I didn’t get much sleep last night. After waiting in Zanders’ hallway until two in the morning, I wandered back to my place for some rest, but I only had a few hours until I needed to get up. I wanted to get to the shelter early this morning to check on the dogs.
Since six AM, fans have been crowding the sidewalk outside our little run-down shelter. They’re loud and for a lot of pups, the yelling, cheering, and blaring music can be scary, especially when you’re in a new place and not in the home you were used to.
Thankfully our group of senior dogs has been primarily unaffected by the outside noise, but regardless, I’m glad to spend the day here. It’s a good distraction from the fact I haven’t been able to see Zanders yet.
Cheryl and I didn’t plan for business today. We just came by to check on the dogs. The sidewalks are too crowded, plus the entire city is closed up and celebrating the boys’ championship.
For the first time all day, the bell over the door rings, but as I walk around the partition to greet them, Rosie comes barreling into her old home, rubbing her body against my shins as she softly whimpers, begging for my attention.
I haven’t allowed myself to think about how much I miss her, but now that’s she’s here, I can’t avoid it. When Zanders broke up with me, I not only lost him, but I lost her too.
I bend down, making myself level with her, scratching behind her ears and giving her all the love I haven’t been able to offer in the last few weeks.
“Rosie, what are you doing here?” I rhetorically ask.
That’s when it hits me.
I look up, and there he is, standing just inside the doorway.
Taking him in but not believing that he’s here, I slowly stand. He’s as handsome as he always is, fresh faded cut, gold jewelry, and perfectly fitted clothes. His hazel eyes bore into mine, staring at me from across the room as my chest flutters from his unyielding gaze.
The crowd is frantic outside, the noise level almost deafening. Local news stations have their cameras rolling, a couple of them managing to follow him inside, but I can’t focus on anything other than Zanders.
I cannot believe he’s here right now.
Cheryl slips past me out of the room as I continue to mindlessly scratch Rosie’s head as she sits at my side.
Zanders and I standoff, holding each other’s stare for far too long, silence stretching between us.
I swallow. “You following me?”
A light laugh flows through him. “You have no idea, Stevie girl.”
Our matching smiles ease the tension in the room until his brows crease with worry, eyes pleading with mine. “Do you love me?”
The question catches me off guard so much so that I can’t speak. He knows I do, but I didn’t expect him to ask so directly. It’s Zanders, though. I should always expect direct.
“Because I love you, Stevie.”
What?
“I’ve always loved you. I just didn’t know that’s what it was at the time. I’ve never had someone to love, and no one has ever loved me the way you do.” He pauses for a deep breath. “You might be done with me, Vee, and I wouldn’t blame you if you were, but I can’t let this end without telling you how much I fucking love you.”
Is this really happening? My throat is dry, my mouth parched, and my heart is racing faster than it probably should. Words I was convinced I’d never hear him say are now flowing freely from his lips.
“The biggest mistake I’ve ever made was letting you go. I told myself I was doing it to protect you, but I was scared. No one had ever loved me enough to stick around, and I was tired of being left, so I did it before you could. But Stevie, there hasn’t been a second that’s gone by that I haven’t regretted that decision. You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me. Always will be.”
Zanders vulnerably stands across the room from me, cameras filming his genuine words, but in a state of shock, I remain silent.
His throat bobs in a deep swallow before continuing. “I thought the scariest thing would be losing Chicago, losing my fans, but I was wrong. The scariest thing is losing you. All this time, I thought I needed an entire city to love me, but the reality is I just need one person to. I need you to love me. You’ve always been my first choice, Vee, and I lost sight of that for a moment, but I promise you, you’ll never have to question your place in my life again.”
I open my mouth to speak, but he doesn’t let me.
“If you want to be in Seattle, then I’ll try my hardest to play in Seattle. If you want to move somewhere else, then I’m coming too.” He releases a heavy sigh. “Stevie girl, I’ll follow you anywhere.”
Before I can interject, he frantically continues.
“I used to love life on the road, because for a moment I could forget I didn’t have anyone at home. But the only reason I enjoyed traveling this season is because you were there. I had the best part of home with me. I fell in love with you while we were a mile high in the air.”
“Miles,” I finally interrupt.
“What?”
“Miles. Like seven miles in the air.”
His lips tug in a smile, but he holds it back. “Sweetheart.” He closes his eyes with faux frustration. “I’m kind of having a moment here.”
My chest heaves in a silent laugh. “I’m sorry. Please continue.” I motion for him to do so.
“Thank you.” His lips press in a hard line, but he’s fully amused. “Anyway, as I was saying. I fell in love with you while we were miles high in the air, and I’m begging you to love me back.”
My face softens in understanding.
“I’ll believe you, Stevie. I promise I will. Whatever you say, I’ll believe you.” He pauses. “Do you still love me?”
A moment of silence and hesitation lingers between us. Zanders’ eyes plead with me to love him back, and how could I not? I’ve never stopped. I just wanted him to let me.
And now, not only is he letting me, but he’s begging me to.
Taking a few quick strides, I wrap my hand around the back of his neck, pulling him down to me. His lips are as I remember, soft and warm, but he’s frozen in place, unmoving as if he doesn’t believe this is happening.
