Page 83 of Rainbow Kisses

I slapped on a smile, but I’m pretty sure he could see it wasn’t completely true. “Hey. Congrats again. It’s such a great oppor?—”

“You looked like I kicked your puppy.”

Arms crossed over his chest, Rebel stared at me. Trust him to cut straight to the chase.

I shook my head, my smile wry. “It was a shock.”

“What? You don’t think I can hack it?”

I made a face. “Don’t be an ass. Of course I think you’re good enough. I think it’s a great opportunity for you.”

“Then what’s going on? I would’ve thought you’d be the one who’d most want us to do this. To push us forward.”

“Maybe I think we’re doing just fine where we are.”

“Or maybe you’re afraid if things change, Brian won’t stick around.”

I refused to give him the satisfaction of a response. “Maybe I’m worried that half our team won’t stick around. And that they won’t have any other place to go. That offer is a great opportunity for you, but maybe you’re the one who wants everything to change for you. Why would you want to stay here and play for an ECHL team when you’ve got AHL interest?”

The muscle in his jaw ticked, and his gaze narrowed. “Maybe because this is my home.”

“I know that. It’s mine too.” Anger had started to burn in my gut. “And I’m not sure I want to completely fuck it up by conforming to another league’s rules. I can’t believe you, Mr. Leave-Me-The-Fuck-Alone, suddenly wants to be a joiner.”

“Maybe because this is my home. And I want to stay with my family.”

“And maybe you’re just afraid to leave.” Fuck.Fuck.I’d fucked up. “I’m sorry. Shit, I didn’t mean that. Not the way it sounded. Reb?—”

“No, I think you meant it.” Amazingly he didn’t look angry. “And maybe I should think about that. But maybe you should think about the fact that you’re holding the team back for your selfish reasons.”

He turned and walked away, and I let my head fall back as I stared at the ceiling that really needed to be painted.

Fuck.

Brian

You home?

Rain

No not yet. Be there in a few

Brian

Lunch?

Rain

Absolutely

I’d just leftthe arena to work at home this afternoon because it was Friday, and we had a home game tonight. I hadn’t seen much of Brian for the past two weeks, except at the arena during practice. Something kept coming up. He’d had a meeting with Maddy’s teachers Tuesday. Wednesday, Rowdy and I went ring shopping because that was the only day Rowdy could schedule it so that Tressy wouldn’t realize we were going to Harrisburg to meet a jeweler.

And OMG, the ring. I literally sighed when he picked it out. It was so pretty. Not gonna lie, I shed a few tears, which made Rowdy laugh. Then I smacked him on the chest, and he grabbed me in a bear hug, kissed my cheek, and told me I was the best sister ever. And we left to have lunch before making the trip back.

I don’t think Tressy suspected a thing.

The team had left Thursday for a three-game weekend in New York and hadn’t gotten home until late Sunday night.

Something had come up every day this week. Monday and Tuesday, I’d had a meetings for the Winter Carnival, which would be here in two weeks. Since the event had been running for almost a decade, all I had to do was make sure everything ran smoothly during the lead-up. Mom and a team of volunteers did most of the heavy lifting, but I coordinated all things Devils.

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