by Jeff Adams
Bobby nodded and groaned. “Oh man, I’m sorry. Is there anything—”
“No. Actually I’m strangely pretty good.” I didn’t look forward to telling my parents what I’d allowed to happen, but otherwise I truly did feel okay about how things had played out. I wanted to chart a different course.
“Fair enough. If you change your mind, don’t hesitate to ask.” His laser focus on me said that he meant it too. “I’ll shift back to what we started with. Kyle would probably check me into the nearest wall if he knew I was giving advice on him, but I don’t want him wondering later what if. Since I’m not sure he’ll get off his ass and make the first move, maybe you will.”
“How long’s he in town for?”
“He’s wants to rejoin the team when they’re here next Friday. He’s off tonight anyway, so he’ll talk to the team tomorrow after we get an update. Mom’s already told him that he should go back. I’m able to stay for several weeks. It’s not ideal, but I can work with most of my clients over videoconference for a short time. And Seb’s on board.”
“I suppose the worst that can happen is our next talk becomes an official end.” I took a long drink of the coffee, draining it.
Bobby offered a shrug. “I suppose so.” He downed his coffee. “Let’s head back up. I know Mom would love to see you. She likes you, a lot. I’ve heard about the nice guy who did the dishes. Way to make me and Seb look bad.” He raised his eyebrows at me as he smirked.
I couldn’t resist a chuckle. “Sorry. I’ll keep that in mind next time I’m there.” We stood and went toward the elevators. “Thank you, for the talk and the coffee.”
Bobby had gone above and beyond. It was good to talk about Kyle with someone who knew him. With the turmoil at AMDD, Tamara and I had been preoccupied, and we hadn’t talked much about personal stuff recently.
Bobby gave me some food for thought, even though I didn’t quite know how to execute on it.
Thirty-Three
Kyle
“You ready to go out as the enemy?” Owen, Phoenix’s captain, stepped up next to me as we waited to go out. It was the first time I’d be going out on this ice as the opponent.
“It’s weird.”
I didn’t want to go into how much I truly hated it.
On the other hand, it had worked out perfectly that team management had let me come back while we were here. I got the time at home I desperately wanted to make sure Mom got back home okay. I got to go to one last checkup and heard firsthand how well she was healing. She still had bruises, some that rivaled the ugliness of pucks slamming into me in an unpadded area.
I’d said my goodbyes before coming to the rink since we were flying after tonight’s game to be in New York for tomorrow.
The intro played and the fans roared. I knew the reel well—I’d been in it until recently.
“Is your mom here to see you go over to the dark side?”
“No. My brother and I convinced her home was the place to watch. It wasn’t easy, but she relented.”
“Maybe she’ll come down to catch a game before the end of the season. I’d love to meet her.” Owen did a great job as captain. He’d made me and the other guys feel welcome. He’d checked in daily while I was home with Mom too.
Kennedy had been a great captain. Owen was different, but I already liked his way with the team. His enthusiasm for the game matched mine, and that really helped me focus as I made the move. He kept me out of my head.
We charged out of the tunnel as we got our signal to go, the intro still finishing out and all the lights flashing through the crowd. I saw my teammates—former teammates—on the other side of the ice. I’d hung out with them a little bit earlier. We had practice before they did, and I’d hung back to talk for a few minutes. Several of them I’d seen over the past week as they’d checked on Mom.
“Please welcome back to Arsenal ice, three former players: Kyle Pressgrove, Nicolas Helson, and Troy Feldman. It’s great to have you back, but don’t look for any mercy tonight.”
Damn, that was nice. The crowd got extra noisy, and that meant even more.
Sawyer Herron, my left wing, skated alongside as I finished up a half lap, waving at people who waved at me from the stands. “I wonder if they’ll be so happy if you score on them tonight.”
I laughed. “Hopefully, we’ll find out.”
