Page 41

Clark

I came out of the bedroom and into the living room. Gwen sat on the wooden floor, holding a beer, watching the wolves play through the gigantic windows.

“What do you think?” I turned around for her, modeling the puppy onesie. At the welcome reception, everyone had grabbed a bag with their name on it, that had instructions for their evening activity. Mine had told me to put on the onesie and a red wristband, then to go to the lobby at seven. This was so exciting.

“You look adorable.” Gwen was wearing something red with black spots… oh, she was a ladybug. Of course!

“We’re being pranked, right?” Carlos came down the stairs, wearing a blue furry onesie.

“No. This will be fun.” Dimitri joined us, his onesie resembling a tuxedo.

We got in the golf cart and Dimitri drove us to the lodge. Gwen was quiet, still drinking her beer. Valya was going to the family bonfire.

I put my arm around Gwen. “I’ll protect you.”

“What’s wrong?” Dimitri demanded as he drove the golf cart.

Gwen sighed. “Being back in Canada is a lot. I didn’t realize we were going to a place I’ve been to before. I’ll be fine.”

I gave her a little squeeze. I’d take care of her.

We parked and went into the lobby of the lodge, which was full of people in onesies. JP was dressed like a shark, and Celine was a hot pink unicorn pegasus, and they got our attention.

“Look for the bus that matches your wristband,” JP said in English. “If you’re not wearing a onesie, you won’t be allowed on the bus. Feel free to watch a movie under the stars and have a bonfire with the families.” He translated it into French.

We got onto a bus with a disco ball and a full bar in it. It wasn’t only Knights, but Jean-Paul’s hockey friends from other teams, brothers, friends from childhood and university, and his pregnant sister, who was dressed like a kangaroo, complete with a stuffed kangaroo in the pocket.

“I like Lucky’s costume,” Carlos told Grif. “The sparkles bring out his eyes.”

We pulled up to a building that said Ice Kart. We filed inside, Gwen staying close to me, looking around warily, like her dads could appear around the corner at any time.

“There are prizes for the winners,” JP’s sister told us. “This was the place where JP and Celine came on one of their early dates.”

Ice go-karts? Yes, please. I sent Tenzin a picture of me. Oh, how I missed him.

“I’m going to win. Lucky rides with me,” Carlos said, pretending to snatch Lucky from Grif and taking off.

“You, win?” I grinned as I chased after him. “Not if I do.”

Yeah, this was going to be fun.

“Should someone cut Ladybug off?” JP looked concerned as Gwen danced with Celine and a bunch of her friends, while holding a drink that glowed .

Gwen was a silly drunk. While she’d done nothing but laugh and twirl, it was better to stop her before she tripped over something and got hurt.

After the ice carts, where Carlos and I hadn’t won any prizes, we’d gone to the pizza arcade where JP and Celine had met. I’d won enough tickets to get Gwen a blinking necklace, which she now wore.

Both groups had come together at a dance club they liked, where they’d reserved the entire VIP area. Plenty of people were watching, since we were all still wearing our onesies.

“She’s staying with us, so I’ll take care of her,” I assured.

“Gwen’s not okay?” Jean-Paul looked worried.

“She’s been through a lot, but it’ll be fine.” I didn’t want to say anything that might be a secret.

He nodded. “Ah, yes, she thought Austin was going to propose. I remember her telling Celine. I forgot. If we find him, he’ll pay for breaking her heart.”

Oh yeah, he would.

I came over to Gwen as she spun around, giggling.

“Dance with me,” she laughed, nearly spilling her drink.

“Sure. Let’s put this down.” I put her drink aside, took both her hands, and danced around with her, keeping it silly. I wasn’t sure if she’d want the entire team to see her sexy dance with me.

We danced for a while, then I dragged her to a couch and got her to sit down and drink some water. She leaned her head on my shoulder and I stroked her hair. Carlos and Dimitri danced with a couple of flight attendants dressed like fairytale creatures.

I got a bunch of water in her, and we danced some more. By the time JP got us all back on the bus, she was only a bit tipsy.

We didn’t go directly back to the resort. We all stopped for food, and Gwen devoured some sort of French fry concoction, which probably absorbed a lot of the booze.

Finally, we returned to the lodge and took the golf carts back to the villa.

“Go shower first,” I told Gwen when we got back to the room.

“Okay.” She kissed my cheek. “That’s for making sure I didn’t do anything stupid. I… I know I shouldn’t have had that much to drink, it’s just…”

“It’s okay.” I pulled her to my chest and held her close. She smelled like a bar. “Lots of people had a little too much. I know you have so many feelings. I’m right here.”

Gwen looked up at me and kissed me on the nose. “Thank you.”

She went into the bathroom and closed the door. I responded to some texts from Tenzin as she showered.

Dimitri stood in the doorway and knocked on the open door. He handed me some vitamin shots and hydrogels. “For both of you. They were in a basket left for us on the kitchen table. We’ve got beer and snacks if you’re hungry.”

“Thanks, man.” I left them for Gwen, then went back out to the living room and got some water. Carlos and Dimitri were eating snacks from a basket.

Yeah, I wouldn’t mind a snack.

“That is amazing.” I grabbed a bag of chips, and we sat and watched the wolves through the window for a while.

When I returned to the bedroom, I found Gwen passed out in the center of the bed, wearing nothing but one of my T-shirts. The alpha part of me liked the way my clothes looked on her.

The hydrogels and vitamin shots were all gone except for one of each, like she was making sure there was some for me. Awww.

I downed them, showered, put on some pajama pants, and got into bed. Immediately, she rolled toward me like a heat-seeking missile, burying herself in my side.

“I’ve got you, Gwen.” I turned out the light and snuggled her tight, wishing I could hold her like this every night.