Total pages in book: 24
Estimated words: 22301 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 112(@200wpm)___ 89(@250wpm)___ 74(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 22301 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 112(@200wpm)___ 89(@250wpm)___ 74(@300wpm)
“Let’s go, Carson!” Riley hollers as her enforcer drops his gloves, big mean grin on his face.
The referees circle as the two Goliaths collide in an epic showdown. They know it might be the last chance they have at each other and they do not hold back.
McKinstry gets first blood, walloping Rochon with a hard right hook. Rochon staggers, but when McKinstry comes in to finish the job, Rochon hits him with several hard jabs.
From there, it’s just a blur of thunderous punches and splashes of blood. The crowd roars as they grab each other’s jerseys and let loose, pounding one another into oblivion.
One of the referees tries to jump on Carson, but he bounces right off and lands on his ass.
“Come on, Tucker,” I whisper under my breath as the two beasts begin to slow down, throwing slower sluggish punches. They’re still devastating when they land, but they’re not coming in as fast.
Tucker is cut badly above his left eye. Blood is pouring out onto his jersey and dripping onto the ice where it immediately freezes.
As bad as he looks, Carson looks even worse. His lip is cut in two places, he’s bleeding from his forehead, and from a cut under his eye.
Carson knees Tucker between the legs and the whole arena lets out a collective ‘Oooooh!’
It doesn’t bring Tucker McKinstry down. It only angers him and gives him a burst of furious energy. He squeezes his huge fist and lets it rain down on Rochon, cracking him with hard roundhouses and fierce jabs. When Rochon lowers his head, Tucker lets loose with a devastating uppercut that snaps his head back and knocks him out.
Rochon falls to the ground unconscious. The crowd roars as the top enforcer in the league reaches down and grabs Rochon’s skate. My heart is racing as I watch him drag Rochon’s limp body to the Vipers’ bench. He drops him in front of it and then skates to the penalty box as the crowd goes nuts.
“He almost had him,” Riley says as she watches Carson wake up, looking a little dazed.
I smile at her, but she’s so wrong on that one. No one has a chance against the great Tucker McKinstry.
The Vipers get their revenge a few minutes later when their forward scores between Nolan’s legs. Riley leaps up and cheers along with the Vipers fans in the crowd.
I’m disappointed about the goal against us, but I can’t help but smile when I see how excited my woman is. How can I be upset when Riley is smiling so beautifully like that?
The rest of the period is a nail-biter, and so is the beginning of the third. I can barely breathe when Sebastian Kemp steals the puck and launches into a breakaway.
The Vipers goalie hunkers down, getting ready for the shot. But it never comes. Sebastian goes right, but then passes the puck back and to the left where Harris Sutton is coming up fast.
Harris yanks his stick back and unleashes a thunderous slapshot that rockets into the upper corner of the net.
“Yes!” I shout, leaping to my feet as the siren blares.
The boys swarm on Harris as the crowd chants “Flamethrower! Flamethrower! Flamethrower!” in unison. It’s so loud the arena shakes.
Before heading back to the bench, Harris skates over to where his wife Fiona and his five-year-old son Lucas are jumping up and down in the front row.
Harris takes off his gloves, makes a heart with his fingers, and puts it to the glass. His wife and adorable son do the same.
I see that and long for a child of my own. I’ve never wanted kids before, but after meeting Riley, everything has changed. I’d like to make a family with her. I think that would make me very happy.
“That’s sweet,” Riley says, smiling as she watches the touching scene on the ice.
Harris blows his woman a kiss and then skates to the bench as the crowd roars the veteran’s nickname over and over. It will probably be his last year playing, so I’m happy he got one last moment in the spotlight before he has to hang up his gloves for good. It’s a fitting end for one of hockey’s greats.
It feels like two lifetimes go by in that final tied period. All the boys, on both teams, push like never before, leaving everything on the ice, but the teams are so evenly matched that there are no more goals.
Even through two sudden-death overtimes, no one scores.
“What’s going to happen now?” Zara asks when the clock runs down in the second overtime.
“Shootouts,” Riley says with a hard swallow. “We’re going to shootouts.”
I take her hand and gaze into her eyes. “Whatever happens, I love you.”
She smiles and puts her head on my shoulder.
But I still hope we win…
CHAPTER TEN
Brantley
The shootouts begin and it’s intense.