“You’re what?! Absolutely not!” Grey barks out angrily.
“Why is that, sweetheart?” Andrew asks from where he cleans Gracie’s mouth at the table, who just finished eating some French toast and now fusses to get out of her highchair.
Aubrey instantly seems to retreat into her shell with the way Greyson is reacting.
When I first met her, she was extremely shy and pretty much didn’t speak. But after spending so much time with me, Morgan, and Cecilia, she now opens up more and speaks her mind. But when she feels anxious, she returns to her timid self.
She looks down into the box and lets her hair fall in her face, hiding her from the stares. “I want to be a baker. Clara wants to reduce her hours to spend more time with her husband. She asked me to take over as manager for the bakery. It would come with an increased salary and more responsibility. I’d basically be running the shop most of the time.” She lets out a breath and shrugs, face completely flushed as she puts herself out there. “And I thought I could maybe take some courses to help improve my skills, and hopefully one day open my own place.”
“That’s freaking ridiculous, Aubrey! After all the money I’ve put into your education, you’re just gonna throw it all away to bake cakes for a living!?” Greyson says furiously.
Something in the way he ended that sentence instantly makes me frown at how familiar it sounds. I don’t understand why he’s so mad, but he clearly doesn’t see how important this is to Aubrey.
“Greyson, I don’t think that’s fair. I’m sure your sister didn’t ask you to pay anything for her. She’s obviously not happy with what she’s studying. You’ve had dreams, you followed them through, and look at you now.” I gesture toward him, moving my hand up and down. “Why would it have to be any different for her? Would you really want her to spend the rest of her life working at a job she hates because it pays well? Or would yourather see her happy, doing something she loves?” I ask him softly.
I don’t want to start a fight, and I know it’s probably not my place to say anything. But I feel the need to defend my friend at this moment.
His eyes snap to mine, and slowly I see the anger dissipate from his body as his shoulders lose tension and drop. He sighs and looks back at his sister. “I’m sorry. You’re right. If this is what you want to do, I’ll support you in it. I just hope you’re sure about this.” He reaches for her and takes her in his arms. “I love you, sis.”
“It is. This is what I want to do. And I know I cost you a lot of money, but I plan on paying it all back,” she tells him.
“No need to pay me back, I’ve already told you that. I shouldn’t even have said anything about the money; I was just a little caught off guard. Your happiness is all that really matters.”
“Thank you,” she says softly, then looks my way and mouths it again, to which I smile in return.
Chapter seventeen
Emma
Babies teethe?
~ The Next Day ~
“Is everyone ready?” Nancy asks as we make our way to the door.
We’re about to head to the arena to watch Greyson play, and I’m excited to be doing this with his family. They’re so welcoming and loving. It’s easy to feel at home with them. Plus, I get to spend one-on-one time with Aubrey, which doesn’t happen often.
Apparently, every time Greyson plays in Toronto, his family comes out to watch. They all wear matching jerseys with his name on the back. Gracie and I are also wearing our special jerseys tonight. They’re so supportive of their son, and it’s beautiful to watch.
“Yup! Let’s go, doll. My son is probably already looking for you in the stands,” Andrew says with a wink as he passes by me and heads for the car.
“Of course he is. Have you seen me? Who could resist,” I joke, touching my hair and posing slightly.
“He’s not even on the ice yet, Dad,” Aubrey tells him with an eye roll. “You two are horrible together. I don’t know what Greyson was thinking,” she adds, shaking her head while Nancy and I giggle as she buckles Gracie into her car seat.
We’re all settled in by the time the boys make their way onto the ice. It doesn’t take long for Greyson to spot us and come over like he did the first time, handing a puck over for Gracie. She even latches on to his hand when he has it through the little hole.
She giggles and shrieks every time she sees her dad now. At first, you could tell this was all new to her, and she wasn’t sure who he was. But now she recognizes him every time, and it’s adorable to see. Even when we watch his games on TV and the camera zooms in on him, she notices her daddy.
“I’m gonna miss you guys,” he says, looking at his daughter, then to me.
Fluttering butterflies erupt in my stomach as I smile softly. “We’ll miss you, too. I’ll call you when we land tomorrow.”
He nods and says bye to his parents and sister, then skates off. We also get a little visit from Silas, Clay, Noah, and Gabe.These guys really are just one big family.
“Can we get a picture of the Ford family? For our social media page,” a photographer for the team asks from beside us.
I’m about to pass Gracie over to Nancy and step back, but Andrew puts his arm around me and forces me to stay in place, clearly picking up on what I was about to do.
