I never thought I’d ever see her again, much less talk to her, take her out, or consider getting emotionally involved with her again. Yet here we are. The thing is, it feels oddly perfect when we’re together. Like no time has passed and we can just pick up right where we left off.
Except we can’t.
Not really.
Not after everything that happened.
That means we’re essentially starting over, and I don’t know how to do that.
And I know without a doubt every single person in both our lives is going to be against us. Okay, maybe not everyone. Chloe and Jude will give her a chance. I’m sure some of the wives and girlfriends who weren’t around four years ago will be okay, even if they hear some rumors. The women in our circle are pretty great.
My parents won’t like it at all.
Coach Petrov will probably give me an earful.
I don’t even want to think about Victoria’s dad.
So, why the hell am I setting myself up for what’s almost definitely going to be a disaster?
Since I can’t sleep, I get up and pad into the kitchen looking for a snack. Anything to take my mind off the uncertainty I’m feeling. I don’t want to hurt her but I also don’t want her to hurt me. Because she did. More than I’d ever admit to anyone else. My family and a couple of my buddies know, but beyond that, I’m a typical guy who doesn’t talk about things like that very often.
I hear the garage door open and a moment later Chloe comes in, looking exhausted after what was probably a sixteen-hour shift.
“Hey.” I smile. “Long day?”
“Very.” She drops her things in the mud room and then pads into the kitchen. “Why are you up? Don’t you have a morning skate in a few hours?”
“Couldn’t sleep.”
She nods. “How was your date?”
“It was nice. Really nice.”
“So why can’t you sleep?”
“I’m worried.”
“That you like her too much or not enough?”
“I like her way too much for my own comfort level but I’m not sure I like her enough for the shit storm that could potentially rain down on us.”
She pulls a bottle of water from the fridge and then leans against the counter. “What are you most afraid of?”
I frown. “All of it.”
“No, for real. Which thing is the scariest? Be vulnerable. I’ll never spill your secrets.” She smiles and I chuckle.
“I guess it’s getting sent back down to the minors.”
“Why would that happen?” She cocks her head, patiently waiting for me to answer. “Will you stop caring about hockey because of her?”
“No. Of course not.”
“Will you start partying too much and losing focus?”
“That’s not the plan. And she’s not a partier anyway.”
“Okay, so we’ve pretty much debunked the idea that you’ll get sent back down. What else?”
