Page 35 of Nanny For My Brother's Best Friend

Will it be anything like how she felt wrapped around me?

It feels like the hours drag before we land and get settled in the hotel rooms for the next two nights. There’s a team dinner and an early practice the following morning, so I need to sort out this sleeping issue.

I have a room with Andrew as usual and I step out to make my nightly call to Lola. Delilah picks up and all I see is my daughter’s smiling face, making me feel disappointed.

“Daddy!”

She’s clearly happy and I know I should be grateful for that since I always wondered how content she was with her mom. I can hear some kids’ music in the background, and I lean against the wall.

“Being good, bug?”

She babbles about something, and I smile in response, missing her deep in my soul. This is the norm at this age, but I must see her face and tell Lola how much I love her. We ‘talk’ for a while and I promise to call her tomorrow before watching the screen go blank.

No Delilah at all. What does that mean?

Andrew is on his bed with the TV on, clearly decompressing for the night.

“Things good?”

He glances at me, and I nod absently.

“She’s having a blast. It sounded like they were having a toddler dance party over there.”

I shower and pull on my sleep pants before getting into my bed. The alarm is going off at five since we have an afternoon game tomorrow and I remind myself how much I love this life.

We practice for a few hours, with little sleep, followed by breakfast. I join some of the team for a workout to stay busy before the game, showering before we need to get to the arena.

I can already feel the energy in the massive space as we repeat the practice from this morning. Fans of the opposing team are filling the seats and I feel the eyes on me as I pass to Andrew, who shoots it right past our goalie.

“Yeah, man!”

I give my best friend a thumbs up and he laughs as we move back to do it again.

We gather in the locker room for a team meeting and Coach goes over our strategies again, which are specific to the team we’re playing today. They’re good and have been close to a cup for the last few years. We need to play with a perfect mix of defense and scoring to beat them and I roll my shoulders back, ready for the challenge.

I am used to the cheers for the home team and some boos for us. Hockey has some dedicated fans that are faithful until the bitter end, and I love that about this sport. I catch a few of our jerseys out there and smile at Gabe as he stops by the bench.

“Ready for this?”

We bump fists as I nod with a confident smile. Coach goes over the immediate strategies again and I hit the ice with Andrew and the rest of our winning line.

Is Lola watching the game back home? Of course. Delilah has my daughter’s best interests at heart and wouldn’t play dirty that way. I wonder how much Delilah will be into it as I get ready for the puck drop, staring into the eyes of the other player.

It’s on and everything moves fast as I battle for the puck. We’re all in today, just like the other team, and I feel the tension on the ice. I pass to Andrew, who attempts a shot that’s blocked; I curse in my head. It’s a lot of that for the rest of the game, but we get two goals just before they match us in five minutes just as the first period ends.

We go in for a pep talk from Gabe. He’s always positive and encourages the best in everybody, which makes him a fantastic captain. I drink water and rest for a few minutes, looking at the guys as they focus on Gabe.

I know if I check my phone, there will be a text from my family cheering me on. Will there be anything from Delilah?

We barely win the game with a 4-3 lead, and we all know how lucky we are when we leave the ice. It was a hard-played game for everyone, and my muscles ache from the long minutes spent out there.

“Dinner meeting?”

I look at Gabe, then the other guys, who all nod. We shower and dress to impress before leaving the arena and boarding the bus to go to a restaurant that offers us a private room so we can focus on hockey. There’s one or two in every city, especially the larger ones. The food is incredible, and I inhale it as I listen to the conversation, thinking about checking my phone.

“Daddy win! Daddy skate!”

Lola is happy when I call, dancing around in her jersey. She watched the game, and it makes me smile.

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