Page 26 of Frozen Play

Phin

The guiltjust kept piling on. First, finding that Lina hounded the Duvalls out of their cottage by forcing them to incur a huge pile of debt. Now, they had a truck out of commission thanks to me.

While Skye had her shower—Do not picture her wet and naked—I helped Oscar warm up a casserole for our dinner.

“Do you guys do something traditional on Christmas Eve?” I asked, hoping I wasn’t fucking that up for them too. I wondered if Skye had downplayed her plans so I wouldn’t feel so bad.

“No. Since Riley got together with Christine, he goes to her family on Christmas Eve, and we go over to their place on Christmas Day. Tonight, Skye and I plan to wrap presents and watch a movie. Are you good with tape and scissors?”

“Nope. For my family it’s all expensive presents that the store wraps.”

“That’s how the one percent does it?”

I set plates on the table. “We have enough money for everything we need and most of what we want, so it’s stupid toeven exchange gifts. I suppose it’s just as stupid but a lot more fun with the Secret Santa the team does. Twenty-five-dollar limit, and you would not believe the hideous things you can find in that price range.”

Oscar grinned. “That’s more our level.”

“Seriously, Oscar, how much trouble does that damaged truck mean for you?”

He shrugged, fidgeting with a pair of oven mitts. “It’s not good. But we’ll get by. We always do.”

It wasn’t right or fair that they had to just get by. “Since it’s my fault—” I started.

Oscar held up a hand. “We don’t need your charity.”

I threw a glance down the hallway to make sure Skye wasn’t nearby. “I’m not offering charity. But I have an idea.”

Oscar’s eyebrow lifted. “Hockey tickets?”

“Nope. Business.”

The sound of the bathroom door opening had us both freezing for a moment.

“Later,” I said.

“Okay, then.”

The casserole was madeof ground beef, tomato sauce, pasta and lots of cheese. The team nutritionist would have thrown a fit, but I had a large second helping. After cold food for the past twenty-four hours this was great. Familiar, a reminder of life before Lina.

I volunteered to clean up while they did their wrapping. I used some ice in a freezer bag on my shoulder while we consumed cheap beer and chips and watched Bruce Willis save the day, somehow blowing up most of a building to do so. Oscarsat in a recliner on his own, and Skye and I shared the couch. There was a decided dip in the middle and my body kept sliding toward Skye, but she maintained her distance, so I shuffled to the side anytime I got too close to her. I didn’t want to—I wanted to wrap myself around her—but she wasn’t giving any signs she’d welcome that. Was it because of Oscar? Was there still some residual anger against me? Had she decided not to pursue anything?

It was a good thing I knew the movie, because I couldn’t have followed it otherwise. My brain was spinning in circles, and my body was tired—I wouldn’t recommend sleeping on couch cushions with no heat.

Fortunately, the others were tired too, so we went to bed right after the movie. I fell asleep assembling arguments in my head. Some were for my idea of helping the garage, and some to convince Skye to give dating me a chance.

The place was quiet when I woke in the morning, all my worries rushing back. We’d retrieved my stuff from the cottage, so I grabbed my duffel and changed into running gear. I tested my shoulder, and the icing or the lack of stress on it actually had it feeling a little better. I swallowed some ibuprofen and headed out for a run.

The footing on the side streets wasn’t great, so I had to be careful. Through the windows I saw families with young children opening stockings and looking ecstatically happy. I remembered those days. What I saw here was what I wanted. Family. Working together. Helping each other. Like the Duvalls did.

I wanted a team, similar to what I had in hockey, but for my life outside of hockey. People who helped each other and loved each other. I wanted something a lot simpler than what Dad and Lina and Quin enjoyed. It was time to take steps to make that life, now that I knew what I wanted. And the first one was putting down roots where I wanted to be.

I finished a five-mile run and was back at the apartment doing sit-ups when I heard footsteps coming from the hallway where the bedrooms and bathroom were. I’d taken off my shirt since it had soaked through with sweat, using it instead as a buffer on the floor. I paused, abs contracted, and saw Skye.

She was wearing flannel sleep pants and a long-sleeved T-shirt, hair caught up in a ponytail that was listing to the side. No makeup, and a crease from her pillowcase showed on her cheek. She was staring at me, mouth ajar, and I thought I’d never seen anything more beautiful.

Another piece of the puzzle that was my future fell into place.Skye. It wasn’t going to be easy, since I was tied up in the city till the end of our hockey season and she was busy here, but I didn’t get where I was by giving up. The look on her face, eyes wide and focused on my body, gave me hope that I had an advantage. And I’d use it for all it was worth.

I sat up and she blinked, snapping back to her usual self.

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