During the last game of the season, Brooklyn looked over at Dustin running across the field and grinned. It had been a wonderful but surprising few months. Their relationship was still a secret, and he’d been right to keep it so. There was a media frenzy over the incident with Hayden and Alex, and if her romantic relationship had been part of the conversation, it would have made things much more difficult to bear.

But, after each horrible event—the squad’s and team’s reaction, the media coming after her, the courtroom trial—Dustin was there waiting to comfort her. Because he was part of the incident, he was there in the courtroom when she gave her testimony, and having him close and knowing he was there helped her get through it. Now that Alex and Hayden were both in jail and things had died down, their lives settled into something like normal. They were looking forward to the off season and had planned a nice long vacation together at the beach.

Dustin took his place on the field, but before he slipped his helmet on, he looked over at her just long enough to meet her eyes. She marveled at their relationship every day, how she completely trusted him and how he’d proven worthy of that trust. They had built something great, and it made her very happy to have him and to have a relationship worth having. He seemed to feel the same.

She’d seen even more change in him and in his whole attitude toward women. He no longer objectified them. It was like witnessing the worst of what could happen had scared him straight. He’d been there for the aftermath of it, too, and was reminded constantly what dangers came from his previous way of thinking.

He’d said to her a month or so ago after the sentencing, “I feel like that could have easily been me.”

“How so?” She cuddled closer into his side as they watched the news coverage of the court event.

“I might have done something like that and not even realized it, thinking she was playing hard to get or something stupid. You saved me.”

“No, you saved me, remember? I did horrible things to you.”

He squeezed her tighter. “But you saved me from ruining my career and my life. I was already on probation for being a jerk. Who knows if I would have stopped if you hadn’t done what you did.”

“Don’t act like that makes it right.”

“No,” he admitted. “I’m not saying it was right. Neither was what Alex and Hayden did, but that doesn’t mean we can’t turn it around and use it for good. Haven’t we found some good out of all of this?”

“Being with you is good.”

“See.” He sighed and kissed her head. “We made something good out of something awful.”

She recalled that night and how he’d made her feel, like she was so unworthy of his affection for all she’d done that she’d try her hardest to be better for him. And she thought he was doing the same. They were transforming with each other’s help, and both of them had changed. Their healthy, happy relationship was proof.

The biggest result of their happiness was their careers. Dustin had gotten a new focus and worked harder than ever to improve. He had, and he’d been given Alex’s place as starting running back. Coach had only good things to say about him these days.

For Brooklyn, she softened when it came to overseeing her squad of ladies. She told them she’d been wrong to try to keep them from dating and that they should be able to do whatever they liked off the field, so long as it didn’t interfere with life on the field. She was glad she’d said it, because later Rachel had confessed that she’d been seeing one of the players for most of the season and they were talking about moving in together. She was able to be genuinely happy for them, and Rachel seemed relieved to not be keeping it a secret any longer.

The game began, and as she normally did, she lead the cheers and watched Dustin. He was on top of his game tonight, throwing harder and runner faster than ever. He wanted to make the playoffs badly, and it showed. If they won this game, they’d move on to the first round of playoffs. If not, it was time to start off-season training and prepare to make next season better. The Fargo Polars quickly pulled ahead by two touchdowns in the first quarter. By halftime, they were up 20 points.

The whole team and all the cheerleaders gathered around to hear Coach Kent’s speech.

“We’re ahead now and looking good,” he said. “But if we sit back and enjoy it, we could lose our victory. Teams have caught up and won before and we’re playing against a good team. Let’s stay sharp and fast out there. We’ll win this thing and celebrate hard, then we’ll crush the playoffs and see if we can’t get you all signed with the pros next year.”

That was Dustin’s dream, of course. And Brooklyn would likely try out for whatever cheerleading squad for the team he ended up on if he did. Being the starting running back and performing like he was this game, he’d get some attention, especially if they made the playoffs.

When it came down to the final minutes of the game, things hadn’t gotten too close. The other team was still several points behind, and Brooklyn could tell Dustin was just trying to show off now. The Polars scored another touchdown and a field goal, putting them back to being more than 20 points ahead. The time ran out on the clock, and the Polars won the game.

