Page 61 of Something Like That

The relief that washed through him eased the tightness in his gut, but it only lasted a second because the unspoken but that hung in the space between them practically pulsed with its own heartbeat.

Finally, he couldn’t take it anymore. “But…?”

She sighed. It sounded as if the entire world was balanced on her strong, defined shoulders. He wanted to wrap her in his arms and hold her tight, tell her everything would work out. But he couldn’t. He had no claim to her. So, he stayed where he was, barely touching her. Trying to convince himself it was enough.

“It’s not about you, or you and me.” She rubbed her eyes with her free hand. Exhaustion bled from her. “We got some bad news about the clinic yesterday, so it’s just been a lot of stuff to deal with and to try and sort out.”

He cocked his head. “What kind of bad news?”

“Don’t worry about it. It’s nothing you need to worry about.” She waved her free hand around, like she was sweeping the issue away.

“Don’t do that, Alex.”

“What?”

“Tell me it’s not about me and then pull away, anyway.”

Her eyes widened. “I’m not. I mean… that’s not what…”

He gave her fingers a squeeze. “You are. And if you don’t want to tell me, that’s fine. But don’t assume you’re bothering me if you want to talk, or that I don’t care, because I absolutely do.”

She stared at him, blinking a couple of times, her face a blank canvas. And then she squished up the side of her mouth in the cutest little expression. “You’re right. I’m sorry. It’s just, I’ve been on my own so long, it’s hard to—”

“I’m back.” Em’s sing songy voice sounded behind him. He glanced over his shoulder. She gave him a quick smile and planted herself on the bench next to him. Leaving a little space this time, since she’d probably have to sit in his lap if she wanted to nudge him over again. She looked at their entwined hands.

Shit, how was she going to react? And what was Alex going to do? She’d made it crystal clear she didn’t want whatever was between to hurt Em.

He relaxed his fingers, readying for when she pulled away.

But, like earlier, she didn’t pull away. She tightened her fingers. His heart did some sort of fucking fluttery thing he’d never experienced before. He had no idea what it meant. He both liked it, and was terrified by it, in equal amounts.

Em glanced from their entwined hands to Alex and then to him. Like her mother, her poker face was excellent. He had no idea what she was thinking. She raised both of her eyebrows. Alex stiffened. He brushed his thumb across the back of her hand in what he hoped was a soothing rhythm.

Not that it did him any good.

The tension inside him ratcheted up another notch with every second that passed. He knew, without a doubt, that if Em had an issue with this, it was over. Alex wouldn’t choose between him and her daughter, because it was no contest. Em would always win. There was no way he could fault Alex for that. If Em was his daughter, he’d always pick her.

And then Em smiled, that big grin that lit up her face. She was so much like her mom, he could hardly stand it. “Took you guys long enough.” She laughed.

The tension in Alex evaporated. She pretty much melted into his side. He looked over at her. She was smiling. He felt an answering one tilt up the corners of his own mouth.

The ref blew the whistle, signaling the teams to line up for the start of the second period. She leaned her head on his shoulder, settling to watch the rest of the game. He placed a kiss on the top of her head and turned back to the ice.

Chapter Thirteen

The final horn blew, signaling the end of the game.

Alex glanced at the scoreboard. The Phantoms had won three to two in a pretty serious nail-biter. The opposing team had tied it up with five minutes left in the third period, but the Phantoms had pulled ahead when Keisha Johnson got a breakaway with a minute and a half left, and managed to get a top corner wrist shot past the goalie.

This side of the stands had gone wild, including Em, who had jumped to her feet as soon as the puck hit Keisha’s stick and whooped at the top of her lungs when it hit the twine.

And she wasn’t the only one. Nick had been super involved in the game, too. He’d squeezed her fingers pretty hard—it had been close to bone crushing—when the breakaway happened. When the puck had gone in, he’d yelled yeah and fist pumped with his free hand. It was the cutest thing she’d ever seen.

The three of them shuffled out of the stands with the rest of the crowd. His phone rang when they got to the lobby, and he excused himself to answer it, walking over to a slightly quieter corner. The lobby was filled with family and friends of the players, all waiting for them to finish getting dressed so they could head home or go out for dinner.

“Mom, Keisha’s dad is taking the team out for dinner to celebrate. Can I go?” Em looked up from her phone, her eyes puppy-dog wide. The phone she wasn’t supposed to have because technically she was still grounded. Something she seemed to have forgotten.

Alex cocked her head and crossed her arms. Em’s shoulders slump. “You’re grounded, Emily.”