“Good save, Bellzie!” called someone—Army, Micah thought dazedly, as he carefully opened the lantern and reached inside. It was a jeweler’s box. As the plastic lantern gently deflated, Micah was dimly aware of Cody dashing in to take it from him so he could concentrate on the ring inside.
“The stone is sea glass,” Daniel said. “Because of how much you love surfing and being out on the water. But also because it takes years for sea glass to become what it is, just like it took us a couple of decades to find our way back to each other. If there’s any shore I want to wash up on for the rest of my life, it’s yours. You’re the light that’ll guide me home. You’re my best friend, now and forever, but I’d be honored to call you my husband, too. If you’ll have me.”
Micah’s eyes filled with tears. He’d never in a million years thought this would happen to him—some grand, ridiculous, touching and romantic gesture made by a man on his knees. The man he’d loved since he was old enough to know what it meant, in fact. The man who was still waiting for his answer, patient as ever, with his blue eyes just as bright as Micah’s felt.
“Oh my God, yes,” Micah said, and it was only through an act of supreme will and luck that he didn’t drop the box on the ground like he had the lantern. “Come here, ugh, I can’t believe you.”
Daniel laughed, got up and took the box and nimbly plucked the ring out. He tucked the empty box in his pocket and then put the ring on Micah’s finger.
There was a whistle, a splash and then Micah and Daniel both were soaking wet. Cody kept whistling, their audience was cheering, and Micah Kelly looked up at the man he loved more than life itself and thought this was what it felt like, when your dreams came true. Just like Dudley, he’d finally found his way home.
And also, this would be the best #selfiewithsilver ever.
* * *
Reviews are an invaluable tool when it comes
to spreading the word about great reads. Please consider leaving an honest review for this, or any of Carina Press’s other titles, on your favorite retailer
or review site.
Look for Game Misconduct, a spin-off book to the
Hat Trick series, coming soon from Avon Gale,
Piper Vaughn, and Carina Press.
Acknowledgments
We’d like to thank our agent, Courtney Miller-Callihan, the entire Carina team, and especially our editor, Stephanie Doig, whose suggestions and guidance were invaluable to us as we revised this book. She helped us refine our vision for this story, and we’re so pleased with how it turned out.
About the Authors
Avon Gale lives in a liberal Midwestern college town, where she spends her days getting heavily invested in everything from craft projects to video games. She likes road trips by car, rock concerts, thunderstorms, IPAs, Kentucky bourbon and tattoos. As a queer author, Avon is committed to providing happy endings for all and loves to tell stories that focus on found families, strong and open communication, and friendship. She loves writing about quirky people who might not be perfect, but always find a place where they belong.
In her former life, Avon wrote fanfiction at her desk while ostensibly doing work in nonprofit fundraising for public radio and women’s liberal arts education, and worked on her books in between haircuts and highlights as a stylist. Now she’s a full-time writer, delighted to be able to tell stories for a living.
Avon is represented by Courtney Miller-Callihan of Handspun Literary Agency.
Connect with Avon:
Twitter: twitter.com/avongalewrites
Facebook: facebook.com/avongalewrites
Newsletter: eepurl.com/bGLSrD
Instagram: instagram.com/avongale
Website: avongalewrites.com
Piper Vaughn is a Latinx author and longtime romance reader. Since writing their first love story at age eleven, they’ve known writing in some form was exactly what they wanted to do. A reader to the core, Piper loves nothing more than getting lost in a great book.
Piper grew up in a diverse neighborhood in Chicago and loves putting faces and characters of every ethnicity in their stories, making their fictional worlds as colorful as the real one. Above all, Piper believes there’s no one way to have an HEA, and every person deserves to see themselves reflected on the page.
Connect with Piper:
Website: pipervaughn.com
Facebook: facebook.com/pipervaughn
Twitter: twitter.com/pipervaughn
Instagram: instagram.com/piper.vaughn
Keep reading for an excerpt from
Goalie Interference, an enemies-to-lovers
hockey romance from Avon Gale & Piper Vaughn.
Chapter One
Emmitt woke up tangled in sheets and a hell of a tequila headache.
He normally would have ignored the sound of his phone ringing, especially in Cabo with international rates being so absurdly high. But the ringtone was the one he’d set for his agent, and that was one call Emmitt wanted to take.
Emmitt grabbed his phone from where it rested on top of his clothes pile and pulled on his boxer-briefs. He walked to the balcony door, slipping quietly outside. The second he left the air-conditioned coolness of the room, the heat hit him in an oppressive, suffocating wave. Jesus, it was hot here. He blinked against the bright sun, moving quickly to the shaded area of the balcony as he pressed the “call accept” button. “Hey, Scott.”
“Emmitt. How’s Cabo treating you?” Scott’s smooth voice came across the line. Emmitt doubted his agent was wincing in the sunlight, fighting off a tequila hangover and sticky from salt-and-lime-encrusted body shots. He was probably in an office somewhere, in the air conditioning, wearing a tie.
Emmitt grinned and collapsed in the deck lounge chair. Hangover and stickiness aside, he was in a goddamn great mood and, if this call went the way he hoped it would, that mood was only going to get better. “Can’t complain. What’s up?” He knew his agent hated small talk.
“I have some news.”
Emmitt’s smile faded a bit, and his stomach churned gently with nerves. He told himself to ignore it, that it was just the remnants of tequila, beer and a long night, but he couldn’t help it. His instincts were the one thing he trusted, and they were telling him to beware some incoming bullshit. Scott never said “some news” if it was good.
“Oh, yeah?” Emmitt bent one knee, running a hand over his head. He kept his hair short during the season, but it’d grown out a bit since the Final. He’d shaved the playoff beard the morning after the epic party following their win and didn’t miss it for a second.
“This might come as a bit of a shock,” Scott said.