Page 26 of Lucky Shot (Moonshot Hockey #1)

NICK

“Where’ve you been?” Dad asks as I come through the door.

“At the rink with Ruby and the guys.”

“Oh yeah?” He’s standing in the kitchen next to the stove. The smell of fake cheese and starchy noodles wafts in the air.

The corners of my lips twitch with amusement as I spot the macaroni and cheese box on the counter.

“Aidan is with Beth tonight.”

“I know,” he says, then looks away with a hint of embarrassment playing on his face.

My mouth curves as I lose the battle with a smile.

“It’s fucking delicious,” he finally admits, flashing his own grin at me.

“You never let me eat that shit when I was a kid.”

“Yeah, yeah.” He turns back to the stove to stir the cheese into the cooked noodles.

I grab the milk from the fridge for him and then lean against the counter.

“I thought I saw Ruby down by the lake earlier. How’s the book research going?”

“Good, I think. I’m teaching her how to skate and some hockey basics.”

He grins in a way that tells me he thinks teaching her to skate is code for dating.

“She left to work on her book once the guys showed up for a pick-up game.”

He stops stirring. “How’d that go?”

We haven’t outright talked about it, but he knows I’ve been reluctant to get back out there and play since I was cleared by the doctors.

My skin feels tight under his scrutiny. “We were just messing around mostly.”

“That’s great. First time since the surgery, right?”

“Yeah.” I push off the counter. “Do you want me to grill some burgers or chicken to go with that?”

“Nah, nah. I’m going to eat this and then head into town for Bunco night at the Y.” Absently he massages a spot on his chest.

Just like that a seed of panic works its way through me.

“Are you feeling okay?” I ask him.

He glances down at his hand and then lets it drop. “Oh yeah. Fine.”

I must not look convinced because he adds, “I’m good. Don’t go worrying about me. I’m healthy as can be.”

“I think your cholesterol numbers would disagree with that assessment.” I try to joke it off, but the tightness remains.

He hums his dismissal at that, but the reminder of everything that happened has me walking to the fridge and pulling out an apple. I peel and cut it, then give him half.

The look he gives me is akin to Aidan’s expression when I put green beans on his plate. He grumbles some more but takes the apple slices.

I take my share of the apple outside to the back patio. It’s my favorite place of the house. The view, the quiet, all of it. Without realizing I’m looking for her, I scan the lake and over by the cabin for Ruby. She’s nowhere in sight, but the front windows are open.

I was having fun with her today. More than I’ve had in a long time.

And it carried over through the afternoon.

That hit messed with me in ways that go far beyond the physical.

I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to step onto the ice for a game and not wonder if the next injury is the end.

We played no-contact today, but just messing around together and remembering the good instead of dwelling on all the bad was nice.

It’s small but it’s a start.

Sometime after midnight I give up on sleep and head downstairs. Dad’s snores are the only noise in the house. I close his door on my way to the kitchen, so the light won’t wake him and then I pull out a mug from the cabinet to make some tea.

Maybe it was too optimistic to think that because I had a breakthrough on the ice that my sleep would improve as well. I’m restless, plagued with nervous energy about hockey, my dad, Aidan, and every other possible thing in my life that could go bad.

Tea in hand, I step out onto the back deck. The night air is cool against my bare chest. The moon is full tonight, shining bright down on the lake.

The cabin lights are still on but there’s no sign of Ruby. Most likely she left them on when she went to bed, but I still find myself picturing her inside, maybe lying awake, unable to sleep like me.

I settle into the couch on the deck and pull the throw blanket around my shoulders.

Sleep doesn’t feel any closer, but there’s a peace out here that never fails to calm the voices in my head.

The ones that have me questioning if I’ll ever get another good night’s sleep again.

Or if I’ll ever be able to play hockey again, if my dad’s going to be okay, and if someday not that far away, Aidan will be in my same position.

I let my head fall back and stare up into the sky. The warmth of the mug feels nice in my hands, and I focus only on breathing and clearing my mind.

I’m not sure if it’s the sound or the movement that finally catches my attention, but the hairs on the back of my neck stand as I sit up, gaze darting to the cabin and then scanning until I spot a figure down by the lake.

Something or someone is moving around down there. Too big to be a raccoon. A kid maybe? We get an occasional teenager, or group of them, that wander onto the property occasionally.

Then the figure moves and her hair blows in the wind. Ruby.

