Page 34 of Ice, Love, & Other Penalties

Ty: Clearly that’s not it then.

Indie: Nope. I never had the need to do something like that. The times I wanted to skip school I would ask permission from my parents.

Ty: That doesn’t sound fun or daring.

Indie: My aunt’s the principal—and our neighbor. You can see how playing hooky would have been stupid.

Ty: Then what secrets are you harboring? I can’t possibly think of anything a person like you could’ve done. Underage drinking?

Indie: Leave it, you’ll never guess.

I shake my head with a wry smile. The mystery only makes her more intriguing. Still, I can’t resist prodding.

Ty: You can’t blame me for trying to uncover the enigma that is Indigo Decker.

Indie: Nothing enigmatic here, I’m pretty boring! YOU on the other hand . . . You’re a puzzle and there’s not much about you online.

I freeze, my smile fading. Wherever she’s going with this feels like dangerous territory. Still I ask: How so?

Indie: A single dad hockey star—now that’s intriguing. No current girlfriend? No word on Myra’s mom?

I stiffen. The old defenses rising quickly. That’s a question that never comes up in a conversation and my publicist and agent know that it is off-limits. I should call them and ask why they haven’t told the Seattle Sasquatches. And since it is clear that Indie isn’t aware of that, I say, Leave it.

Indie: (smirks innocently) I see.

I recoil slightly.

Ty: What does that mean?

Indie: I seem to have stumbled onto your Achilles’ heel.

My jaw tightens. Myra isn’t a weakness—her mother on the other hand . . . that situation is complicated. Uncomfortably so. If I can help it, that’s something I’ll never disclose to anyone. Not even my own child.

After a long pause, Indie texts back, It’s okay. You don’t have to go all silent on me. I get it though. There are things that shall remain in the dark.

I exhale, shoulders loosening. She’s right—if her hidden past is half as complex as my own, I understand her need for privacy all too well. Sometimes I wish I could open up about Myra’s origins, but experience has taught me caution about whom to trust.

Ty: Thank you for understanding.

Indie: Go to sleep. You have a long day ahead of you tomorrow.

Ty: Talk soon.

I set down my phone, weariness settling over me. As I prep for bed, my thoughts keep drifting back to Indie. Will we ever trust each other enough to share our secrets and more?

Chapter Eighteen

Indigo

Three weeks. It’s been three weeks since I started helping Ty with Myra. Tonight, with Myra already tucked in and dreaming, I find myself alone in the living room, gathering scattered toys and remnants of our game night. She likes to play board games and this is maybe the third time I lose track of time and we have to rush to get ready for bed.

I hope this doesn’t become a thing, or that Ty notices that I’ve disrupted Myra’s nighttime routine. Not that he can do much to control it, I’m the only person who can look after his child. We still haven’t found anyone who meets his criteria or if they do, their background and criminal check doesn’t come back clean enough to be caring for a minor.

Though, I seriously need to figure out a way to get out of this assignment. It’s not like I spend all my day with Myra—or Ty. I just work for him during game days, and stay overnight when he travels. We’ve settled into a routine of sorts. Well, I’m actually the one who has a schedule, timing my arrivals and departures to barely overlap with Ty’s schedule.

I carefully avoid him so we barely have physical interactions. Though, I’ve done a poor job when it comes to text. We exchange them so frequently they’ve become a surprisingly significant part of my day. It’s a contradiction I’m still trying to define—or avoid.

As I straighten cushions and fold a forgotten blanket, I can’t help but reflect on our situation. Do we even have a situation?

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