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Gwen

“ G wen, we’re going to Marabou Mike’s later for wings and beers. Come with us?” Bonnie, my teammate and co-worker, pleaded as we cleaned up after our hockey campers had left the rink for the day.

“I’d love to, but I’m spending tonight with Austin.” Not that I had the money for extra things. Since classes ended for summer, I’d been all work, no play.

But, priorities, since my hobbies included eating regularly and doors that locked.

“Right, today’s the day,” she breathed, gathering her things. “I hope it goes well. See you tomorrow.”

Bonnie and I played hockey together at the New York Institute of Technology, so she understood the gravity of my boyfriend’s situation.

“See you tomorrow.” I grabbed my bag and stick, then entered the area of the main rink, went past the snack bar and skate rental desk, and through a door marked Employees Only. Tony was in the back, sharpening skates.

“Tony, I’m done with camp. I’m going to get a quick workout in. Do you need any help?” One of the perks of working here was that Tony let me have ice time. Something especially helpful in summer, since I couldn’t afford fancy off-season training.

“Do you have a shift at Tito’s tonight?” The weathered older alpha had once been an Olympic speed skater and now managed the New York Ice Training Center.

“I took tonight off, but I can help you restock for a bit. I could use the hours.” Also the distraction. My phone had no missed calls or texts from my boyfriend. I’d been hoping for news, for his sake. I eyed the boxes of skates piled up near Tony. “Did they come?”

Tony’s eyebrows arched as his black coffee scent flared with annoyance. “They’re too big for you.”

“They’re for Austin. I’m so glad they came, because well, today’s the day. He might need cheering up if they don’t call.” While I direly needed new skates, so did he.

“I got you the wholesale price because I thought they were for you ,” he grumped.

“I’ll get new skates, eventually.” A reminder on my phone popped up that I had another tuition payment due.

Tony put down the pair he’d been sharpening. “You should have dumped him and taken the offer from PacTech.”

“Tony.” It was an old argument. I was happy here in New York with Austin. “I… I found a ring when I was putting his clothes away. I think he’s going to propose once he gets signed.” I’d been expecting it for a while.

Austin was my world. We’d been together since high school. He was my best friend, my ride or die. We were going to make it in hockey together.

I waved and left for the small rink.

The training center was home to both the professional ice hockey team, the New York Knights, and the professional skate smash team, the Manhattan Maimers. The New York Knights had gone all the way and won the championship, making them the top team in the Professional Hockey League.

During the off-season, we reserved the smallest of our three rinks for players who stayed and any other pros who might be here. The small rink was my favorite. It smelled like the barn I grew up skating at.

Putting on my skates, I hoped they held out for a while longer. My goalie skates had fallen apart shortly after finals. My hockey skates would have to suffice for now. I was picky about my goalie skates and saving up for exactly what I wanted.

Sweat dripped down my face as I went through my usual on-ice workout. While I’d spent my day doing drills, workouts, and conditioning on and off the ice with my hockey campers, I liked to get in my own time.

As I worked, a giant guy came onto the ice. He was probably six-foot-eight. While not huge like Grif Graf, one of the Knights’ wingers, he was taller, and still a large and well-proportioned guy.

Huh. Hadn’t seen him around.

I braced for him to tell me to leave, but he didn’t. He simply moved to the other side of the rink and got to work. Better for me. I could only stay if they let me.

Out of the corner of my eye, I watched him critically. He was several years older than me and was good–and graceful for his size. He took off his helmet for a moment, wiping off his face and taking a drink of water. The Asian guy was nice looking, with golden skin, dark hair, brown eyes, a strong jaw, and chiseled features.

He looked over at me, gave me a nod, and went back to work–as did I. The big guy still worked away as I finished. Leaving the ice, I showered and changed in the employee locker room, so I could help Tony restock.

My phone beeped as I worked.

Austin

Pick up Chello’s on your way home? I already placed the order.

Aww. How sweet. I’d been planning on splurging and grabbing something from his favorite restaurant. Chello’s was mine.

Me

Of course. Love you.

I finished up the inventory and went to Tony’s office to grab the skates. They’d cost me more than I’d ever spend on skates for myself, but Austin had really wanted these. Maybe one day they’d be his sponsor.

“Those skates are too good for him. The Philadelphia Aces had years to sign him. They’re not going to magically call him today,” Tony grunted, looking up from his computer.

“One can hope. Good night, Tony.” I picked up the box. Tony might be right. But that didn’t mean there weren’t other teams waiting for the deadline to either sign Austin or give him a chance if the Philadelphia Aces passed.

Sure, him getting signed wouldn’t solve all our problems. After all, getting drafted hadn’t. Still, him becoming part of a hockey team, any professional team, would alleviate a lot of stress.

And I didn’t mean financial stress. I was fine with being poor, but happy. It was the mood swings since Austin graduated a month ago that gave me whiplash.

