Page 68 of Power Play with My Brother's Irish Friends

“Yes. I double checked this morning.” Charlie leaned in and dropped his voice. “And I hired a private guard to keep an eye on her on the plane. She knows but didn’t want to make a big deal of it.”

“Thanks.” I’d had the same thought but since I didn’t know anyone in the states beyond my team, I’d had no idea where to start and Austin had been out with Samantha.

“Miranda has agreed to sign on as the team’s permanent PR rep.” Coach stopped beside us. “You boys need a few more minutes before you jump in?”

“Just five minutes, Coach. I need to ask them a question. Then we’ll get out there and give you two thousand percent.” Patrick held out his hand. “Promise.”

“Go on, then. We have a lot riding on this year. I need you three in your best head space. Whatever it takes.” He shuffled down to the center of the rink and started the rest of the team on drills.

“What’s up?” Charlie propped himself on his stick and rolled his body around in a loose circle. His calm and relaxed demeanor used to piss me off, but I’d come to respect that it was just Charlie. He had my back, and I had his, and we didn’t have to be the same to love the same woman.

“Okay. So the team is in dire straits, according to Coach. Miranda is flying back and forth for the next few weeks to finish her contracts. What happens after that?” Patrick wore worry with a hangdog expression. “We all want her to move here.”

“Of course.” Charlie changed gears, going from casual to alert in a second. “How do we take the next step?”

“Buy a house?” I brought up what felt like the next logical move. “We need our own space. A place that doesn’t subject Austin to our activities.”

Patrick choked on a laugh. “Yeah, he’d probably appreciate that.”

“No probably about it.” Charlie let out a low whistle. “So we look at houses and ask Miranda to relocate her permanently?”

“It’s what we all want. Miranda has hinted at being dissatisfied with New York. There’s nothing holding her there except work.” It could work. If we found the right place, and Miranda found enough contracts here in Washington, we could turn this into a real family. My heart squeezed. Family. I missed my family in Ireland, but I belonged here, with Miranda and my team.

“Okay then.” Patrick scooted onto the ice. “Let’s start house hunting.”

“After practice.” Charlie took off after him, leaving me alone at the edge between the bleachers and the rink. For years, I’d felt like that was the only place I belonged, between two worlds.

Miranda changed all that. She gave me a home, and a family.

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