Page 40 of Stay (Stay #1)

Cole drops a kiss against the crown of my head. “You’re going to be great out there.”

His arms band around me as people walk past on the way to the stands. Excitement charges the frigid air around us.

“I’ll be in the bleachers the entire time,” he murmurs when I remain silent.

He’s doing everything he can to help settle my nerves.

I haven’t played in a real game since high school.

Last year, I rode the bench during the season.

Even though this is just an intramural game, I’m choking on my nerves.

Cole will be watching, and I don’t want to embarrass myself or disappoint him.

More than anything, I want to make him proud.

He presses another kiss against the top of my head before whispering, “Just have fun out there. That’s what it’s all about. That’s what it’s always been about.”

I know he’s giving me solid advice, but the nerves won’t stop churning in my belly. They probably won’t stop until I get out on the ice for warm-ups.

No pep talk is going to change that .

With a smile that makes his dimples pop, he slaps my ass. “Now get in the locker room and I’ll see you after the game.”

I reach up onto my tiptoes before stroking my lips across his in a way that drives him crazy.

A low growl rumbles up from deep within his chest. “You better get going before I scoop you up and carry your ass out of here.”

I grab my hockey bag and head to the locker room. Just as I’m about ten strides away, he calls my name.

“Cassidy.”

Swinging around, my brows lift in silent question.

A smile curves his lips as his gaze locks on mine. “I love you.”

Unable to hold back the flood of emotion, my bag gets dropped to the floor as I fly into his arms. He wraps me up tight before picking me up and spinning me around in a circle.

“I love you too,” I whisper.

“But I loved you first.”

“I’m good with that.” I laugh before his lips collide with mine.

When he nibbles at my neck, I squeal. As excited as I was for this game, I wish we could head home and get lost in each other for the rest of the night.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake,” Sammy rolls her eyes as she walks past, “get a room.” Then she adds, “After the game. Get a room after the game.”

After she disappears, I say, “I’d better go.” With a grin, I back away, “I got me a game to win tonight.”

Gaze pinned to mine, the smile fades from his face as heat flashes in his gorgeous, whiskey-colored eyes. “And I’ll be here, waiting to get that room afterward.”

A grin overtakes my features. “I certainly hope so.”

For a second time, I pick up my bag before blowing him a kiss and pushing my way into the locker room. Rock music blasts from a speaker as the girls talk and laugh, trying to get pumped up. My feet grind to a halt as I take in the moment.

The camaraderie of a team.

The sisterhood of hockey players .

Girls who have your back.

The Dartmouth team hadn’t been like that, or maybe I wasn’t there long enough to experience it. But I have it now with this group of girls, and it makes me feel blessed. It doesn’t matter that I’m not playing for a top college program. These girls, these women , are who I belong with.

I’m struck all over again that none of this would be possible without Cole setting it in motion.

I’m lucky he understood what I needed before I was able to realize it for myself.

Honestly, I feel so damn lucky to have him in my life.

He’s quickly becoming my everything. Sometimes, that’s a scary prospect.

But it’s way scarier to imagine my life without him in it.

Sammy knocks me from my thoughts when she jostles me with her elbow. I grunt before rubbing my side.

“You two are seriously barfy.”

Her disgusted words are enough to bring a smile to my face. Life seems really good right now. I’m not used to this kind of happiness.

“It’s nice to see, Cass. Now get your head out of your ass and into the game where it belongs.” She leaps onto one of the benches before surveying the crowd of girls and shouting over the music, “Let’s show them whose house they’re in by kicking a little ass out there tonight!”

A loud cheer goes up as I grin, stripping down and suiting up.

Two hours later, we’re in the final minutes of the third period. The team we’re versing is better than any of us anticipated. But that’s all right, because we’re pretty damn good, too.

With three minutes left on the clock, we’re tied.

Again.

There’s never been a moment when we weren’t separated by more than a goal. The crowd is on their feet, going nuts, because this game has turned out to be a real nail-biter.

All I know is that I want to end this perfect night with a win.

As the clock runs down, I line up at center ice and wait for the ref to drop the puck.

As soon as it does, I scramble and win the face-off before sliding it to my right winger.

With the puck on her stick, she surges forward, her skates digging into the ice.

My gaze flickers to the clock as I skate with her, careful not to cross the blue line before she clears it.

As soon as she does, I fly toward the net.

She glances up, meeting my gaze before faking a pass to the left wing.

Instead, she shoots it to me. Two defensive players swarm, trying to block a clear shot to the net.

I do the only thing I can and pass it back to her.

Another glance at the clock tells me that time is quickly running out.

We’re down to thirty seconds. Thirty seconds until the game is over, and I don’t want it to end like this.

We’re so close to winning.

We need to work together and make it happen.

Nicole watches Lucy, the left wing, and me for an opportunity to pass. She fakes another pass to Lucy before slamming it to me again. I’m about eight feet from the net. As soon as the puck touches my stick, I lift it toward the top right corner and send it flying with as much power as I can muster.

Everything happens in slow-motion. My breath catches at the back of my throat as I watch the puck sail through the air. The goalie reaches out to block the shot, but she misses, and it hits the back of the net.

The buzzer goes off a second later.

Both wingers surround me, slapping me on the back. The crowd roars their approval, until the noise that fills the arena is deafening. The bench clears, as our teammates crowd around us on the ice.

It’s the best feeling in the world.

I scan the packed stands, wanting to share this moment with Cole. When I find him, I smile and raise my stick in the air. He grins in response, clapping and whistling. Just as I’m about to glance away, my gaze settles on the person next to him.

My eyes widen as my mouth tumbles open. I blink and continue to stare.

It doesn’t seem possible that my father is parked next to Cole.

