Max was rolling onto the ice driving the Zamboni. He pulled his beanie on over his shaggy hair and was beaming at me with his missing tooth smile. What a bum. I shook my head at him and ushered a couple of the tweens off the ice.
I skated over to Max and gave him a fist bump awkwardly across my body with my left hand. I couldn’t wait to go back in and get this damn cast off.
“What up, man?” I asked him.
“This is my favorite part of the job,” he laughed.
“Jesus. You’re a hillbilly.”
“You know it, son,” he said, beeping the high pitch horn of the zam. He looked down at me with a more serious expression then. “So how’re things goin with Jules?”
I couldn’t help but smile when he said her name.
“I really can’t believe it man,” I told him.
“So… like wedding bells and you being called Daddy in the future?” he smirked.
“I’ve thought about it… but I’m not sure if she wants all that again, ya know?” I told him honestly. I really didn’t know. I liked how things were. I could tell she drew a line in the sand where we were and I didn’t want to push her… but I did want my ring on her finger. I still did see kids together in our future… and having a house together. My house was starting to feel like a waste of a purchase because I was spending all my time by her. It would be weird to have both of them sleepover my place.
Max looked perplexed, “Don’t all women want that?”
“Hell if I know,” I told him.
“I’ll ask Paige to ask her,” he winked at me.
I started to argue but he zoomed away from me, probably not safe for him to be in charge of that specific aspect of the rink.
I shook our conversation out of my head. Jules was on the other sheet of ice. I wanted to catch a little bit of her.
She was so graceful even when she was just moving to help a kid stand up. It made me feel like a chick thinking about it, but the way she was helping the little two-years-olds made me want to have one of our own together.
I shoved the possibility of having a family away for so long because I couldn’t see it with anyone but Jules. Now that we were together, I didn’t want to just pick up where we were as kids, I wanted more… I just hoped she felt the same way.
I walked through the skate-safe rubber hallway between the two rinks quickly and hopped onto the figure skaters’ ice. I laughed to myself thinking of how much trouble I would’ve been in if I’d done this as a kid. I guess there were some perks to being old.
Jules was so into her lesson with a couple baby hockey players that she didn’t even see me.
I skated up behind her, wrapped an arm around her waist, causing her to let out a surprised shriek, and twirled her around.
“What a hot coach,” I whispered, and felt her body relax against mine.
I set her down. Even on skates she was so tiny. She sighed and I patted her head.
“Sorry babe, you’re just so pick-up-able, I had to. Stay in that coaching outfit later,” I said and wagged my eyebrows at her. She was shaking her head at me and fighting back laughter. I skated around her and went to pay attention to her kids then. Just to get ‘em a little riled up for her.
Chapter Thirty-six: Jules- present
After a shut-out morning game at the League, Grey had invited the entire team over his house for a barbeque and fun in the pool.
Smitty was manning the grill while Max and Grey and a couple other dads were playing pool basketball against the boys.
I couldn’t keep my eyes off him. He was so incredibly tall, ripped, and tan. Maybe dad-bods were in… but looking at the other dads compared to him… no one could even come close. He still had the full athlete bod. My heart fluttered when watching how care-free and happy he was- he became a kid again when playing with the boys. And I loved the way he treated and included Canyon. It was like Canyon was one of the guys versus just a kid, and I could tell Canyon loved it. No one was criticizing him, instead, Grey made sure Canyon was always on his team, making Canyon feel like he was on top of the world. Grey had a way of making you feel that way, I knew it well. And damn. He was practically glistening in the late afternoon sun.
I internally slapped myself for ogling him in front of the whole party. I turned away from the pool and continued trying to keep up with all the trash the munchkins were leaving around. I didn’t want Grey to have to deal with a huge clean up after.
I grabbed a garbage bag and was moving around his huge patio.
I felt him before he spoke. His rough, wet cast brushed down my arm.
