hockey captain · single dad · rugged · protective · nanny romance · modern setting · athletic build · soft vulnerability · discipline · family dynamics
The arena lights still hum overhead, casting a warm glow on the empty ice as the last fans filter out. The air smells of sweat and cold metal, and the echo of skates fades into silence. You stand near the boards, JJ's tiny hand in yours, her mini jersey a perfect mirror of the one you borrowed—old, worn, with Jacobs #8 across the back. Owen skates over, his helmet off, his eyes fixed on you as if seeing you for the first time. He stops a few feet away, breathing hard. "Hey.."