Breakaway: A Hockey Romance

by Christiana Watson

  Chapter 22

  — D —

  Two months later…

  Staring at a bedroom stripped of all personal touches should have been something I was accustomed to at that point in my life. For years I played in semi-professional hockey leagues that were as likely to trade you as they were to actually sign you. As a rule, I got used to traveling light, never really knowing when I might get traded or called up. Tossing the few Sterilites of my belongings in my car never felt as surreal as it did this time around.

  I shook my head and sighed before leaning down to hoist my equipment bag over my shoulder. Maybe it was so disconcerting because this was the last time I hoped to ever see a room like this in my life. Maybe it felt so weird because I was giving up a part of myself in ways that I wouldn’t have ever expected. It was bizarre knowing that I would never feel the excitement of putting a puck on the back of a net and having a crowd chant my name again.

  I went to talk to Coach the day after we lost the cup to the Idaho Steelheads. I called in the morning letting him know that I wanted to discuss my contract with the Valors, and he arranged a meeting with himself and Coach Martin later that afternoon. Sitting across from the men and explaining why I was leaving both the team and the sport behind was tougher than I expected. The conversation was equal parts exhilarating and devastating.

  "You sure you know what you're doing, Cote?" Coach asked after I finished a rambling tirade explaining my need to go back to college and start a fresh life. He sat with his elbows on the desk and his fingers steepled together under his chin.

  I turned, somewhat bewildered, to Coach Martin. I wasn't entirely sure how to answer the question. Of course I wasn't entirely sure of what I was doing. I was moving to another state to go to a college that I definitely couldn't afford, and I still hadn’t lined up a job in the weeks since I made my decision. It turns out people weren’t falling over themselves to employ an ex-athlete that didn’t have a lot of real-world experience outside of the game. All I had there was Charlie, and while I was over-the-moon that I was moving to be with her, I was a little nervous about every other uncertainty and variable in the situation.

  Joseph turned back to me with a blank and somewhat unnerving stare. I couldn’t be certain of how much of the situation between Charlie and me made it back to him and his wife, but he was noticeably cooler to me over the post-season. He hadn’t spared a kind word, even after Lindsey tacitly accepted my pleading apology.

  "Yes, I believe so, sir," I responded eventually.

  He chuckled, and I hoped the confusion I felt bubbling up wasn't showing on my face. Joseph's averted his eyes to stare over my shoulder as Coach regarded me carefully. "What's her name?"

  "I'm sorry, sir?"

  Coach leaned back in his chair and settled his arms across his chest. The look in his eyes was calculating, and he shook his head after a short moment. "You're a promising player with a ton of spirit. You helped turn this team around when we brought you on mid-season. Men like you only give it all up for one thing. So, what’s her name?"

  "Her name's Charlie, but I haven't given up anything more than I've gained," I said as Joseph 's head spun back around toward me. Okay, maybe Lindsey hadn’t shared mine and Charlie’s entire sordid affair with her sister and brother-in-law.

  “Lindsey's Charlie?” Joseph asked, and I nodded slightly. A small grin pulled over his face, and I smirked in return.

  Coach's asked, "You sure about this, son? You're good; I might have you up in Washington after a couple more seasons. Are you really sure this girl’s worth that?"

  "No disrespect, sir," I said while standing, "but I don't like to live my life based on possibilities. I am absolutely certain that Charlie is my future, and that's good enough for me."

  I shook my head at the man before turning my back and walking toward the door. "You're making the biggest mistake of your life," he called as I yanked the door open.

  I paused and took a long, steadying breath before responding, “That’s for me to decide.''

  Knowing that Coach thought he could get me to the NHL one day didn’t change my mind; Charlie was still my endgame. She showed up at a point in my life when I needed direction, a bigger purpose. She made all of the obstacles, everything that would have made all of this seem too hard or like the wrong thing to do, go away.

  I smiled at the thought that struck me next. Charlie’s my breakaway.

