Page 142 of Her Goal

“To keep the stolen gnome?”

“I suppose so.”

I tip my head back with laughter. Leah does too.

When we catch our breath, I say, “I love you.”

She repeats those very same words, and once again, we kiss. I have a feeling we’ll be doing a lot of this for the foreseeable future and I’m not mad about it.

EPILOGUE

from:

to: Hudson Roboveitchek

date: November 24, 4:53?PM

subject: Sketchy Gnomes

To the hottestguy in hockey,

While I was unpacking the last of my boxes in what we’ve designated “The Room of Requirement,” I found something unusual.

Sidebar: Thank you for watching Harry Potter with me. I knew you’d love it. We only have seven more movies to go and then we can read the books! After that, we’ll visit the theme park! I’m going to turn you into a Potterhead, yet!

The idea for me to have a designated room in the house where I can leave my crafts and projects in various stages of completion—and not worry if there’s a mess—was genius!

Anyway, I found something that might interest you. On the wall in the back of the big closetwas a piece of paper with a group sketch in permanent marker. It looked like Mikey’s handiwork. The funny thing is, it includes all the Knights players on the ice and the goalie. However, instead of standing in position in front of the net with your stick, you have a woman in your arms.

A woman with long hair … and long legs.

I took a picture and consulted the possible artist. He texted back with a wink emoji.

You know me, I’m not a woman of few words and can be lethal with emojis.

He confessed to doodling it as a housewarming gift during the team welcome party and had been wondering when you’d find it. He denied that it was supposed to be me in your arms.

I warned him to take back those words, so he officially said that it was me in your arms.

Like Abuela said, you were the ‘Chosen One,’ I like to think that maybe the Knights somehow knew I was the woman for you.

Do you know anything about this? Anyway, I had a good laugh and will show you when you get home.

Speaking of, awesome game last night! I wish I was there, but we’ll have the Thanksgiving meal ready and waiting for you!

Oh, one more thing before I forget, Howie is the official Happy Hockey Days mascot. In fact, I should have Mikey design some T-shirts and merch. Ooh. My creative juices are flowing. We could have Howie replicas, paint your ownHowies, plush Howies, hats, stickers, and more. Woot!

Okay, I should really go to sleep now. This isn’t procrastination. This is your hockey wife missing you. Married life is the best! I can’t wait to see you in the morning and celebrate how thankful I am for you.

Love,

Your Secret Admirer