She and Country are getting married Saturday
Details slowly began filtering into her head, things Ryan had mentioned at the lake. Country and Jenna had known each other in high school and had recently gotten back together. They were getting married at Country’s ranch. Ryan had been excited about it.
She texted back.
I’ve got mediation on Friday. I don’t think that’s a good idea
Or maybe it’s the perfect idea because you’re going to be at home sad and alone having a panic attack.
Better than having a panic attack in front of strangers while I’m tipsy
Is it, though?
Aelin grinned at that.
Seriously, I would love to, but Clark is MIA. I don’t want to give him any reason to delay this meeting.
It’s been difficult enough trying to keep this date. Given all the other shit he’s pulled
Megan hearted the message.
Yeah. Sigh. I’m so sorry. I wish I could have him assassinated
Aelin snorted, wishing Clark could seethatmessage. She sent Megan a kissing emoji, then plugged in her phone and rolled over.
For a moment, she felt a twinge of loneliness. The image of Ryan standing on the curb in front of her house. The briefest hint whispered over her that maybe she didn’t have to be lying alone on a mattress on the floor.
Then the cold swept back in, and Aelin exhaled in relief.
Chapter
Twenty-Eight
Ryan finalizedeverything with the ice centre Thursday at six fifteen after they’d cleaned out their stuff in the locker room and packed up the boxes of gear. They opted to do only a four-day camp the week of Country’s wedding, for obvious reasons. Tonight was the bachelor party, and then tomorrow he was taking Amaya to the ranch to help set up for Saturday.
It had nearly killed him to move all of Aelin and Bailey’s stuff over to the townhouse. He missed her so much, it was a physical ache. But he had stopped calling or sending text messages a few days ago when it became obvious she wasn’t planning to respond.
He didn’t understand it. They had grown so close at the lake. But the closer they’d gotten to Calgary, it was like he could see her sealing herself back up. Closing off. Protecting herself. Clark had been the final hammer against the lid.
He just couldn’t understand why she felt the need to protect herself fromhim. Besides acting like a douchebag the first time they met, he’d never treated her poorly or lied to her. He’d connected her with Tyler. Found a way to move her without costing a penny. He’d left flowers and a gift card to Boston Pizzaon her table. So why was she treating him like he was the enemy?
He took Amaya out for burgers, then dropped her off with Russ and Laura for the night. They were on babysitting duty all weekend. He was going to pick her up whenever he got his ass out of bed in the morning, take her out to the ranch, and then drop her back off Friday night for another sleepover so he could finish up any last-minute details before the wedding on Saturday.
Polk was still trying to finish the dance floor, and from what Country said, it wasn’t looking promising. But Country had a stick up his ass, so he took that with a grain of salt. He couldn’t blame him. Country wanted everything to be perfect. If they had to put up with his bitching and moaning for a week, that was a small price to pay for all the good he did for the rest of them.
Tonight, their mission was to help him relax, and that’s exactly what they were going to do. First, they were going paintballing. Then they were getting fried chicken sandwiches—Nashville hot—and moving on to the bar. Jenna and Country didn’t know it, but they were both going to end up at the same place for drinks. They all knew Country and Jenna well enough to know that the only time they’d be truly relaxed was when they were together.
That gave him hope. Ryan had never understood the idea of a bachelor party. He hadn’t had one before his wedding. If you were excited to spend the rest of your life with somebody, why would you need a night to forget it? He had gone shooting with his brother and dad instead.
Ryan showed up at Sean’s, and the Snowballs players piled into a party bus. That’s what Sean was calling it, but it was actually just the team travel bus. Kelty, Sean’s girlfriend, had scrawled words with chalk marker across the windows and set up neon track lights along the inside of the roof. No need for a driver since Tyler and Brett weren’t drinking anyway.
It felt like old times. Jack was there, back in town after a training camp with the Blizzard, and Fly showed up with a shirt that read “I Drop Mitts.” It felt like a tourney road trip, and by the time the team bus pulled into the parking lot of the paintball centre, Ryan couldn’t keep the grin off his face. This was exactly what he needed. A little downtime. A little connection. A little pain.
It was hard to find something that checked all the boxes. Hockey was always the obvious choice. He hoped this was a solid second.
They clown-carred it out of the van and into the parking lot, then strolled into the building.
"Smells like teen spirit in here," Mike quipped, his long dark hair tied back in a ponytail.