I headed to the bench and looked up at the scoreboard to check the time, and the logo for Austin’s company was gone. In its place was something called Digital Interface Innovation. What had happened? Had he pulled out? I thought sponsorships went for the year.
The game was hard-fought and much closer than anticipated. Clearly Billington was a good pick up for the Arsenal. Defense seemed transformed. At the same time, Phoenix played stronger because the three of us had integrated into the team so quickly. This game was far different than when Detroit was in Phoenix before my trade.
A couple of times, the Arsenal got breakaways, and I had to hold back from cheering. It was a reflex to cheer for orange. Luckily, we shut those down.
We ended up down to what I hated—an overtime shootout. Coach planned to have me shoot second. I didn’t want to do that here.
Detroit put Kennedy up for their second shooter, and I liked that even less.
Both first-round shooters made it.
Kennedy’s shot got covered by our goalie.
I’d make a dent in this standoff if I scored.
I skated out to the center, and the crowd that had cheered me nearly three hours ago let loose a torrent of boos. I stole a look over to Herron and shrugged. He shrugged back and gave me thumbs up.
I looked down the ice at Lindsay. He’d had a good game—both goalies had.
As I stood at the dot and before the ref had the puck set, Lindsay raised his stick to me. I raised mine back. We knew each other’s tricks so well, and I hadn’t been gone long enough for either of us to forget or to have new moves.
The ref checked us both and blew his whistle.
The crowd got to their feet and booed louder. Of course they wanted me to fail. I’d feel the same way about an opposing shooter, but it stung nonetheless.
Skating down the ice, I focused on Lindsay while he studied me. This had to be just right. I came in and kept straight on target and made a last minute shift to my left. Lindsay didn’t fall for that.
I expected he wouldn’t.
What he left me though was a gap between his leg pad and blocker. I shot and the puck sailed in and hit the back of the net.
The red light and buzzer went off, setting off even more crowd noise.
As I turned at the boards to go back to the bench, I looked to Lindsay, and we traded head nods.
Crenshaw was up next for Detroit, and he made his goal, leaving us tied at two-two.
Owen took our third shot, and he wrapped up the game. Relief flooded me—not only did we win, but the shootout wasn’t going to drag on.
As we cleared the ice, I was held back to be one of the three stars of the game, another surreal experience. I’d had this honor quite a few times as an Arsenal player, but to get it on the opposite side felt like I betrayed a friend.
The fans were appreciative even though I’d helped seal the loss for Detroit. I raised my stick in thanks.
David waited for me as I exited the ice. “Hey, man, Austin’s here to see you.”
What? Why?
“Um. Okay. Let me get cleaned up, and I’ll come over. Thanks for letting me know.”
I wanted to send Austin away, but it wasn’t something I could ask David to do. It wouldn’t be fair. I couldn’t ignore him and just leave him waiting either because that would be a dick move. I owed him better anyway. He’d messaged a couple of times, and I’d said I was busy with Mom. I didn’t know what to say so I defaulted to saying nothing.
“I’ll let him know.” He clapped me on the shoulder.
Our locker room was jubilant, and several people took a moment to congratulate me on my solid game agai
nst my former home.
I had texts from Bobby and Mom—many texts. Despite the fact they watched together in her living room, they had a group chat between them and me. I’d have to read them later because their play-by-play looked hilarious.
You need to know that Bobby is sitting here coaching because you keep letting Crenshaw get by on your left. The man always dekes and goes left… keep up with him!
Someone needs to coach him. He played with Crenshaw for four years. He should know better.
They’d never done anything like that before—and I loved it. Maybe it’d become a thing. They wrapped up saying they had fun, congratulated me on the win, and wished me safe travels. I shot them a reply with hearts of all colors.
I got showered quick and into my suit. As I headed over to where Austin was, I stopped to let Lenny, our equipment manager, know where I’d gone. Despite the loss, the guys on the Detroit side offered up fist bumps and back slaps.
