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I should have just stayed home. There’s a new episode of The Voice I still haven’t watched, and there’s leftover lasagna in the fridge from the team dinner Felix hosted last night. Nobody makes lasagna like our goalie and…man, I sound old.
My name was mentioned a few times in the article, including one memorable line that called me a “very talented idiot who should give up online dance trends and stick to hockey where he actually belongs.” Flattering, I know.
“What was what about?” I ask. “The teasing? They just like to make fun of me for being old.” She eyes me curiously. “Okay. But it seemed like your face did a thing.” “A thing?” I raise my eyebrows, but it’s not lost on me that Evie just picked up on something being off when, so far, none of my friends have done the same.
Nathan A heads up for those of you who weren’t present. When Alec saw Evie for the first time, he basically swallowed his own tongue. Camden Can confirm. Felix Honestly, it was hard to miss. Pretty sure he drooled. Van I’m sorry I missed it.
How much younger is she? Alec Nine years. Van Nice. She can care for you in your old age.
Make that two new roommates. My heart speeds the slightest bit, and I realize I’m excited. Weirdly excited. And not just because I know it’s what Megan would expect. Maybe it’s because my house really is too quiet. Or maybe it’s because I can’t stop noticing the way Evie keeps tugging her hair over her shoulder, revealing the curve of her neck, the ridge of her collarbone, the slope of her bare shoulder. She’s wearing overalls over a white tank top, a look I didn’t know I liked until I saw it on her.
Evie holds my gaze, lips pressed together for a long moment before she turns and hands Juno to Ruth then steps closer and wraps herself around my waist in a tight hug. At first, the surprise of the gesture keeps me from responding, but it only takes a moment for me to catch up and settle my arms around her shoulders.
especially right after the hug to rival all hugs. Wrapping my arms around Alec’s waist, feeling him tug me even tighter against his chest…it basically lit my skin on fire.
The yolk on the egg is runny, just the way I like it, and my second bite gets messy, egg dripping down the side of my hand.
One thing about me is that i cannot do runny eggs
“Dude, this house is insane,” Theo says as he looks around the entryway. He spins in place and his bag knocks into a lamp sitting on a hall table. I reach out and steady it before it crashes to the floor, and Carter meets my gaze over Theo’s shoulder, rolling his eyes. “Sorry,” Carter mutters. “He doesn’t get out much.”
“So you’re single?” Theo says, taking a step toward Evie. “Because…Hey. My name’s Theo.” “Dude, she just had a baby,” Carter says, punching his brother in the shoulder. “So? I always wanted to be a dad.” Theo looks at his brother. “I’d be a good dad.”
It’s empty now, except for Dominic, one of the younger guys on the team, who is sitting with his girlfriend in the corner. He played a good game and seems to be celebrating by swallowing her face.
The woman has been in North Carolina less than a week, and I’m already imagining her as my girlfriend.
“And you’d rather not eat greasy salty fries?” I lean over and grab one and pop it into my mouth. It’s hot and delicious and perfectly crispy. “I cheat every once in a while,” he says. “But eating healthy is part of the job.” I grab another fry. “I think I’d have to get a different job.”
she kneels down next to Juno, holding up the pajamas like she wants her daughter’s approval. “Do you see what Alec brought home for you? You get to be an Appie just like him!” An odd sensation washes over me, something I’ve never really felt before. It isn’t just attraction, though I do feel attracted to Evie. It feels more protective. Like I have extra reason to check the door locks. Or go upstairs and make sure all the windows are securely fastened in her bedroom.
As if to illustrate that point, Evie lifts Juno into my arms. “Hold her a sec?” She quickly yanks the tag off the jersey, then tugs it over her head and pushes her arms through the sleeves. A strange possessiveness pushes through me at the sight, but it’s quickly eclipsed by my present reality. I’m holding a baby. Or…sort of holding a baby? I might as well be holding a basketball. Juno is dangling from my hands, little legs kicking, eyes wide as she looks up at me.
I sway back and forth a few times until finally she takes a deep breath and her eyes fall closed, her weight sinking into me as she fully relaxes. I haven’t felt a stronger sense of victory since we took the Calder Cup last season. Juno is asleep—in my arms. I did this. And it feels amazing. I snuggle her a little closer, my cheek dropping onto her baby-soft head.
Did you have to tell them you were nine when I was in high school?” She grins. “Sorry, old man. The truth hurts, but it’s still the truth.” She cocks her head to the side. “Hey, how’s your knee?” “So we go from calling me an old man to bringing up my knee problems? Hit me where it hurts, nerd.”
