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Something that’s not a problem—good, bad, or otherwise?

My half-brothers and father.

I haven’t heard a peep from TJ since Ally worked her magic, and though I was in the stands when the Hawks played the Rattlers, out of my mind with nerves that TJ or Lex may take a run at my man, the game was uneventful.

In fact, it seemed like those two did everything in their power to avoid being on the ice with Ace in the first place.

And if they ended up on the rink together, they kept their distance.

To the Rattlers’ detriment.

The Hawks slaughtered them.

And scuttlebutt says that Lex may be traded.

My other half-brothers and dad never found out what TJ did—and all Ally could get out of him was that he wanted to put me in my place.

So, maybe he wanted to embarrass me on Conrad soil. Maybe he wanted to hurt me, like Lex wanted to hurt Ace.

He just…didn’t get the chance.

Because I wasn’t alone.

Because I had Ace.

So, yeah, all’s good on that front.

And now Ace and I have had six months to build out what two weeks couldn’t.

It’s beautiful and frustrating (case in point that damned check he won’t accept), but we have more days filled with laughter and friendship and love than I could have ever predicted.

My heart is safe and protected.

And so is his.

Now, if I could only find a match for Beck⁠—

“Princess?”

I blink, shaking myself out of my thoughts, and glance over at Ace standing on his mark. “Yeah, honey?”

“Help me with this?” he asks, pointing at his pocket square, which isn’t folded correctly.

Or not to my standards, anyway.

So yeah, maybe control freak Violet won’t ever fully go away.

But Ace doesn’t mind (so long as I don’t wear that bun).

Grinning, I push up from the couch from where I’ve been observing and cross over to him, slipping the material from his pocket and making short work of folding before tucking it back in place.

“Perfect,” I murmur, leaning in to kiss him.

“That’s you,” he says, resting his forehead against mine.

“Freeze!”

I do exactly that…sort of. My head whips forward and I see the director looking at us, her camera lifted. “The lighting! The angle. That was gorgeous! Kiss him again.”