  Seeing Tremblay standing in the living room with his arms crossed over his chest immediately darkened my mood. It was a toss-up as to which of us was less pleased than the other when I actually returned from my suspension to close out the season. At the end of the day, he and I agreed that giving one another plenty of space was the best route, but it didn’t make the day-in, day-out tension any easier to live with. It was a testament to my willpower that we hadn't fought since the scrimmage that got me suspended. To be fair, we hadn’t spoken since that day either.

  Cam stayed as far away from the apartment as he could most days. He was friends with Sean for far longer than he knew me, but dating Lindsey put him in a precarious situation. He couldn't be on Sean's side because he was the one that toyed around with Charlie's emotions in an attempt to win a bet. And Cam couldn't be on my side because I was the catalyst for Charlie choosing to move away, leaving her best friend behind.

  "So you're really doing it?" Sean asked, and I found myself wishing that Cam was home, just that once.

  I didn't answer, instead, making it a point to check through the mail sitting on the bar. I made a move to go around him to the door, and he held both of his hands up. His arms were bent slightly at the elbow, maybe to show that he meant no aggression in his attempt to stop me. I rankled at his actions either way.

  "Cam told me Coach Martin got you a job coaching in some premier youth hockey league near Cincinnati." His tone was calm and casual, two words that couldn't be used to describe me in that particular moment.

  "What's it to you, Tremblay?" I asked, my tone not hiding my agitation. We hadn't said a word to each other in weeks, so I couldn't place his intent in that instant. Saying I felt uneasy would’ve been a massive fucking understatement.

  He ran a hand down his face with a sigh. "Man, I don't know. It probably isn’t my place to care, but I guess I just want to make sure you treat her right."

  The urge to punch him was nearly overwhelming. Without a buffer, I wasn't sure that I could keep myself from killing him. There was no part of me that thought Charlie might find me sexy in an inmate's uniform. I pushed past him with no amount of undue force and yanked the door open.

  “You're right; it isn’t your place,” I spat over my shoulder.

  I was taking my first step away from the war zone that was my home for the past several months when his next words gave me pause. “I could’ve loved a girl like her.”

  I sighed. "No," I started while turning back to stare at Sean. The semi-darkness of the apartment shrouded him, but I could still make out the look of resignation on his face. "You couldn't have ever loved her, Tremblay. How much time did you spend joking about her goddamn weight of all things?”

  The shift in his demeanor was subtle. The resignation on his face gave way to something I didn’t quite understand as he said, “Man, I never meant that stuff. Not really, anyway. I like getting my way as much as the next guy. I lash out when I don’t get what I want. That’s all that was. She’s a catch, man.”

  “She was never meant to be with someone like you."

  "You should have at least given us a chance,” he said, and I finally understood. The shift was from resignation to guilt. I shook my head and turned away from him. I didn’t give a damn how guilty he felt—his words hurt her, and she deserved more than that.

  I scoffed and continued my trek from the apartment. I stopped, one foot on the stairwell that led to the parking level. Sean stood in the doorway, his arms crossed over his chest. We could have been friends, I realized as I grabbed the rail and started my ascent. If the circ
umstances were different—if I’d done things the right way—I might not have been leaving Charleston with a slew of regrets behind me.

  I paused after climbing a few steps and said, "I did give you a chance, and I almost lost her as a result. I am not going to apologize to you for getting what I want."

  "Seriously, Cote, treat her well."

  "Trust me, I will," I said and continued onward and upward toward a new home, a new life, and the woman that made every moment before my breakaway seem insignificant.

  Epilogue

  — D —

  Staring at her from across a crowded room was a habit of mine from the first day we met. She hadn't changed much in the three years we’d known each other, save a fine line here or there and the sun-kissed tone of her skin diminishing just a little with each passing year she spent living in the midwest. She still threw her head back and laughed with her entire body when she found something funny. Her hazel eyes still lit up when she shared secret smiles with someone from across a room.

