Page 111 of Trade Deadline

“Hey, baby.” I smile when his tired face fills the screen.

His eyes soften when he sees me. “Hey baby, I missed you tonight.”

“I missed you too, sorry I couldn’t be there. You’ll never guess who came to the bakery tonight.”

I tell Blaine all about Colleen’s offer and our plan to get everything prepared to do it in a couple of days.

“Thank you,” I say, bringing the phone closer. “You have no idea how much this means to me, that you’d try and find a way to help us.”

Blaine gives me a shy grin. “I couldn’t just sit back and do nothing. I understand why you don’t wanna take my money, so I wanted to find another way to help.”

“I really appreciate it, more than you’ll ever realize.” My eyes begin to fill with unshed tears as gratitude bubbles in my chest.

“Will it help? I don’t know what Colleen offered, and I don’t want you to tell me, but will it help?”

I nod. “It’s not going to clear it all, but it’s a considerably large amount that’s definitely going to take a good portion of the burden away.”

“Good.” His eyes crinkle at the sides as he smiles. “Does this mean you’ll give me some tips so I can have the best-looking ones?” He grins.

I tip my head back and laugh. “No, that would be an unfair advantage. I’ll be there to make sure nothing bad happens, but we’re not allowed to actually help.”

“Fuck’s sake.”

I chuckle. “I’m sure there’s other advantages to dating me that doesn't involve decorating cakes.”

“I know, there are a million things I love about you, I just wanna win, too.”

“You’ll be great. Just do your best. You’ve seen me decorate before; try to remember that and take your time. The fans will love it no matter how it looks.”

I know he’ll try to get me to help him out, but I won’t give in.

“I guess,” he sighs. “Did you hear about the trade?”

“Yeah, I did. How did that go down? Was it after the game?”

He nods. “Yeah, they didn’t play him tonight due to ‘roster management’”, he air quotes. “So we had an inkling it was because of a trade.”

“That sucks.”

“Yeah, it does,” he sighs. “Caleb is a decent guy, though.”

I’ve seen Caleb Blomqvist play a couple of times, and he’s a pretty good player.

“I just feel on edge a lot, you know? I’m just waiting for that phone call to tell me to pack my bags and go.”

“Has Hayden said anything?” I ask.

Blaine shakes his head. It’s evident that it’s wearing him down. I can’t even imagine what it must be like to wonder if this city will still be home the following day.

The phone jolts as he slumps on his bed. “He’s told me not to worry but hasn’t really elaborated on it. I know he’s working on getting a new contract, but he’s so vague about it.”

“Maybe he doesn’t want you to get your hopes up until everything is finalized?”

He shrugs. “Probably. I just want the whole trade deadline cloud to pass, so I know I’m safe.”

I open my mouth to reassure him, but he yawns. He looks exhausted.

“Why don’t you get some sleep, and I’ll speak to you tomorrow?”

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