Home Ice Advantage by K.R. Collins

Author:K.R. Collins [Collins, K.R.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: LGBTQIA+, Contemporary, Sports, romance, lesbian, Gay, bisexual, demisexual, ice hockey, Coach, teammates, slow burn
Publisher: NineStar Press, LLC
Published: 2020-12-14T23:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twelve

Christmas break passes and then, New Year’s and Elsa’s birthday. Because of the Winter Games, there’s no All-Star Weekend, and Sophie’s team limps through January. They win enough to convince Coach his system is working and lose enough to hover in and out of fourth place in their division.

This is what got Matty traded, she can’t help but think as they fly out to Seattle. What does a losing team need with a captain anyway? She brushes the fear out of her mind, but it opens up space for more unwelcome thoughts. It’s their last matchup against the Seafarers this season and her first time facing Big Red since the trade. Elsa’s still on the wrong line and, come February, she’ll be on the wrong team.

After a silent warm-up lap, Elsa breaks away from Sophie to do her own thing. Sophie drops down near the boards to stretch. She’s joined a couple of minutes later by Big Red. His dark-blue home jersey is a contrast to her white away one.

“Hey,” he says as he joins her.

“Hey.”

Two years ago, Eldon Carruthers told Sophie playing in Seattle was sucking the joy of hockey from him. She eyes Big Red as they stretch and wonders if the same thing will happen to him.

It’ll be my fault if it does.

*

Sophie and Elsa’s final game before they leave for Helsinki is against Montreal. Her mémé calls to warn her off breaking her favorite player. Sophie says, “Of course,” and throws a shoulder into Ducasse the first chance she has.

There’s a weird shift in the lead-up to the Games as players on the same national teams ease up on each other. It’s not to say guys go easy, but when Ducasse body checks Kevlar he doesn’t try to put him through the glass. And when Kevlar lines up McClure for a hit, he hits him clean and moves on without any of the extra stuff.

It isn’t the same for Sophie. Sure, they’ll all be wearing the Maple Leaf soon enough, but she and Ducasse won’t be teammates. It’s why, after she hits him, he returns the favor. They spend the whole game knocking each other off the puck and taunting each other’s missed scoring attempts.

Her team pulls out the win in regulation and it makes her a touch more gracious than she might be otherwise when she catches Ducasse lingering on the ice. Elsa, who has no kind of loyalty to Montreal and Team Canada’s captain, scowls and lingers at Sophie’s side.

Sophie pats Elsa’s ass, a nudge toward the tunnel. “I’ll meet you in the locker room.”

Elsa bares her teeth and doesn’t move. It was worth a shot. Sophie leaves her stubborn teammate standing guard and skates out to meet Ducasse. He has a healing cut on his cheek, and there are dark bags under his eyes. The season’s already taken a toll on them, and they still have an international tournament to win and the rest of the season to play out.

“Start us off right, eh?”

She’s not sure if it’s a question or a command, but she nods either way.

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