Rebound (Seattle Steelheads #1)(92)

I cleared my throat. “By the way, you, um, don’t mind the team calling David and Claire my stepkids, do you? I don’t even know when that started, but it seems to have stuck.”

“Why would I mind?”

“Well, I mean, they’re your kids, but I’m not their stepdad.”

He was quiet for a moment before he asked, “Do you want to be?” The question came out so nonchalantly, it took me a second to really register it.

Spine straightening, I turned to him. “Run that by me again?”

Gaze still fixed on the kids, Geoff let a hint of a smile come to life as he said, “If being their stepdad was an option…” He looked at me. “Would you want to be?”

“Are you…” I blinked. “Are you serious?”

Geoff brought his hand up between us, and the stadium lights caught on a wide gold band. “You tell me.”

I stared at the ring, then at him. “Are you proposing?”

He laughed. “I’m not getting down on one knee on the ice, but…yes.” Sobering a little, he swallowed hard as he met my eyes. “Will you marry me?”

He’d caught me so off guard, casually segueing a benign conversation into a marriage proposal, that my brain short-circuited for a few seconds. Fortunately, only a few seconds. Grinning, I nodded. “Of course I will.”

Geoff broke into a relieved smile.

I raised an eyebrow. “Did you actually think I wouldn’t?”

“Well, I was hoping, but you know how it is. Nerves.”

I just smiled, pulled my glove off, and reached for his face. “For the record,” I murmured against his lips, “the only reason I didn’t say yes as soon as I saw the ring was because you startled me.”

“I prefer the word ‘surprised.’”

I grinned and kissed him. “Yeah. Definitely surprised.” I looked down at the ring he still held between his thumb and forefinger. “So, do I get to wear that now? Or…?”

“It’s up to you.” Our eyes met, and I couldn’t stop grinning.

“I think I want to wear it now.” I tugged the glove off my left hand, and my heart went wild as Geoff carefully slid the band on to my third finger.

“Hey, look at that,” he said, chuckling. “I guessed your size right.”

“Yeah, you did.” I stared at my hand. The ring fit perfectly.

“Oh my God!” Claire skated up and skidded to a perfect hockey stop beside the boards. “Did you finally propose to him?”

“Finally?” I laughed. “Have you all been plotting this or something?”

“Are you kidding?” She beamed, gesturing at my hand. “We all went ring shopping like two months ago.”

My jaw went slack and I turned to Geoff. “Really?”

Smiling, he nodded.

I looked down at the ring again, and of course I’d already said yes, but knowing he’d taken the kids along to pick it out, that he’d conspired with them to keep this a secret… I couldn’t say why, but that moved me almost to tears. Maybe because I’d been so worried about them accepting me—really accepting me—as their dad’s partner.

Claire turned around and called over her shoulder, “Hey David! Dad finally asked!”

David looked up from a passing drill with Grady. The puck sailed away, but they both ignored it. “He did?”

I held up my hand, letting the light catch the ring.

David wasn’t the only one to come skating over—my teammates quickly caught on and joined us. The congrats started flying, and the defensemen were already planning my bachelor party, which amused the hell out of Geoff. We’d been engaged for two minutes, and there was already an agenda involving keg stands and a tattoo to be selected by my team and applied after I was too drunk to care. Overpaid frat boys, remember?

Wilson bumped Grady’s shoulder. “Told you he was gonna put a ring on it.”

“And you said it would be Christmas.” Grady held out his hand and wiggled his fingers. “Pay up, asshole.”

“Pay up?” I asked. “Were you guys… Was there a bet going on this?”

“Oh shut up, Crows.” Grady rolled his eyes. “We make bets on when Dane will finally wash his socks. Of course we bet on this.”

“Okay. Fair.” I shot Geoff an apologetic look, but he just laughed. He’d spent enough time around the team by now, he couldn’t be surprised by much.

Then Bruiser shouted, “Oh! I call dibs on being best man!”

“The fuck you do!” Grady barked back. “You’d show up drunk and lose the ring.”

“And you wouldn’t?”

“I’d be more sober than you would. I get to be best man.”

“Fine.” Bruiser pointed sharply at one of the goals. “Shoot out.” He was already skating away as he threw over his shoulder, “Winner is Crows’ best man!”

“You’re on, dumbass!”

I laughed as I watched them go, and I called after them, “Don’t I get any say in this?”

“No!” came the unanimous response from basically everyone.

The rest of the team and my soon-to-be stepkids trailed after them, shouting encouragement as the boys rounded up some pucks for the shootout.