There was a special cheer the Polar Princesses had prepared, and Brooklyn led her squad as the players celebrated on the field. Everyone was shouting and jumping and overjoyed, and the fans were going wild.

Back in the locker room, the spirit of celebration continued. The women hugged and cheered, happy to be going on to cheer for the playoffs. It was just as good for them as it was for the guys. More people would see them, and there were more chances for them to move into the pros too.

Brooklyn hurried to her locker and grabbed her phone to text Dustin. “You were amazing! Can’t wait to get out of these clothes and wrap myself around you.”

“Well, you might have to wait a bit on that,” he answered.

She frowned but saw he was still typing.

“The team wants to go out to celebrate. Bring the ladies?” he said.

“Absolutely!”

“Wait until I tell you about the conversation I just had with the coach from the Grizzlies!”

“What?!” She could barely type, she was so excited with anticipation. “Tell me! Do they want to sign you?!”

“Maybe…” He added a winky face emoji, and she tried not to scream in joy.

By the time the teams both gathered at a local restaurant, she was almost bursting with excitement wanting to see him. This whole secret relationship thing hadn’t been too hard, but now it felt like a pointless way to torture themselves. She positioned herself as close to him at the table as she could and tried not to be obvious about grinning at him.

After the food was ordered, Dustin suddenly stood up with his glass. “I would like to propose a toast.”

Everyone picked up their glasses and listened.

“It’s been a heck of a season. For me, personally, I faced a lot of difficult things. This team hasn’t been without its share of controversy, but we did it. We made it to the playoffs, and we showed the world that despite all the crap going on, we’re a solid team.” He stopped to take a breath and look at Brooklyn. “Coach Kent, and the rest of my teammates, you’ve all been so amazing, and I appreciate you all. But in my personal life, there’s one person who’s helped me more than anyone else.”

Brooklyn felt her face go hot and her heart skipped. What was he doing?

“We decided to keep our relationship a secret because of everything that was going on, but I can’t deny it anymore.”

Brooklyn’s eyes went wide and her mouth dried as he turned to her.

“Brooklyn, I love you, and I want everyone to know.”

There was silence from the table. She swallowed hard, not knowing what to expect or what to do. She couldn’t take her eyes off him to glance around and get a sense of what they were all thinking. He’d never said he loved her before.

She looked back at him and said, “I love you, too.”

And with her pronouncement, the teams cheered and clapped. Then, they started hooting and hollering and tapping on their glasses for them to kiss.

Dustin walked to her and took her hand as she stood. He kissed her briefly and wrapped her in a tight hug.

He leaned close to her ear. “I hope that was okay. I couldn’t take the secrecy anymore. I wanted them to know, and I couldn’t stand not telling you that I’m going to be a Grizzly next season.”

She squealed and squeezed him hard. “You are?”

“Well, we have to work out the details, of course, but they resigned Kenny now that they’re convinced he’s back on his game, and Kenny talked them into taking me, too.”

She put her hand to his cheek and looked him in the eyes. “I’m so happy for you. For us.”

Over dinner, there were a lot of questions from those sitting near them. When had it happened and how? That sort of thing. They sat side by side, finally telling all the details of how they’d gone from enemies to lovers.

After the meal, Kenny came to stand by where they sat. He clapped Dustin on the shoulder. “You tell her the good news?”

“I sure did,” Dustin said.

“Thank you so much,” Brooklyn said. “This is a huge opportunity for him.”

“I see a lot of good things in him—a lot of myself, actually.” Kenny chuckled. “I’m glad you found someone to help straighten you out. God only knows where I’d be if I didn’t have Audrey.”

Dustin smiled at Brooklyn. “I know what you mean. Sometimes it takes just the right person to bring out the best in you.”

“And it looks like she’s the right one,” Kenny said, then smiled as he returned to his seat.

“She is.” Dustin took her hand and kissed it. “I love you. Thank you for taking a chance on me.”

“How could I not when you did the same for me?” she said. “We’re in this together.”

“Forever?”

“Forever.”