Page 83 of The Man in the Cottage

"I love you too."

We stand there for another moment, just looking at each other. Behind us, the arena hums with post-game energy. Ahead of us, the night is cold and dark and full of possibility.

"Ready to go home?" I ask.

"So ready."

We walk out of the arena together, hand in hand. There are cameras outside, questions being shouted, but I don't stop. I just wave, smile, keep moving. I've done enough press for one night. Everything else can wait until tomorrow.

"Travis! Kelly! Can we get a comment?"

"Travis, how does it feel to be back?"

"Kelly, are you two officially together?"

Kelly squeezes my hand but doesn't falter. She keeps walking, head high, unbothered by the flashing lights. That's new—that confidence. Six months ago, she would have frozen. Now she moves through it like she's been doing it her whole life.

I'm so proud of her. I'm so in love with her.

The car is waiting in the lot. I open her door, close it behind her, walk around to my side. Before I get in, I take one last look at the arena. The lights are still blazing, the crowd still filing out. Somewhere in there, my teammates are celebrating. Somewhere in there, my future is taking shape.

But the best part of my future is already in the car, waiting for me.

I get in, start the engine, and pull out of the lot. Kelly's hand finds mine on the console, and we drive in comfortable silence for a while, the city lights giving way to darker roads.

"So," she says eventually. "What happens now?"

"Now we go home. Sleep. Maybe eat something—I'm starving."

"I meant bigger picture."

I think about it. The season stretching ahead of me. The team that welcomed me back. The career I thought was over but isn't. And Kelly, beside me through all of it.

"Now we live," I say. "Whatever that looks like."

"That's not a plan."

"It's the only plan I need." I lift her hand and kiss her knuckles. "I spent so long trying to control everything. My career, my image, my family. And it didn't work. It just made me miserable."

“So what’s change?"

"Now I've got you. And hockey. And a cottage in Virginia that needs a new roof." I smile. "That's enough. That's more than enough."

She's quiet for a moment. Then she says, "I finished my book."

"What?"

"The thriller. I finished the first draft last week. I was going to tell you after the game."

I pull off to the side of the road, put the car in park, and turn to look at her. "Kelly. That's amazing."

"It might be terrible."

"It's not terrible. Nothing you write is terrible." I unbuckle my seatbelt so I can lean over and kiss her properly. "I'm so proud of you."

"I'm proud of you too." She touches my face. "We did it, Travis. We both came out the other side."

I pull back onto the road, and we drive the rest of the way home. The cottage appears through the trees, then the main house, familiar silhouettes against the starry sky. I park in my usual spot and cut the engine.