When he notices that I’m staring at him, he gives me a thumbs-up sign, which was always his way of letting me know I played a solid game.

Tears prick the backs of my eyes.

I can’t believe he’s here.

It’s only when Sammy wraps her arm around my neck that I blink back to the present. “Come on, Jameson. We’ve got some major celebrating to do tonight!”

I smile as my gaze strays to my dad. He and Cole are talking as they leave their seats. I can’t get over the fact that he’s actually here.

With Cole.

Twenty minutes later, my new team walks out of the locker room to the sound of clapping and cheering. I search the crowd until my gaze lands on Cole and my father. They look deep in conversation.

Cole’s face breaks into a smile when he spots me. Awkwardness descends as I join them. Memories of our last interaction flood through me.

Dad is the first one to break the uncomfortable silence. “That was a good game, Cassidy. You played well.”

My eyes widen at the unexpected praise. “Thanks, Dad.” There’s a pause before I blurt, “What are you doing here?”

His smile falters, and I squeeze my eyes shut before sucking in a breath. “What I meant to ask is how did you know I was playing tonight?”

It means a lot that he carved out time to see my first game with my new team. After all the heartache we’ve been through, it feels like we have a real shot at fixing our fractured relationship.

Dad claps Cole on the shoulder as if they’re longtime friends. “Cole called last week, and we had a good talk.” His gaze shifts to Cole before resettling on mine. “He mentioned you’d joined the intramural team, and that your first scrimmage was coming up.”

There’s a pause. It’s almost as if he’s gathering himself. My dad has never been overly demonstrative, but there’s something about his expression that has a thick lump settling in the middle of my throat, making it impossible to breathe .

“I’m glad he did.” His blue eyes flicker away before locking on mine. “I was hoping we could get together sometime next week. Maybe go out for dinner and talk.”

Emotion swells inside me. “I’d like that.”

I want more than anything to heal the wounds between us. This year has been rough for a lot of reasons. Not having the support of my parents is definitely one of them. Even though nothing has been resolved, it feels like a step in the right direction.

His lips lift into more of a smile. “Good. I’ll call you this weekend and we can set something up.”

“That sounds good.”

My gaze slides to Cole’s in a mixture of amazement and disbelief. He gives me a wink in return.

Dad pulls the brim of an old travel team cap low over his eyes before clearing his throat. “I’m going to head back home. Seems like your team has a victory to celebrate.” Our gazes stay locked for a long moment. “It was a really good game, Cassidy. Hard-fought. You should be proud of yourself.”

“Thanks, Dad.”

His praise has always meant so much to me. I worked my entire life for it. After last year, I never expected to hear it again.

I’m surprised when he closes the distance between us and pulls me into his arms. Tears gather in my eyes as I hold on tight.

After he sets me free, Dad shakes Cole’s hand and thanks him again before disappearing through the crowd.

I can only stare at his retreating back before my gaze slides to Cole.

“I can’t believe you did that,” I whisper, barely able to force out the words.

In this moment, everything feels damn near perfect. I played a good hockey game, spoke with my dad, and Cole told me that he loved me—for the first time. I can’t imagine life getting any better than this.

Last year, my life imploded. A year later, I’m still struggling to put the shattered fragments back together again, and make an even better one for myself .

Concern flares in his eyes. “Are you mad that I reached out to him?”

A gurgle of laughter escapes from me as I shake my head. “Of course not. It was just weird to see him in the stands watching me. And then when he gave me a thumbs up after the game…” my voice trails off as emotion rises within me and tears trek down my cheeks.

I can’t believe how full my heart feels.

Almost like it might explode.

“Aw, babe. Please don’t cry. It was a great night.

” He gathers me into his arms before pressing a kiss against the top of my head.

“I wasn’t sure how you’d feel about me calling your dad.

And I didn’t want to get your hopes up if he was a no-show.

So, I didn’t mention anything. But he really wanted to be here to support you, Cassidy. ”

I don’t understand how I got so lucky.

How did I find one of the best guys in the entire world?

It doesn’t make any sense.

Last year had been a dismal failure. I wasn’t sure if I’d ever pull my shit together and now…here I am…all because of Cole. I’m happier than I’ve ever been in my life.

“Thank you.” I stretch onto my tiptoes before stroking my lips across his. “If I didn’t already love you, what you did tonight would have clenched it for me.”

The way his dimples flash sends an arrow of heat straight down to the pit of my belly. All right, so maybe it ignites a little lower.

“I was hedging my bets just in case you weren’t impressed by my declaration of love earlier this evening.”

“Well, it worked,” I say with a chuckle.

“Good.” His mouth drifts over mine. “Let’s get out of here and celebrate, because then I’m taking your ass home and having my wicked way with you.”

I can’t help but marvel at how damn perfect life feels.

And that has everything to do with Cole.

The man I love.

Who loves me in return.

Faults and all.

** *

Thank you so much for reading Stay! I hope you fell in love with Cole & Cassidy the same way I did! The conclusion to their story continues in Don’t Leave !

Sharing my past was the easy part. Working through the issues that stand in our way could be the end of us.

Even though I told myself there wasn’t room for love in my life when I had so much to prove, I couldn’t help but fall for Cole Mathews.

With his gorgeous, whiskey-colored eyes, dark shaggy hair, and dimples to die for, Cole is everything I never expected to find.

And he just so happens to be one of the nicest guys I’ve ever met.

Just when our relationship couldn’t feel more perfect, someone from my past unexpectedly shows up at Western. Luke Wellington is the one guy who saw me at my worst last year. He’s also the one who can ruin all the painstaking progress I’ve made this semester.

Turn the page for an excerpt from Don’t Leave…