“Also, the trees in the one pinned at the top of her profile look super green, like they were taken in the middle of summer. If they’re still dating, wouldn’t she have more recent photos?” “Is this how far we’ve fallen? That we’re studying the color of the leaves in her photos?” “You started it,” Megan says. “It’s only creepy stalking if we start searching for her Mom’s Facebook account so we can see pictures of her as a kid.”
“She’s teething, apparently. I didn’t notice until we came outside, but her front tooth just poked through her gum.” “That’s big, right?” Alec asks. “First tooth? You should send me a picture.” “You want a picture of my daughter’s first tooth?” “Do I need to remind you what happened the night before I left? I’m hooked on your kid.”
held Juno before we left,” I say, happy I can at least claim that much. “For like an hour. Long enough to get her to go to sleep.” “Wow. A whole hour,” Van says dryly. “You’re a pro.”
He looks like he’s trying really hard, thinking about his steps, thinking about the way he’s holding her. But the longer he walks, the more he seems to relax, settling into a rhythm that seems to be working for them both. And then my heart climbs into my throat because Alec starts to sing. At first I can’t quite make out what, exactly, he’s singing, but then he turns so he’s facing me again, and I pick up the chorus to Phil Collins’, “You’ll Be in My Heart.” It’s an old song. Stupid old.
I don’t know what’s happening to me. On the one hand, the image of a shirtless Alec cradling my baby girl against his chest while he sings to her is a level of sexy I could not have dreamed up myself. But it’s more than that. Seeing Alec hold Juno brings into stark clarity just how much she’s missing by not having her dad around.
An ache forms deep in my chest that I can't identify at first, but then it shifts and sharpens, and I recognize it for what it is. I want this. I want lazy mornings in bed with my wife, a kid tucked between us. I want to make coffee for someone as easily as I make it for myself. I want to talk about a baby laughing or rolling over for the first time. I want to be a dad.
Oh my gosh. Me. And Alec Sheridan. Megan’s freaking older brother Alec Sheridan. Are on. the same. page. And not just any page. A page torn out of an actual romance novel.
“Oh. Oh! I’ve heard hockey players are very good with their hands.” “Victoria!” I say, laughing at her suggestive tone. “What? They would have to be, wouldn’t they? With all the…stick handling and…puck moving?” “Why do I think you don’t know anything about hockey?” She huffs out a sigh. “Because I don’t. But I have read a hockey romance or two, and let me tell you, that man could star in one of them.”
I force my eyes away from her lips. I will not kiss Evie for the first time on my way out the door, while her daughter is in her arms.
He thought of everything. He’s never been a dad, never had a wife, and still, he anticipates my every need.
Maybe fatherhood is just a matter of paying attention, of noticing what your family needs, then stepping up to take care of that need. It’s being present. Invested. Willing.
He’s saying the exact right words, his tone warm and sincere, and he’s giving off strong dad vibes. Any kid would be lucky to have a father this patient, this gentle. Juno would be lucky.
I tap a spot on my chest. “He has an Appies tattoo right here. The team logo.” “Really?” Parker asks. “I didn’t know that.” “Sexy,” Summer says. “I love a good tattoo.” She’s quiet for a beat before she laughs and says, “Poor Apples.”
“Just embrace it,” Carter says. “The team isn’t giving up your nickname. Just be the apple guy.” Theo rolls his eyes. “I can’t be the apple guy. I’m a defenseman. I’m supposed to be tough.” “I’m tough, and I like apples,” I say dryly, and Carter chuckles.
Her gaze shifts past me and pauses on Felix. “Jamison’s my favorite because I’m a goalie and he’s a goalie, but every good goalie needs solid defensemen, so I decided you should be a favorite too.” I lift my eyebrows as I hand the poster back to her. “Well, I appreciate that.” “You guys weren’t really vibing at your last game, though. Jamison let some shots through, but you didn’t have his back like you should have,” the little girl says.
It’s time for my hockey career to end. I wait for the wave of dread that’s been chasing me all week, but with my hand on Juno’s back, feeling the steady rise and fall of her breaths, the dread never comes.
“Why would you do that?” I ask. “When he was such a jerk to you, why would you—” “Because I’m in love with you,” he says, cutting me off. I suck in a breath as his words land. “Because I love you, and I’d rather be here supporting you than running away to prevent my own discomfort.”
Nobody says anything. They just sit and look down at the ice, just like I’ve been for the last two hours. A surge of emotion makes my chest tight. My team. My brothers. I didn’t know how much I wanted them to be here until they showed up.
