“Itcan. Most of the time when I’m bored, I focus on hockey. Watch game tape. Practice a skill I suck at. Pinpoint a team or player weakness. Haven’t you ever been bored and then learned something new?”
“I keep myself pretty busy,” I admit. “Most of what I’ve learned has been through necessity.”
“Not financial, though. So what drives you?”
I tuck my phone into my pocket, and I sink onto the bench across from him. He picks up the towel and wipes off the sweat that’s still pouring off him.
“What drives me,” I say, mulling it over, thinking of what I did as a teenager, what I’ve been doing on the island since I came back from Northern University. “A desire to help people, I guess. Most of the time when people come to me, something is wrong, and I get to make them feel better. Or I try to.”
“A medical doctor does that even more.”
“Yeah, well,” I say with a little laugh, standing up, “I’m not good with death. Most of the physio I do is rehabilitation based.”
“You gonna make me better, doc?”
Now I can’t help giving him a bit of a smile at the casual nickname. “I am.” I take a deep breath. “I definitely am.”
“Just the right amount of confidence is half the battle,” he says. “I need a skate. Do you know if the ice is free?”
“I don’t. But I can walk over there with you to see.”
“Do you want to skate?”
“I don’t know how.” I glance at him as we exit the fitness room. “I heard the government bought a bunch of skates to make ice rentals easier for small and big groups. There will probably be open skate times when the team is off the island. Offset the cost of the building and startup. Maybe I’ll learn someday.”
When we get to the rink, there are two figures already on the ice—a man and a woman.
“Is that the king?” Logan asks with a hint of disbelief.
“And the queen,” I say, watching Rory try to help Alex skate.
“She looks like she knows what she’s doing,” he says.
“She’s Canadian.”
“Explains it.” Logan crosses his arms beside me, and his biceps flex.
God, I wish I could stop noticing his arms.
“He looks like he’d better have good dental care for when his face hits the ice.”
“Rory’d never allow it. She’d be on the ice before he is.”
“Really?” Logan gives me the side-eye.
“Really,” I say, turning to meet his gaze. Alex and Rory’s fierce protectiveness of each other and their daughter is my favorite thing about the trio. That level of intensity isn’t something I’ve ever experienced, but it always gives me warm fuzzies to see it in action. It’s especially poignant when I remember who Alex wasbeforeRory.
My phone buzzes loudly in my pocket, and I suppress a sigh.
“Based on how many messages she’s sent, that party sounds like it’ll be hopping.”
“You know, it’s more of a get-together. Casual.”
“A few friends…” He plays along, straight-faced.
“Family, mostly. Small. Intimate.” I pause for a beat before adding, “At the busiest wine bar in Bellerive.”
“Do you actually like parties?”