“Hey, Ladybug, going already?” Clark called as I walked down the hall to grab my backpack out of my locker.

Clark Edwards bounded over to me like a brown-haired golden retriever that hadn’t been walked all day. He was this drop dead gorgeous, dark-haired, alpha forward for the Knights. The kind that should, and did, sell underwear, with muscles honed from years of hockey, tossing hay bales, and fixing tractors.

He also wore these nerdy black glasses, had a penchant for ugly sweaters, and knew everything there was to know about the Defender League movies and comics.

“Yeah, heading off. We could work out tomorrow, either after I’m done with camp or first thing?” I offered. I enjoyed working out with the Knights and learned so much from them.

Clark was last year’s wonder-rookie, the kind that was signed from a community college team in farm country and made the Knights’ lineup straight away. Something that didn’t happen often. A lot of people called him Wonder Boy .

“After you get off would be perfect. Oh, the few of us that are still in town are having a little get-together tomorrow night at Dimitri’s,” he told me. “After that, I’m heading home.”

“Austin’s bartending at Tito’s tomorrow night, and I’ll probably be called to sub.” Disappointment leaked into my voice. Dimitri’s parties, even the ‘little get-togethers,’ were always a good time. Austin liked it when I brought him.

“You can come without him. We all know how much you love Austin. We’re not going to steal you.” He laughed. Clark looked at the box. “Oh, did you get your new goalie skates?”

“Not yet. These are a surprise for Austin.” I opened the box and showed him. They were maroon with gray stitching, which I’d had to order custom.

Clark whistled. “I hope he knows how lucky he is. If you work at Tito’s tomorrow, let us know and we’ll stop by.”

“Sure. See you tomorrow.” I waved. They always tipped big.

“Bye, Ladybug!” He smiled and hustled off.

I left the building and headed for the subway, hoping that when I got home Austin had some good news.

Chello’s in hand, I walked to our apartment from the subway. It was a worn-down area, but it worked for us. We needed a place convenient to the University of New York City that we could still afford. UNYC had offered Austin a tuition scholarship and a meal plan, but not much toward living. We didn’t want to take loans, so we lived off-campus and worked. A lot.

Sure, I had little time to enjoy university life. I often went to class, hockey practice, and work, exhausted–especially since transferring to NYIT from community college. With him graduated, I could now focus more on myself.

One year to go.

My phone rang–my boss from Tito’s, possibly calling me in for tomorrow. “Hey.”

“Hey, I need you to work tonight,” Ernie told me.

“I have tonight off.”

I entered our ramshackle building, which didn’t even have a working lock on the main door.

He huffed, “I know, which is why I’m asking you to work.”

“I can’t. I specifically took tonight off.” With a sigh, I started up the five flights of stairs, since we didn’t have an elevator.

Ernie huffed again. “This isn’t a request. Show up or you're fired.”

“I… I can’t. It’s a big night for Austin.” My heart twisted. I needed all the hours I could get. Austin hadn’t gotten any extra summer jobs this year so he could be free in case a team was interested.

“You’re both fired. I’m so sick of your bullshit. Especially his. You at least make sure your shifts are covered, while he’s been out every day this week and hadn’t even called in,” he snapped.

“What? Don’t punish me for whatever he did.” As far as I knew, he’d been on lunch shift all week–including today.

“I’m done with both of you,” he retorted. The line went dead.

Fired? Tears pricked my eyes. I wiped them away. I’d deal with it tomorrow. Maybe Tony would give me more hours.

There was surely a good explanation for Austin not going to work. His agent must have him doing phone meetings or extra practices. Maybe one of his rich friends included him in their summer training group and he forgot to tell me.

Mrs. Jenkins’ door flew open as I passed. She probably saw me on her door camera.

The older beta woman had her red hair in curlers. Her marabou feather robe was pink, a cigarette dangled from her lips. “Keep the fighting down.”

The door slammed in my face before I could reply.

Well, then. What was she talking about? We hadn’t had any loud fights lately.

I unlocked our door and called, “Hey, are you home?”

We’d gotten this one-bedroom furnished, but tried to make it a home. Right now, boxes of his stuff were everywhere, in case he needed to move quickly when a team called.

“In the kitchen making you brownies,” he called.

I came into our tiny kitchen as he took a pan of chocolaty goodness out of the oven and set them on the counter. The scent made my mouth water. Mmmm. While I did most of the cooking, because I liked it, he was the baker.

Austin dyed his blond hair blue, wearing it long and shaggy. A blue eye winked at me, and he gave me a dimpled grin, chin clean shaven.

“Hi.” I fell into his arms. I was almost five-eight and had an average athletic build. He was six-foot-one. Not a giant alpha, but still tall and solid, with classical broad shoulders, a narrow waist, and lots of muscles. His large hand stroked my wavy hair, which was currently shoulder-length and pale pink with an undercut.