  It was probably the result of a brain hazy with the feeling of contentment, but she looked even more beautiful than usual that day. Her hair, longer than when we first met, hung in waves around her shoulders, and she occasionally reached up to tuck a strand behind her ear. Her efforts were fruitless against the spring breeze. Her dress danced around her ankles in that same soft breeze, and she gripped some of the material in the hand that wasn't wrapped around a cold beer.

  Charlie stood on the opposite side of the yard, chatting animatedly with Lindsey, Emily, and a couple of girls from her program whose names I never bothered to learn. Her smile was infectious, and I found myself grinning along even though I didn’t know what she was talking about. To be fair, I learned years ago that I didn't care what she was talking about as long as she was still talking to me.

  A throat cleared behind me and pulled my attention away from Charlie and the women who surrounded her gleefully. I hated not having her within my direct line of sight as I turned to face the men surrounding me. When she took me back a little over two years ago, I vowed to never let her go again. Since the day I moved to Ohio, we were nearly inseparable. It was odd for me to have to share her attention with so many other people, and it made me uneasy.

  "Dude," Cam said with a laugh, "you've got it so bad.”

  Nate joined in the laughter with my old friend and ex-teammate. With a shake of his head, Charlie’s friend said, "You say that like he hasn't been head over heels for her for years.”

  Big D clapped him on the shoulder as he laughed in turn. “She’s a hell of a woman, Cote. Let me know when you fuck it up; Marnie could use a mom like her.”

  I rolled my eyes and tried to remember if it had been my idea or Charlie's to invite them to the party.

  "Devon," she said while pulling away from me. I grunted at the loss of contact and reached a hand out for her. She swatted my hand away as she stood from the pink sofa and started gathering her clothes. I initially hoped to change her mind about keeping the hideous pink monstrosity, but the realization that it was her favorite place to have spontaneous, mind-blowing sex changed my mind in the couch’s favor.

  "Hmm?" I asked, distracted by the sight of her moving methodically through the living room of her aunt’s house, gathering clothes but not bothering to put them back on. I grinned at the knowledge that she was equally as aware as I was that we wouldn't need clothes until after round two of sullying her aunt's beloved pink sofa.

  "This is something really special that's happening in our lives, and I think we owe it to ourselves to invite all of our friends and family to share it with us."

  "Or," I began as I pushed myself into a sitting position on the soft, velvet sofa, “we can just take the money that my parents will give me and take that vacation we've been talking about for years..."

  My words trailed off as she stepped back toward me lithely. All thought was lost to me when she dropped her clothes in a pile by the sofa. Charlie hovered over me briefly, placing her hands on my shoulders and giving me a searing kiss. I wanted to be annoyed at her diversion tactics but found that I was too busy enjoying the sensation of her straddling my lap as she continued to kiss me with heated fervor.

  "Stop being silly, Dev," she gasped as she started a slow, grinding rhythm on my lap. My head lolled back against the soft velvet of the couch as my arousal crashed over me in a debilitating wave. "You're graduating college. We both have great jobs lined up after the summer. Let me share you, just this once.”

  My earlier arguments were all but erased from my mind when she reached between us to stroke my quickly hardening dick. Her tactics were dirty, and I knew I should’ve stopped that particular brand of warfare years ago. But I was weak and always had been when it came to her. I still couldn’t resist her feminine wiles, and I wasn’t sure that I would ever be able to.

  “C’mon, baby,” she said breathlessly while grinding more urgently against me. “Please.”

  "Yeah, fine," I grunted as she guided my throbbing dick to her entrance.

  She lowered herself onto me in one fell swoop and emulated her slow, grinding rhythm from before. Charlie bent down, capturing my lips again. She bit down on my bottom lip gently, and I surged upward to meet her hips in a punishing rhythm.

  A gasping moan tore from her lips, and she buried her head in my neck. A shiver raced down my spine when she placed a soft kiss there before whispering, “I love you, Dev. So, so much.”

