Page 15 of Dancing in the Rain

“I know.” He nodded. “But thanks.”

“What about you? I know you’re an NHL hockey star.”

“Was,” he corrected shortly.

Peyton could see that was a sore spot for him. He wasn’t happy that he wasn’t playing hockey anymore. They knew about his injury and that he’d had to retire; it was everywhere in sports news on the Internet, and research had turned that all up.

“Tell me about your family,” Sara said quietly. “Will they be upset learning you have a daughter you never knew about?”

Drew appeared to contemplate that. “I have a big family,” he said slowly. “Two brothers, one sister, lots of nieces and nephews. My parents love being grandparents.” He paused, clearly thinking about a lot of stuff. “I think they’d be happy to know Chloe.”

“So you’ll tell them about her?” Peyton asked quietly, then sipped her tea.

“I already have. When I got the DNA results.”

Sara nodded. “Okay, that’s great, but I just want to make sure we’re careful of Chloe. She has no idea she has a big family, and that could overwhelm her.”

“Does your family live here in Chicago?” Peyton asked.

“No. I’m from Canada. Grew up in a small city in Ontario. My folks are still there. My sister and one brother are in Toronto, and the other brother’s in Vancouver.”

Peyton nodded. “Do you plan to move back there?”

A notch appeared between his eyebrows. “I don’t think so. I’ve lived here for eleven years. This is home now.” He paused. “What family do you have?”

Sara looked at Peyton, who huffed a sigh and smiled into her cup. “We don’t have much family,” she answered. “Our parents died a few years ago. We have one aunt who lives in Los Angeles, a few cousins spread out around the country. Our grandparents are gone.” She tipped her head back to look at the ceiling. “We’re all we have left. Us and Chloe.”

Drew’s jaw tightened and he nodded. “I’m sorry.”

“We’re close,” Peyton continued. “We always have been.”

“Peyton has helped me out so much,” Sara said.

“You never married?” Drew asked quietly.

“No.” She looked down. “There was a guy once…turned out he didn’t want to be a dad to someone else’s child.” She lifted a thin shoulder.

“Good riddance to him,” Peyton said. She’d hated that asshole for hurting her sister.

“Yeah,” Drew agreed.

Sara leaned her head back into the chair and closed her eyes. “Damn. I’m tired.”

Peyton jumped up. “Do you want to go upstairs?”

“No. Not now. I’m just tired from talking so much.”

Shit.

“We need to move your bedroom downstairs,” Peyton said. She’d suggested that the day after she’d arrived and had no idea why Sara was so resistant to the idea. They could turn the den into her bedroom and there was a bathroom close by on the main floor. Going up and down stairs was becoming a strain for her.

Sara sighed. “I guess we do.”

“What can I do?” Drew stood, looking uncomfortable but determined.

“It’s okay,” Sara said. “We can manage. I’ll just lie back and close my eyes for a few minutes. I’m sorry.” She adjusted the position of the recliner so she was nearly flat.

“God, don’t apologize.”

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