Page 22 of Make Your Play

“Are you good?”

“Yeah, I’m fine,” I tell him, needing to steer the topic away from my finger. “You had a great game tonight.”

Caleb nods, which doesn’t surprise me. He doesn’t come across as cocky or anything like that, but he’s no stranger to being confident in his ability to play exceptional hockey. “I don’t know how many I have left, so I’m not wasting any of my time.”

He’s been playing longer than the rest of us and although he’s only thirty-three, he’s definitely on the tail end of his career. With a young daughter at home, I know it’s only getting harder for him to be away like this, but I also know what it’s like tobuild your entire life around this sport. In a way, it becomes your identity and not having it is a terrifying thought.

“What are you losers doing?” Carson, Caleb’s brother, chimes in as he walks over to us. He’s changed out of his gear, freshly showered, and dressed to leave the arena. “Are you coming down to eat or are we going somewhere else?”

“I’m going back to my room and ordering room service,” Caleb tells the two of us as he tucks his hands in the front pockets of his jacket. We’re supposed to go back to the hotel with the rest of the team, but Coach Landry is used to Caleb doing stuff like this. He likes to go back so he can talk to his daughter before she goes to bed. “Take care of your finger and I’ll see you boys in the morning.”

Carson’s forehead creases as he scratches the back of his head. “What’s wrong with your finger?”

I let out a sigh, rising to my feet as I give a swift shake of my head. “Nothing.”

He stares at me for a moment, almost like he isn’t sure whether or not to question me on it, but he lets it go and motions toward the door. “I’m fucking starving.”

Lincoln waits for us by the door with Rowan, our goalie, and the four of us head downstairs to where they have food for all the players. We all get in line to go through the gourmet buffet before we end up finding a table to sit at. When we’re at home, it’s hit or miss whether or not everyone eats, so I’m not surprised when there aren’t many other guys from the other team downstairs.

Rowan asks Lincoln something about Posey and the two of them dive into a conversation as Lincoln gets to talk about one of his most favorite topics. He’s completely obsessed with my niece and I honestly love it. He’s the best fatherly figure Poe could have in her life. He loves her as if she were his own and really, she might as well be.

Carson inches closer to me. “Were you able to help Riley?”

I glance at him out of the corner of my eye as I carefully take a bite of my food. I don’t give him an answer until after I chew, swallow my food, and make sure Lincoln isn’t listening to either of us. “I was.”

“And you were afraid she was going to say no.”

“I was afraid she wasn’t going to accept my help,” I correct him, lifting my sports drink to take a sip before I turn to look at him. “She knew she was out of options and it was the best one.”

“I’m glad,” he says with a nod, a smile pulling his lips. “I don’t like the thought of her being in trouble or needing help with something. She’s an exceptional woman and I’ve grown quite fond of her over the years.”

His words instantly strike a nerve. My hand stills for a moment with my fork in my mouth before I pull the pasta from the tongs and slowly begin to chew as I narrow my eyes on him.

Lincoln glances at the two of us. “Fond of whom?”

My breath catches and I hold my shit together as I glance at him, attempting to appear unaffected. I hope to God he wasn’t listening to any of our conversation before that.

“Riley,” Carson tells him after swallowing a mouthful of food. “It blows my mind that her ex really fumbled her like that.”

“I mean, he threw the entire idea of her and the baby out the window,” Lincoln says, shaking his head as his jaw tightens. “Some of these men are real pieces of shit.”

“I don’t understand how you get someone pregnant and then just walk away,” Rowan chirps, disappointment flooding his expression. “At least Nova has you,” he tells Lincoln before he frowns. “Poor Riley has no one.”

“Nova didn’t always have Lincoln.” All three heads turn to look at me and I shrug. “I’m just saying… Nova went through her pregnancy alone as well as the first two years of Posey’s life.”

Lincoln stares at me for a moment. “The thought of that kills me, honestly.” His lips purse. “I know you’re her brother and I wouldn’t expect anything different from you, but you’re the one she should truly be thankful for. You were there for her when she really had no one else.”

“It’s a shame Riley doesn’t have family close by,” Rowan muses as he finishes his dinner and looks between the three of us. “Maybe we all need to step in or something and help her out.”

“Nash has been helping her a bit,” Lincoln tells him before glancing at me.

“He has, hasn’t he?” Carson smirks, raising his eyebrows at me, and I resist the urge to kick him under the table. Fucking asshole. He knows better than to go running his mouth about anything. I know he won’t tell anyone my secret, but that doesn’t mean he’s not going to discreetly give me shit.

Coach Landry walks in, clapping his hands as he tells us all to wrap it up. I silently thank him, even though he doesn’t know it. He just saved me from wherever the hell this conversation may have gone.

***

It’s already late into the night when I finally crawl into bed. We have to fly out tomorrow morning to head to the next city and the thought of sleeping never sounded so good. Trips like this always have a way of taking it out of me. My body tends to get exhausted from the time changes on top of the grueling training and game schedule. Normally we get to where we need to be a few days early so we can acclimate but we were unable to before today’s game.

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