Finally, after a beat, he catches on, his mouth melting into my own, taking everything I have to offer. His hands slide around my lower back, the metal of his rings pressing into my body with his commanding touch. His tongue traces the entrance to my lips, which I quickly give him access to, and it isn’t until the cheers from outside grow exponentially louder that we separate, but barely.
I inhale a breath through the small part in our lips, needing to fill my lungs with oxygen.
He rests his forehead on mine, whispering his desperate question once more. “Do you still love me, Stevie?”
I look up through my lashes. “Of course, I do. I’ve always loved you. I just wanted you to let me.”
He closes his eyes, and when they reopen, it’s as if the weight of the world has fallen off his shoulders. “I thought you gave up on me. After you didn’t come to the game—”
“I was there.”
He pulls away slightly to get a better look at me, his hold keeping my body tight to his.
“I tried to get to the ice, but there were too many people. I waited for you at your apartment instead.”
His brows soften with understanding. “I stayed at Rio’s. We all did. I never came home.”
“I called.”
He lightly laughs. “My phone broke.”
A smile lifts on my lips. “I could never give up on you. I love you.”
He pulls me in, hiding away in my neck. “I love you so much, Vee.”
I run a gentle hand up the back of his neck and scalp, basking in the words I didn’t think I would ever hear.
He holds on a little longer, and a little tighter before his head pops up from my shoulder. “Cheryl.” I turn around to see the shelter’s owner, watching us with so much pride on her face. “Can I steal her for the day?”
She clasps her hands, tucking them under her chin. “Please do.”
“I need you with me out there.” Zanders moves a rogue curl from in front of my face. “There are a lot of people outside. Are you okay with that?”
I stand confident. “It doesn’t bother me anymore.”
Zanders’ smile is soft but proud. “That’s my girl.” He cups my face, his lips finding mine for a moment.
Slipping his ring-covered fingers through mine, Zanders leads me outside past the reporters and through the maze of fans with Rosie behind us both. There are way more people out here than I anticipated, all eyes on us.
“There’s our girl!” I hear from one of the buses. Looking up, I find Rio leaning over the railing of his bus, his signature boom box held over his head with music blaring.
“Stevie!”
“We missed you, Stevie!”
“Get it, EZ!” continues from the line of buses with all the hockey boys I worked for this year standing on the top deck, watching.
Zanders quickly guides us to his bus, allowing me to climb the stairs first, and as soon as I step onto the top deck, I’m attacked with a hug. It takes a moment for me to register that Lindsey is the one holding on to me as tight as she can.
I wrap my arms around her back as she squeezes my neck. “I’m sorry my brother was an idiot.”
We both shake with laughter until she pulls away, holding me at an arm’s distance, a thankful smile on her lips.
“Stevie!” Ella attacks my legs, so I bend down, making myself eye level with her. “You do my hair?”
“Absolutely.”
The bus begins moving, the parade continuing.
Maddison and I share a quick wordless conversation from across the way. He offers me a thankful smile before Logan wraps me up in a hug.
Zanders’ hand finds the small of my back. “I want you to meet someone.”
He guides me to the almost as equally tall man standing with Lindsey. “Vee, this is my dad. Dad, this is my girlfriend, Stevie.”
My eyes burn a bit, but I hold it in. Of all the progress Zanders has made, this is by far the most important. His dad always loved him, as did I, but he had a hard time believing us both.
And now he does.
“It’s so nice to meet you,” I tell his dad, brows pinched together.
He releases a breath of relief. “Oh, you have no idea how happy I am to meet you, Stevie.” His tall frame bends down, arms slinging around me. “Thank you,” he quietly whispers for no one else to hear.
Words stick in my throat. I can’t speak, so instead, I quickly nod into his hug.
We share an understanding smile before Zanders’ arms are around my shoulders once again, my back to his chest.
He urges me forward to stand at the railing with him, all of Chicago’s hockey fans below us, and at this moment, it hits me that this is the first time we’ve been in public together without hiding. And for someone who was afraid of the recognition that followed Zanders around, I don’t mind the attention one bit.
I want everyone to know he’s mine.
He peppers kisses along my neck and shoulder as I find my worn-out ring on his pinky finger, spinning it before repeating the exact phrase he used the morning he took it.
“Mine.” I melt back into his touch.
His hold tightens. “And you’re mine, sweetheart. None of this”—he nods below us—“was right without you. You’re my first and only choice, Vee, and never again am I going to make you feel like you’re not.”
This is all I’ve ever wanted, to be chosen by the person I care about the most. I had friends in school who only chose to spend time with me because of my brother. I’m a twin, and I was still my own mother’s second choice. I’ve had a relationship where his first pick was anyone but me.
But here, with the person I value more than anyone else, I’m chosen.
“All right, you two,” Maddison interrupts, teasing us. “This is a family-friendly event.” Though, his own hand rests on his wife’s ass.
Zanders flips him off with one hand and uses the other to hook around the back of my neck, capturing my mouth with his once again.
“Fucking love you,” he murmurs against my lips. “I’ll follow you anywhere, Stevie.”
I put that conversation on pause and instead nudge his nose with mine and kiss him once more.
“Linds!” he shouts back over his shoulder. “Let’s pop those bottles of champagne! We won the Stanley Cup, and I got my girl back. Now we can celebrate!”
