Page 12 of Blue Lines and Lullabies

“Can I try?” Cassie asks softly, and I nod. “Let me wash my hands before I handle her. May I use your sink?”

I point her toward the en suite bathroom and wait for her to return. Cassie gingerly takes Mackenzie from my arms and easily slides her into a hold that looks remarkably like carrying a football. Kenzie’s arms and legs dangle from Cassie’s arm, but her head is held protectively in Cassie’s hand.

Cassie rummages in the hospital bag and pulls out a simple white blanket. I watch as she lays the blanket out on my bed, then pulls down one edge to make a triangle. She places Kenzie in the middle, then folds the edges snugly to make the burrito. Mackenzie immediately stops crying.

“What kind of sorcery was that?” I blurt out. Cassie picks Mackenzie up and snuggles her against her chest.

“No sorcery. I can teach you how to do it.” She motions like she’s going to take Kenzie out of the burrito, and I throw up my hands to stop her.

“Don’t you dare. She’s quiet and happy. You can teach me another time.”

“Okay,” she says with a light giggle. She hands Kenz to me, and I stare down at my daughter in complete awe.

“I don’t know what I did to deserve her, but I’m so fucking thankful she’s here. How is it possible to love someone so much when you’ve just met them?” I ask.

Cassie reaches up to touch Kenzie’s cheek lightly, her thumb caressing Kenzie’s cheek in reverence. “I only just met her, and I’m already half in love with her, so I’m not sure I can answer that question objectively.”

“Please be her nanny. Seriously. Grant wouldn’t have recommended you if you weren’t the best for the job.”

“You haven’t even interviewed anyone else. How can you say I’m the best?”

“I don’t know,” I whisper. “Gut instinct, I guess.”

“Is it …” Cassie hesitates.

“What?”

“Will it be weird? Me being here? It’s bad enough I had to basically tell my brother I had a one-night stand, but then to find out it’s not only his teammate, but also the single dad I would be nannying for? It’s a lot, Gabe.”

I’ll ignore the shiver that threatens to dance up my spine when she says my name. She rarely said my name during our night together. “It will only be weird if we allow it. I’m not going to lie, I wanted to see you again. I did go back to the hotel, Cass. I didn’t intend for that to be our only time together. But now, things are different. My focus has to be on my daughter.”

“I know,” she whispers. “For what it’s worth, I wanted to see you again, too. Maybe not like this, though.”

“I’d like to offer you the job. We can take it on a conditional basis, and make sure we’re both comfortable moving forward. We have one last road trip before the playoffs start, and maybe we won’t even make it far. I may only need you for a month or two.”

Cassie studies me, her eyes dancing between mine. “And you’d want me to live here? For the time being?”

“Yes, I think that would be best. It sounds like it would also help you as you get settled.”

Cassie shudders. “I need out of Grant’s house before I murder him, or any of his random puck bunnies.”

I stifle a laugh. “Problems?”

“Yes!” she hisses. “I found a strange woman in my bedroom this morning, andsheyelled atme! She thought I was another puck bunny!”

“Grant does have a revolving door,” I chuckle. For a while, he was in a relationship, and we all thought he’d be proposing soon. Then suddenly, he became the team ho, and wouldn’t answer any questions about his girlfriend.

“Is that something I’ll encounter here as well?” she asks bluntly.

“No. Especially not with Mackenzie here, but I’ve never been a big proponent of the puck bunny scene. I prefer to have a connection with someone.”

“Okay.”

“Okay?”

“Yeah. I’ll take the job. And the room.”

I let out a big exhale. “Oh, thank fuck.”

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