Austin planted a kiss on my forehead. His scent whirled around me, stronger than mine, since he was an alpha, and I was just a beta. It always reminded me of fabric softener. Of comfort. Safety.

Nothing else mattered because with Austin, I was home.

We’d met in junior hockey back when we were teenagers. Both of us had moved to play on that team, so we lived with host families that were down the block from each other and fell in love. After we’d graduated high school, we’d moved to New York together.

Neither of us had any family we really spoke to. But we had each other–and that’s all that mattered. Sure, we argued, especially when money was tight and stress was high. All couples fought.

“Chellos, brownies, movies?” Austin asked, getting mismatched dishes down from the cupboard, his large body filling the small space.

“Perfect. I got you a present.” Placing the box on the cracked counter, my belly fluttered. Please like them.

“Gwen.” He opened the box and took out the custom, top-of-the-line hockey skates, sucking in a sharp breath. “This is too much. I thought you were saving to get you skates.”

“You’ve got to look good out there when those teams call at 12:01. They’ll call.” I wrapped my arms around him.

Plenty of players were drafted, but not signed right away. The teams could sign them at any time until thirty days after university graduation. After that, the player became a free agent and could play for whoever they wanted as soon as the signing window opened.

We were on day thirty. Lucky for him, the signing window recently opened, so he didn’t have long to wait if the Aces passed.

“I’ve been doing informal interviews all week. Though the most promising teams are abroad,” he told me slowly.

“Oh, is that why you missed your shift? Not prying, Ernie called me.” I’d mention us being fired later.

He nodded. “Yep. That’s weird that he called. I traded shifts.”

Did he? But I wouldn’t push it.

He continued, “I think the Aces will sign me and they’re just being coy.”

“I hope that’s the case. Though plenty of players do a season or two abroad first. I’ll support you either way and we’ll make it work,” I replied. It would be hard being away from him, but we’d manage.

Austin pouted as he wiggled out of my grasp and made himself a plate, his scent sour with hurt. “Don’t you believe in me, Babe?”

“Of course I do. I’ve done nothing but support you for the past five years,” I soothed, hating when he got like this. It had been happening far too much lately. I wanted my big sweetheart back.

“Oh yeah? So why aren’t we going to the two Knights’ goalie weddings this summer, huh? Do you know what a networking opportunity that could be for me? Considering how much time you spend with the goalies, and how much lasagna you make them, you’d think you’d get an invitation.” His big form crowded me and the spicy scent of angry alpha made me flinch. Austin smirked.

I’d been invited to both weddings. One wasn’t an actual goalie wedding, it was a goalie’s packmate. It had already happened in Greece. While my friends had offered to cover me, I didn’t want to deal with the fight with Austin it would have caused. The other I hadn’t mentioned because it was in Canada, and I was afraid of traveling there.

“Well, I guess we know what they think of you. I mean, you do all that unpaid work for the Knights. They won a championship. But I don’t even have an offer to go to their training camp?” He sneered.

I flinched again. I didn’t have an offer to go to their training camp either. It wasn’t how the program worked. I was a part of the Knight’s goalie development program. We acted as EBUGs–emergency backup goalies–and sometimes practiced with them. We weren’t paid to avoid breaking both collegiate eligibility rules and the PHL's rules for EBUGs.

“Your agent would probably have better luck. If you want, I can try talking to Coach next time I see her,” I promised, not wanting to be yelled at by Austin. I was tired, hungry, and needed snuggles.

Not that me talking to Coach Kirov would do anything. She was the goalie coach and Austin was a forward, but I knew her best out of the Knights’ coaches.

His scent changed from angry to happy, and his expression brightened. “You’d do that for me, Babe?”

“Of course. We’re a team.” I added a piece of bread to my plate, holding my breath. The plan had always been for Austin to go pro first, then he’d help me.

Austin kissed the top of my head. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to snap at you. I’m just stressed. You choose the first movie?”

“I know. Sure.” We took our food and snuggled up on the battered couch.

He handed me the remote, and I chose a silly feel-good hockey movie. As the movie started, I took a bite, letting the sauce explode over my tongue. It was almost as good as my nonna’s.

Almost.

She and her neighbors had encouraged my love of hockey. Something my dads never liked–especially after my mom passed away.

“Oh, I made your tuition payment,” he added, taking a bite of pasta. “Only a few payments left."

“Thank you.” My university had a weird rule that if you played a sport that crossed semesters, tuition and fees for the entire year had to be paid by mid-August.

Austin had pushed me to transfer to NYIT, instead of a cheaper public university. He’d promised that if I figured out that year, he’d cover the next–my last–to make up for all the years I’d worked multiple jobs and gone to community college to support him at UNYC. So, he'd been making payments for month.

NYIT had a great hockey program that produced several PHL players. An amazing school academically, it had a top accounting program. But it was pricey, even with all my scholarships and aid.

So here we were.

Austin kissed me again, sweet and full of hope. “Always. After tonight, we’ll be golden.”