The Detroit waiting room had a couple of people in it, and I immediately recognized the back of Austin’s head and the awkward way he stood watching the TV that played postgame coverage. He stood about as far away as he could get from the people talking with Kennedy.
My heart betrayed me as I drank in his slightly rumpled look—Detroit jersey over what had to be a layer or two of other clothes. My instinct was to bolt even as I felt pulled to him.
As the screen went black before a commercial, my reflection popped up. He turned and his face brightened as I came toward him. That only intensified the feels, sending goose bumps across me as he offered the smallest hint of a smile. This wasn’t comfortable for him either.
“Austin. It’s good to see you.” At least my voice stayed even.
“I know it’s not great to ambush you here, but…” He kept his voice low. “I miss you. I hate that I didn’t pursue you after you snuck out but—” He sounded so earnest and a little bit broken. My defenses lowered even more. I held back from reaching out to him though. If we touched at all, I might shatter.
While he’d trailed off talking, he still held my gaze. Maybe he couldn’t look away. I certainly had no choice but to stare into the gorgeous eyes that I’d missed.
“Please stop.” Every emotion I had bubbled just under the surface and threatened to spill over. “I hate myself for doing that, and I’m sorry. I’m trying so hard to be a proper adult, and I keep fucking up.”
“I think we’ve both fucked up a fair bit over the past few weeks. Let’s reset. I’m”—he took in a huge breath, so big I saw his chest expand even with all the layers he wore—“moving to Phoenix. I want us to really give this a shot. I like how I feel when I’m around you. I like how we are together. If you’re willing, let’s prove we can be amazing together.”
Damn.
Moving to Phoenix though? I never saw that coming.
All I could do was stare.
Many nights in the past week, I’d dreamed different aspects of our life together—from making pancakes again to the vacation we’d talked about to just waking up for a lazy morning together.
That’s how much he was in me.
I had to say something. But what? My heart thumped loudly as it declared victory, leaving my brain scrambling to find words.
Thirty-Four
Austin
He looked so good. That suit… The slightly damp hair…
Had it really only been a couple weeks since we’d been together? It seemed like it could’ve been months or years since we’d spent that amazing day together.
Memories of the night at his place rushed back and made it hard to concentrate on what I was here to do.
I’d managed to get the first words out, but the longer it took him to reply, the more this looked like a horrible mistake.
“Moving to Phoenix? That’s… That’s huge. And you got a place already?” His mouth hung open. Had he lost his train of thought too? Maybe he’d gotten stuck like I did in the moment. “And… well… yes. I want to try. I’ve missed you. I’ve missed not being able to talk to you about stuff, talk to you about Mom, talk to you about being stuck in Phoenix.”
He came closer and took my hand without hesitation.
“I should’ve just called… gotten over myself. But how are you relocating?” His brow furrowed again, deep lines running across his forehead and right above his nose. Damn cute creases too. I wanted to trace them, smooth them out. “Wait, did something happen? Something happened because I didn’t show up. Oh, shit.”
Kennedy’s group was looking at us. He offered a slight smile and steered his group into the hallway, which was super nice since Kyle wasn’t even on the team anymore.
“That’s why your logo’s not up there anymore. Shit. Shit. Shit. I’m so sorry.”
I put a finger against his lips, which muffled more apologies. He bugged his eyes out.
“Long story short, AMDD isn’t mine anymore.” A week had past and even though it’s what I wanted, it still stabbed at my heart every time I had to talk about it. I wouldn’t sugarcoat it for Kyle; though why Bobby hadn’t told him I wasn’t sure. “Someone had to be sacrificed for what happened, and it was me.”
He started to say something, and I shook my head.
“This isn’t your fault. But you know what? It’s the best thing that could’ve happened. I got bought out, which makes for a great nest egg—on top of the money I’d already been saving. You’re starting over in Phoenix.” I took a deep breath to quell the shot of anxiety in my chest. This was so against my norm. “I’m going to do the same. We can truly begin again. We can date and sort our stuff out.”
