Action was fast from the first moment, the puck flying down the ice and only occasionally disappearing out of bounds past the snowdrifts piled up as a boundary of the cleared ice.
Tucker got a breakaway and sprinted down the rink, ready to flick the puck at the man in the net when something the size of a Mack truck barreled into him from the side.
Tucker slid all the way across the cleared ice and into the hardpacked snow on the edge.
Bradley Ford, the fire chief he’d been warned about, skated over and held out a hand. “Sorry about that.”
Tucker grinned as he grabbed the other man’s wrist and used it to get vertical. “No problem. Keep your stick on the ice.”
Yeah. One step below the Stanley Cup? Nowhere near as technically fine, but their enthusiasm and determination were definitely up there. The puck moved so rapidly at times, it seemed there might be more than one on the ice.
“Hey. Who threw the extra pucks on the ice?” Dustin roared, which made Tucker laugh for all the wrong reasons.
Especially when Ginny went zipping past, stealing the puck from under her brother’s stick and heading straight for the net. Only Shim got in her way, and the two of them went down in a heap.
She laughed as she got to her feet, but Shim definitely lingered in her area a little too long for Tucker’s liking.
The next time the puck started moving and Dustin and Shim made a pincher move on Ginny, Tucker decided it was time to change tactics. Ignoring the net completely, he skated after his own teammates, casually elbowing Dustin toward the rough bit of ice at the very edge of the rink.
“Hey. We’re on the same team,” Dustin complained, frantically working to keep vertical.
Tucker turned and skated backwards, raising his hands in mock apology. “Sorry.”
He glanced over his shoulder, planning his trajectory.
Ginny slapped her stick against Shim’s. “Don’t make me get mean,” she warned.
“Give me your best shot,” the kid said with far too much innuendo. “I can take it.”
The puck headed straight toward the three of them, Luke shouting Tucker’s name.
With a breezy air of competence, Tucker shifted his stick at the last second so that the puck slid off, straight to Ginny. In the next instant, he plowed into Shim, mass and momentum sending them both flying until they toppled into the snow at the side of the rink.
Tucker spoke softly as he glared into the young man’s surprised face. “Mind your manners around Ginny,” he warned.
Then Tucker got to his feet and headed back to where Ginny had both arms raised in the air after having scored a goal against his team.
Luke skated past, disgust on his face. “Jeez. I had no idea it had been so long since you’ve been on skates that you’ve lost all sense of coordination.”
Tucker stared across at Ginny, who grinned, totally aware he’d given her the assist. “Yeah. Guess I need to work on that.”
8
Ginny was unlacing her skates when her brother Walker dropped into a squat in front of her. “Want to come home with us? We can visit for the afternoon then I’ll bring you back.”
She was game, but she also desperately needed to get into town while the shops were open, and this was a great excuse. “Let me drive myself. I want to have a shower, and I need to stop in town for a few things. Want me to bring anything?”
He shook his head, rising to his feet. “We’ll feed you a late lunch. Look forward to catching up.”
“Me too,” she said honestly.
Tucker was nowhere in sight when she hit the trailer to change and grab her purse, not even by the time she crawled into her borrowed truck and headed into Heart Falls.
She would’ve liked to do the condom purchase somewhere a little further afield, but not buying protection wasn’t an option. If all they had was two weeks, she needed to make sure no opportunities were missed.
Her purchase of chocolate bars, condoms, and a package of fresh mint got the expected raised brows, but at least the unfamiliar kid running the first till was young enough to not come out and say anything.
She was happy to avoid the other checkout where Mrs. Wilson, her retired fourth grade teacher, was chatting full blast with her current customer. Mrs. Wilson would have given her the third degree then informed everyone in town that Ginny Stone was home and planned to have sex.
Both of which were true, but it really didn’t need to become a local meme or anything.
Ginny stuffed her purchases into her reusable shopping bag and left them on the truck seat.
Ivy and Walker’s house was situated beside the cemetery on the very edge of Heart Falls. They’d done some work on the cottage, fixing the porch and repainting, but it was a far cry from the newer homes popping up on acreages all around Heart Falls.
Ginny’s gaze snagged on the cemetery. Dare’s parents and her little sister Shayla were buried there.
Impulsively, Ginny crossed the short distance to the wrought-iron entrance. Others had visited since the last snowfall, and walking paths were trod down in a gentle loop through the quiet stillness.
Joseph and Jacquie’s tombstones were neat and tidy. Brand-new plastic flowers stuck up from the holder at the base.
Sadness welled in Ginny’s heart. So many opportunities had been lost because these special people weren’t in the world anymore. But they had left something good that went forward.
“I talked to Dare this morning.” Ginny said it conversationally, the same way she would’ve after sprinting the distance between the ranch house and the Hayes cottage, so many years ago. “She’s doing great. Her babies are all adorable, with chubby cheeks and squirming jiggles. Joey is a wonderful big brother to them, and Dare’s having so much fun chasing them all. She’s still doing her blog. It’s changed over the years, and she’s not quite as long-winded as before. You’d be proud of her.”
It was a sign of how hard she was working to not cry that she hadn’t even noticed she wasn’t alone until somebody stepped beside her and carefully put an arm around her shoulders. The motion was so familiar she knew in an instant who it was.
She leaned against Walker’s side. “Hey, big bro.”
“Hey, brat.” He squeezed and held on.
They stayed there for another minute before Ginny caught his fingers and tugged him back the way they’d come. “So. How was skating on the baby rink?”
Walker chuckled. “Not nearly as dangerous as what you were up to.”
“I live for danger,” Ginny quipped.
“This isn’t news.”
She kicked snow his way, darting ahead until she could turn and look up at him. She jammed her hands into her pockets. “You good?”
“Very good,” he said far more seriously. “Come in, and we’ll get comfy before we start catching up.”
The inside of the house was picture perfect and yet comfortable. Ginny had zero qualms about planning to put her feet up on the couch. First though, she was enveloped in a hug, the porcelain-skinned Ivy holding on with surprising strength.
“I’m glad you’re back,” Ivy said in her soft tones.
“That seems the general consensus. I’m still surprised, though, every time I hear it,” Ginny teased. “I mean, I’m not an ogre, but I’m pretty sure it was a lot quieter around here without me.”