She gasps dramatically and tears into the envelope by her plate. “New skate laces!”
“Pink ones,” Dane adds. “For speed. And style.”
She beams. “Obviously.”
He slides my envelope across the table next. “This is just the first part.”
I open it to find a simple card. Inside, in his unmistakable handwriting:
Thank you for trusting me with your heart. Thank you for building this life with me. Thank you for sharing your daughter with me daughter. Thank you for carrying our child.
Thank you for loving me wherever I am, whoever I am.
Stay tuned for the rest of your gift.
My eyes sting.
I look up at him. “There’s more?”
He leans down and murmurs in my ear, “Later.”
Heat blooms low in my belly, and I give him a look that makes Scottie groan.
“Gross,” Scottie pretends to gag.
“It’s Valentine’s Day,” he says, trying to look serious.
She rolls her eyes. “Can you at least wait until I leave?”
Dane laughs. “Fair enough.”
Right on cue, a knock sounds at the door.
“That’ll be my sister,” he says. “Timing like a pro.”
A minute later, the house fills with familiar voices. His sister breezes in first, coffee in hand, followed by his nephew—somehow taller than I expect every time I see him.
“Morning,” she says brightly. “We’re here to steal Scottie for school.”
Danny sniffs his nose. “What’s that?”
Scottie grabs her backpack. “Dane made heart pancakes.”
Danny’s eyes widen. “He did?”
“Don’t worry. He packed some for you to have on the road.”
Watching from the doorway, his sister raises an eyebrow. “I see winning a trophy and retiring from coaching has changed you.”
Dane scoffs. “All for the better of course.”
She hugs us both, and after promises of dinner this weekend and a reminder about the kids’ clinic schedule this weekend, the house empties out again.
In the nearly two years since he walked—or rather, skated—back into my life, life has changed a lot.
Dane finished his last season and took his team all the way. Scottie and I were there to cheer for him as he held that coveted cup up in the air.
Though the owners were surprised when he announced his retirement the next week, they were eager to sign on for his services in offering out-of-season training and camps.