My heart rate settles down, but my gut swirls with unease. I stand, set my tea on the table in front of me, and head for the lake without thinking. My bare feet pad quickly down the steps and through the grass. My pulse picks up speed again as I get closer.

Ruby has her back to me. A long T-shirt hangs down mid-thigh on her. Her hair is pulled up in a high ponytail that swings around as she…what the hell is she doing?

She’s tossing something into the lake. Rocks, I think.

More noises greet me as I approach her. Grunts and little screams. She leans down to gather more pebbles, and I get a look at her profile.

Her mouth is pulled into a tight line and there’s a stubborn, frustrated set to her jaw.

She rears back and throws, slingshotting her arm and squealing as the rock soars ten or twenty feet and drops into the lake.

She does it again and again, finally stomping one foot.

“Why isn’t this more satisfying?” she asks…herself? The lake? The rock? I haven’t a clue, but the fire in her tone and fight in her body language has a smile tugging at the corners of my lips.

“What the hell are you doing?”

My voice startles her, and she spins around, rock held up like she’s going to launch it at my face.

“Woah.” I hold my hands up in front of me. “Don’t fire.”

Her body goes slack, and she drops her arm back to her side. “Nick. You scared me.”

“Sorry. I was on the back deck and saw someone down here.”

“Right.” She glances toward my house and then back to me. “I didn’t mean to wake you.”

“You didn’t.”

“It’s late. I thought you’d be sleeping,” she says, facing the lake again.

“I rarely sleep,” I admit.

Her gaze shifts to me and I can see the question there, but she doesn’t ask.

“Why are you up?” I ask, then offer the first answer that comes to mind. “Are you still stuck on the book?”

It’s been fun teaching her to skate and play hockey, but it hits me that maybe it’s not really helping her like I thought it would.

“I…” Her lips twist like she’s working out what to tell me. I find it intriguing that she’s being so secretive. Ruby always seems like she says whatever is on her mind. I like that about her. “It’s just publishing drama.”

I feel one brow arch. “There’s drama in book publishing?”

“Always.” A hint of a smile appears but just as quickly disappears. “Why don’t you sleep?”

I shrug.

She tosses another rock into the lake, this time with less oomph.

Without thinking, I move behind her to show her how to do it correctly. She’s using only her arm to throw instead of stepping and getting her body into it.

“Angle your body and step back with one foot,” I say as the wind whips her hair into my face. It smells nice, like coconut and strawberries.

She does as I say, and I lift her right arm over her head and back. My fingers wrap completely around her delicate wrist.

“Now, step forward and when your arm comes back up to this position...” I move her arm to show her, pausing by her ear. “Let go but throw through the movement.”

I step back and she does it again, this time sending the rock farther into the water. That ghost of a smile returns and falls.

“Better,” I say.

“Thanks.” She smooths her hair out of her face, holding the long strands to one side. She doesn’t make any move to throw another.

“Still not satisfying?”

“I think the lake is too peaceful or something. Not enough noise or destruction.”

I quirk a brow. Sunshine Ruby wanting to destroy something is maybe more surprising than anything else.

“Do you want to talk about it?” I ask. “I don’t know publishing but I’m a good listener and I have tea up on the porch.”

Her mouth pulls up on one side as she glances in that direction. She shakes her head. “No. I should get to bed.”

She lets her hair free and brushes off her hands. “Thanks for the lesson.”

I nod, then watch her head to the cabin. I stay down by the lake until she’s inside and the lights go out, then I pick up a rock and fire it as hard as I can across the lake.

She’s right. Not nearly as satisfying as you’d think.

I don’t hear from Ruby for a few days, except to say that she’s writing and doesn’t have any more questions for me yet. Then Friday I get a text from her.

Ruby

Good morning. Do you have time today to answer a few more questions for me? I can be available any time that’s convenient for you. Thanks.

It’s such a damn polite message that I stare at it for a good five minutes before replying.

Fifteen minutes later, she’s outside waiting for me in front of my truck. She’s dressed in another dress, this one a light yellow. It’s the only thing sunshine-y about her though.

I wondered if she’d recovered from whatever was bothering her earlier in the week. Now I know.

I hand her a coffee, which softens her scowl slightly.

“Thank you.”

“Welcome.”

We drive to the rink in silence. She sips her coffee, and I steal glances at her, trying to wrap my head around this version of Ruby.