  Cam's barking laughter pulled me abruptly from the erotic memory of the day I was tricked into agreeing to the graduation party. He slapped Nate on the back and said, "He's been hopeless since day one. I'm sure he's going to propose any day now."

  I couldn't stop the full-bellied groan that escaped my lips. All three men quirked their eyebrows in response to my reaction to Cam’s words. I threw my hands up and glanced to where Charlie stood, now surrounded by her group of friends as well as my parents.

  "I've tried," I said in explanation to the silent question. Nate's eyebrows shot toward his hairline as Cam's jaw sagged comically. Big D simply shook his head at me in disappointment—he would never understand a man’s need to be married. The frustration was palpable in my voice as I continued, “I’ve tried a few times actually. I don’t even know how to do it anymore. I love her, but she has seriously managed to fuck it up every time.”

  "Oh my god, how?" Nate managed to ask after a downright comical gasp.

  My eyes sought Charlie out. Her expression had changed from that of a pleasant hostess to that of someone who was completely annoyed by her company. I made a mental note to rescue her from my parents in a few minutes if her expression didn't morph back.

  "The first time,” I started as Cam and Nate leaned toward me, “was when we were out at dinner and saw another man propose. I faked a bathroom emergency in order to get the ring back from the waiter after she told me she would rather die of embarrassment than have someone propose to her at a fancy restaurant.”

  Nate nodded with absolute certainty. “Yup, sounds right. Charlie hates a scene.”

  “Or maybe she actually hates you,” Big D surmised. If that fucking idiot only knew the ways Charlie proved she loved me. My mind drifted back to thoughts of the pink sofa that resided in our sitting room, and I took a moment to thank all things good and holy that she decided to keep that particular piece of furniture when she decided to keep her aunt’s house.

  I rolled my eyes but continued none-the-less, “The second time was when we went to Tennessee for a weekend of hiking. I thought she would appreciate the privacy after the restaurant fiasco. That's the weekend she fell and broke her ankle. She would have been so pissed off if I proposed to her while she was high on morphine.”

  Both Cam and Big D lost themselves in laughter, and Nate shook his head. He didn’t bother trying to mask the pity in his eyes. I crossed my arms across my chest and said, ”I haven't tried again since Christmas."

  "Why not?" It was Cam this time that seemed overly invested in my a
ttempts to propose.

  "Did you know that all of her favorite Christmas songs are break-up songs?" I directed the question at Nate, and he shook his head. "Yeah, I didn’t either. There's something altogether unromantic about asking your girlfriend to marry you when she's listening to Last Christmas on repeat and crying into her cocoa over it being the anniversary of George Michael's death."

  The guys burst into fits of laughter, and I rolled my eyes again. Thanks for the support, assholes. I indicated that I was leaving to find Charlie as they continued to laugh. I wasn't sure what it was about my numerous failed attempts to make my girlfriend my fiancée that they found so fucking hysterical. I ran my hand over the pocket of my pants mindlessly. A smile stretched over my face at the feeling of the ring that I’d taken to carrying around just in case.

  I turned to seek out Charlie in the crowd, and my smile melted into a scowl. She was standing next to my father, a frown pulling at her lips. I tried to school my expression into a pleasant one as I approached.

  — C —

  My attention waned from the group around me as Emily and Devon's mother, Terrie, began debating whether it was better to raise a family in the South or in the North. The conversation started after Terrie asked when I was planning to have children, and I deflected by asking Lindsey if she thought she and Cam would ever have kids. Emily’s eyes lit up, and it was all downhill from there.

  Lindsey and I shared a secret eye-roll when the older women started debating the advantages of sweet tea versus unsweetened tea, and even Devon's father, Quentin, groaned.

  I tuned out from the mind-numbing conversation and chose to instead focus my attention on the raucous men on the opposite side of the yard.

  Devon's hands waved animatedly as he spun a tale for the guys. I watched as Big D and Cam doubled over from their laughter, and I found myself wondering what they were talking about. Anything had to be better than the current argument of casseroles versus deep fried.