section our seats are in, and we stop by the concessions stand to grab a drink. I love that the soda is still nearly as big as my head. Knox and I would joke about it when he used to bring me to watch NHL games in high school.

That thought makes me wonder about his parents.

Do Gillian and Jack Senior get to come out much?” I say, close to Anna’s ear. We’ve missed warm-ups so the stands are filling up, and it’s gotten pretty loud.

“Yes, all the time. They came to the last home game and went to Montréal. They’re coming out next week too, I think.”

I nod because of course they are. Who would ever want to miss an opportunity to see three sons play on the same team?

The lights begin to flash and the boys skate out to their names one at a time.

Knox takes to the ice along with Casey and Hollywood. Jason and another D-man take their positions, ready for the national anthem, which we stand for.

At the first puck drop, Casey wins the face-off, passing it straight to Knox, who flies down the ice at a speed that doesn’t seem humanly possible. The puck is stolen though, and then for the rest of the first period, the game is scrappy.

San Jose takes a lot of the possession. The Wolves dig in, and our goalie blocks like his life depends on it. It’s really exciting. Electric even, but it’s the way Knox plays that has my body fritzing like it’s a battery on overload.

Knox Madden is awakening things that have laid dormant inside me since high school.

He was fast then, agile, and of course, cocky. This version of him, the version that’s all power, and strength, and stamina, has me on the verge of combustion. No one else has ever made me light up like this.

There have been other men, don’t get me wrong. Men I’ve had a good time with, but none ever compared to teenage Knox, let alone this man-machine.

He. Is. Fire.

Anna and I don’t talk much, our eyes glued to the scene in front of us. When Knox does score, his almighty slapshot ricocheting around the arena, the place erupts and he celebrates with his teammates and then scans the crowd.

He smiles at Anna who’s jumping up and down, and then his face drops when he sees I’m the person cheering next to her. His eyes bore into me for what seems like an entire intermission, until he’s called back to the bench. He skates off the ice, giving his head a shake.

Of course, Knox’s game goes to shit after that. Every time he’s out for a shift he makes a sloppy play, or is a millimeter too short, or a half a second too slow on a shot.

When he gets called for tripping and heads into the penalty box, Anna and I shout at the ref, but it’s to no avail.

And that’s only in the first period. The second is no better, he’s aggressive and rash. Every time he heads back to the bench after a shift, I see Coach Kelly bending down to yell at him.

Anna gives my arm a squeeze as we sit back down after another rough call made by the ref, but the sinking feeling in my gut tells me this plan is going to be a total failure.

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