“Is that it?” Kai asks me when the game ends. “Or is there a song or something?”
I roll my eyes. “That’s only at the beginning. It’s over.”
He squints to read the numbers on the Jumbotron and then gasps. “We won!”
“Were you even paying attention to the score?” I ask, laughing.
“Was I supposed to?”
Allie Zimmerman, Easy’s wife, leans in as she’s walking by us and says, “I usually don’t pay attention to the score, either, so you’re good.”
Kai and I take our time going down to the hallway Jonah will walk out to when he’s done with his shower and interviews, Kai’s flawless makeup drawing a few looks.
“You’re happy here, aren’t you?” Kai asks me, putting his arm through mine.
“Are you serious? I’m happier than I’ve ever been. Happier than I ever thought I could be.”
He smiles. “Good. Because I love having you back. It’s so funny, I never would’ve seen myself having this friendship threesome with an FBI agent and a pro hockey player.”
“But we work, don’t we?” I lean my head against his.
“We really do.”
Jonah doesn’t end up having to do interviews after the game, which is rare. He walks out in a navy suit and gives me the smile that melts me every time.
“Hi babe,” he says, kissing me and then turning to Kai. “Hey Kai, what’d you think of the game?”
“I liked it,” Kai says with a grin. “Lots of testosterone out there, what’s not to like?”
“Do you mind if we go out?” I ask Jonah.
“As long as we go somewhere I can get a cheeseburger.”
“We can do that.”
Jonah stands in between me and Kai, putting an arm around each of us, and we head out of the arena together. I feel a mix of contentedness and joy I never knew possible.
After all the years of assuming new identities, in a different place each time, I found my home—not in Chicago, but in these two people.