Page 75 of Cross Ice

Evan

Good night, Danny.

Danny

You’re wearing his NAME, Evan.

Danny

Evan.

Danny

EVAN.

I turned my phone face down and went to bed smiling.

Thursday evening, I put the jersey on before I left the apartment. Looked at myself in the mirror, turning so I could see the BRIGGS and seventeen on my back. I took a breath.

Then I went to the game.

Chloe spotted me immediately, and her face lit up with a wide smile. “Look at you! Official now!”

“Too much?” I asked, suddenly self-conscious.

“Not at all. You look great.” She gestured to the woman sitting next to her. “Evan, this is Naomi, André’s wife. Naomi, this is Evan. Nico’s boyfriend.”

Naomi was petite with bright eyes that crinkled when she smiled. “I’ve heard so much about you from André. I’m so glad to finally meet you.”

“You too,” I said, taking my seat. “I feel like I’m still figuring all of this out.”

“It’s overwhelming at first,” Naomi said. “The hockey, the schedule, the whole world of it. But you figure it out.” She smiled. “And you don’t have to figure it out alone.”

I nodded, and for the first time since I’d sat down, the nerves in my stomach settled a little. “How long have you and André been together?”

“Twelve years. We met in college, before he got drafted.” She laughed. “Back when I thought hockey was just ice skating with sticks.”

“That’s about where I am now.”

“You’ll learn. And we’ll help.”

The warmth of their acceptance eased the tension in my shoulders. These women didn’t have to be kind to me, didn’t have to welcome me into their group. But they did, and it mattered more than I could say.

When the players came out for warmups, Nico skated onto the ice, and my heart did the same somersault it had Tuesday. But this time, when he looked up and found me in the crowd, his smile was even broader.

Because I was wearing his jersey.

The game against Edmonton was intense from the first drop of the puck. The Chinooks played with an edge, challenging every puck battle and forcing San Jose to earn every inch of ice.

Chloe and Naomi watched with the focused energy of people who’d done this hundreds of times, calling plays under their breath, reacting a half-second before the crowd caught up. I watched them sometimes as much as the ice, using their reactions to understand what I was seeing.

The first line—Nico, André, and Jonah—moved together like they shared a single instinct. André won the faceoff and got it to Nico immediately, who found Jonah in a position I wouldn’t have seen coming. Jonah put a shot on goal that made the goalie scramble.

“They’re good together,” I said.

“Best line in the league right now,” Naomi said proudly. “André and Nico have crazy chemistry.”

The first period ended scoreless, but San Jose came out flying in the second. André scored first, a beautiful wrist shot that had all of us on our feet screaming. Then Jonah scored on a power play, with assists from both André and Nico.