Center Chase

Chapter 47

Lindsey

The boys did it- well, almost. They won their last game and now only have one more standing between them and the final round. Tonight, they play their final game against Florida to see who will go up against Dallas for the cup.

I'm watching them play tonight with Taylor and her friend Mel. We had so much fun when we went out for girls' night: no stress, no drama, just good old-fashioned fun. We checked out a nightclub that Tay and Mel used to go to when Mel lived in the city. It was packed, but they played great music and had plenty of security to ensure things didn't get out of hand. The three of us talked and danced all night.

Mel is really cool. She used to be a figure skater and spent a ton of time on the ice. Tay even said she could have gone to the Olympics, but that's not what Mel wanted to do. She said putting that kind of pressure on herself would have taken all the fun out of it. She said skating is what she does to feel free and unburdened by life's responsibilities. It's what she does to find solace, and she didn't want to taint that by turning it into something competitive. I gotta respect her for that.

I found out that Mel used to date Tay's older brother, Justin. They met one day in college when he went to the rink to get some extra practice in and saw her out on the ice. Taylor said it was love at first sight for Justin, and they were perfect together. After his accident, Mel left New York and moved back to her hometown to try to recover from the loss. It really took a toll on her. I can't help the pain I feel for her. I don't know what I'd do in that situation- if I lost Chase like that, I don't think I could handle it. I think I'd just shut down.

Taylor has been trying to convince her to move back to the city since she came to visit a couple of weeks ago. She says we need another girl to add to our group; that way, we aren't so outnumbered. I can't believe how different she and Taylor are compared to the other girls that hang around the team. They're completely the opposite of what Val and Jenna D. are like. I don't know what I would have done when I moved here if I hadn't gotten to know Taylor. I owe so much to her.

If she hadn't had my back with Chase during the whole 'Val trying to ruin us' thing, I'd probably be back hiding away from everyone again. I'm so happy to have her in my life. Heck, I'm just happy, period. I can't get over how much things have changed since I moved here- how much I've changed. A smile spreads across my face at the thought.

I look over at the two girls sitting beside me, then around the packed arena. This is home- being here with my friends, getting ready to watch my man kick some serious ass out there on the ice. This is where I'm supposed to be. This place is my home. These people make it feel like home.

As the game gets underway, I can immediately tell it will be a doozy. The jerk from L.A., Tatum, switched teams again. Now he's playing for Florida, and he's here pulling his usual crap during warm-up. He kept skating by our section and making comments and lewd gestures at us. When he saw Mel with us tonight, I swore I heard him say something about 'fresh meat,' and he definitely slid his hand over his groin when he eye fucked Taylor. He's a real piece of work.

His actions didn't go unnoticed by our guys. Chase and Liam skated by and asked what Tatum said to us. We told them it was no big deal, but they weren't having any of it. Chase said he was going to kick that fucker's ass, and Liam looked as mad as I've ever seen him. When they went back to the rest of the team, they must have told them what happened because as soon as they spoke, all eyes turned on Tatum. Nate and T.J. looked over at us and said something to Liam, then nodded. Rob and Drew were glaring daggers at the bastard. And Damien 'accidentally' rammed into him when he was doing a warm-up lap.