He squeezed my hand, a bit tight for comfort, but I had no intention of moving it.
“I don’t know what to say. Are you sure? I was a distraction that cost you… well, everything.”
“After years of hearing there’s more than work, you gave me a glimpse of what’s possible and someone I wanted to figure that out with. I totally get that I may move and we may not work. It’s important to know we gave it a fair shot though.”
“I hope I’m worth it.” He finally smiled broadly, and that pushed away some of my fears. I liked seeing some of his self-assuredness return. “What about your parents? Are you moving them?”
I laughed because that conversation had been ridiculously bad. The first thing they asked was if they needed to look for work. I assured them they were set up, and no one could take their money away. Still, they talked to me like I’d made a childish mistake. Kyle didn’t need to know all of that just now.
“That would be a hard no. They’re wildly disappointed. I’m not even sure they’ll come visit. I’m keeping my place in Detroit, though, for visits.”
Kyle’s smile remained, and it warmed me. Thank God he liked the idea of the move. I’d imagined a version where he got angry instead—that one had sucked.
“I’m keeping mine too. Figure it’ll be good for summers and a place to stay when I’m here so I don’t have to crash with anyone else.”
I almost suggested we could combine houses but held that back. Maybe in a few months we could talk about that.
“By the time you get back to Phoenix, I’ll be there full-time. It’ll take a few days to get my house fully set up, but it’ll be good enough to start with.”
Kyle chuckled, and I’d forgotten how much I missed hearing that. It wrapped me in comfort. “Okay, possibly the craziest thing you said in all of this is that you’re completing your move after just a couple of days. Meanwhile, I still have a house full of stuff up here, and I am trying to just get more clothes down there so I’m not doing laundry every few days or buying new stuff.”
“There are certain advantages to having no other responsibilities.” I leaned in close to whisper, “Just a reminder though, you’re not exactly poor, so you could just hire it done.”
His smile grew still larger. “Fair point. I’d like to find a permanent place though, so I can decide what comes down, what stays here. Make some sense of it rather than doing i
t randomly.”
“I’d be happy to help you look, even help organize what you need to move.”
I’d rooted myself in place, kind of afraid to move in case I broke the spell of the moment. Kyle, however, moved closer. The clean, citrus smell of his body wash filled my nose. I resisted leaning in or nuzzling his neck.
“I’m glad you’re here.” A vibration came down his arm, through his hand, and into me. “I promise to try not to be so intense going forward. All that’s happened with us and the trade made it clear I need to talk more, jump to conclusions less, and, in general, be more flexible.”
“Pressgrove, you’ve got about five minutes.” Kyle turned and waved at a person I didn’t know. So many new people to know in Phoenix.
“God, I’m sorry we can’t go talk more.”
I shook my head. “It’s okay. I knew time would be short. I wanted to let you know what my plan was and that I want to give us the best possible shot.”
The remaining gap between us closed as Kyle drew me into a tight hug—one I happily returned. After a moment with my head on his shoulder, he pulled back, and I looked at him. He grinned so big, and those beautiful eyes were so bright that I thought I could burst from happiness. He pressed his lips to mine, and I hungrily accepted the kiss, opening my mouth so our tongues meet.
“Damn it,” Kyle said as his watch buzzed. “I’m sure that’s them telling me to get back over to the locker room so we can go.”
He kissed me more, muffling the last part of that sentence. I enjoyed it for a moment before I gently dislodged myself from the hug.
“You should go. We’ll see each other in just a few days.”
He grinned again. “I can’t wait. I’ll call you tomorrow so we can talk more.”
“I look forward to it.”
“Me too,” he said and hustled out the door.
He’d been gone mere seconds before he came charging back in. He kissed me hard and deep. I returned it with equal intensity. Every fiber of my being sparked for this man.