Total pages in book: 143
Estimated words: 138881 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 694(@200wpm)___ 556(@250wpm)___ 463(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 138881 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 694(@200wpm)___ 556(@250wpm)___ 463(@300wpm)
I don’t sleep though.
I think about failure. How much I fear it.
I think about bodies breaking down. How terrified I am of that.
I think about losing the things, and the skills, and—most of all—the people I love.
And I think about the way I’ve handled the hard stuff in the past. And lately.
I take a short nap.
When I wake, I change into the suit I brought with me, swing by Charlotte’s school to pick her up, and say, “Want to help me with something, Miss Helpful?”
Always circumspect, she quirks a brow and asks, “What is it exactly?”
As she buckles up, I tell her.
In the rearview mirror, I can see her eyes widen. “That’s a good idea. I’d been meaning to have a chat with you, Dad.”
“I know, sweetheart. And I appreciate that.”
“I hope this cheers you up.”
“Me too, kiddo. Me too.”
We run a few quick errands on the way, then arrive at the arena. She heads straight to the kids’ lounge. Since we’re playing our cross-town rivals again, some of her friends are here as well. Tyler’s daughter is camped out in a big comfy chair, watching something on her laptop, his son is doing a puzzle and Rowan’s daughter is reading a book.
“Bye, Dad,” Charlotte says, practically pushing me out the door.
I’m glad she’s happy. It’s such a relief to know your kid is doing more than okay.
Now it’s time for me to fix my own shit. In the locker room, I march up to Lake, Riggs, and Miller, and say the hard thing. “I need help.”
“You take off your pants one leg at a time. Try it,” Miller says, nodding to me. “Go ahead.”
I roll my eyes. “No, seriously. I need to tell Mabel I love her. I need to tell her she’s the one. And I need to tell her something else too.”
It pains me to admit this, but I tell the guys how I’m feeling about it. “I have this plan. And I can’t do it alone. I think I need Remy’s help.”
Lake raises his hand so fast. “I’ll find her.”
I leave, march upstairs, and knock on Theo’s door. I haven’t spoken to him since the flight.
His jaw is clenched. He barely looks up from his computer screen. He’s pissed at me. Of course he is.
I square my shoulders. Speak clearly. “You were right. About everything.”
That piques his interest. He raises his face. “I know. What are you going to do about it?”
“Will you help me?” I ask, feeling horribly vulnerable.
“Depends.”
I tell him the plan.
He nods. “And you love her?”
“So much.”
“You’ll do right by her?”
“If she’ll have me.”
He blows out a breath. Leans back in his chair, sets his wingtip shoes on the desk. Parks his hands behind his head. “Guess you did need my blessing after all.”
For fuck’s sake. This guy. But I smile. “Fine. I did.”
He sits upright and picks up his phone, grinning.
An hour later, I’m in my uniform, skating off the ice after warmups. Theo’s waiting for me in the tunnel. He’s all business now as he claps me on the shoulder. “She’s on her way. I told her there was a VIP suite here with top sponsors I wanted to serve her cookies to, and to bring whatever she had.”
“Brilliant,” I say.
“I know.”
“Was she…annoyed?”
“Not with me. Will she be annoyed with you? Guess we’ll find out.”
“Dickhead,” I mutter.
He cups his ear. “Did you say ‘world’s most amazing friend’?”
“Actually, I did.”
“I thought so. And she was excited, so you’d better make this more attractive to her than serving cookies to my top sponsors.”
“I appreciate you.”
“I know,” he says, then walks off.
As I return to the locker room, Remy intercepts me in the hall, a can-do smile on her face, and a tablet tucked under her arm. “Lake told me the plan,” she says, nodding behind me, and I guess Lake just came off the ice. “I’m all set.”
Lake arrives next to me, saying to her, “Let me know if you need any help.”
“I’m good, but thanks.” She meets my gaze again, waggling her tablet. “Mabel messaged me a few seconds ago. She should be here in twenty minutes.”
I breathe out a sigh of relief.
I pulled that off—getting Mabel here. Time to finish Operation Win Her Heart.
50
LOUDER IN THE BACK
MABEL
Theo’s waiting for me at one of the side doors to the arena, and I’m so grateful I don’t have to go through security.
“It’s good to know the boss,” I joke as I slide past my brother, nodding to the long lines outside the arena, queuing up for the game. I’m glad Aisha and Audrey were at the bakery today so they can close up in an hour.
“It’s good to be the boss,” he says, then reaches for the pink boxes I’m carrying. “Can I help?”
“You better,” I say, unloading a couple dozen samplers of lemon shortbread, seven-layer bars, sweet and salties, and all flavors of my cookies. “I even included some smash cakes.”