Page 24 of As You Ice It

“You cheated?” Van sounds incredulous, which is good. I guess it means he thinks it would be out of character.

“No. I’m not a cheater.”

“Left without saying goodbye?” Eli suggests.

I shake my head.

Logan frowns. “You … dumped her?”

“No. Like I said, it’s complicated.” I pause and decide to tell them something, offering up even a small bit of truth. “She broke up with me. But I didn’t fight her on it. Or fightforher. I should have.”

I did more than give up. When she called me after the breakup, saying she might have been hasty, I told her that it was the right decision. Liam’s expectant face had still loomed large, reminding me how much was at stake. I didn’t want to let either of them down, so leaving before things got more serious seemed like the smartest choice. The last thing I wanted to do was disappoint a kid the same way I’d been let down by my family.

Turns out I ended up doing so anyway.

“You know, a heartfelt apology can go a long way,” Felix offers.

Eli drags a hand through his hair. “I second that.”

“When do you ever screw up, golden boy?” Van says.

“Constantly,” Eli says. “Ask Bailey. Although she’s probably too nice to say anything bad about me.”

Van rolls his eyes. “I don’t buy it. You treat that woman like she farts rainbows.”

“Maybe she does.” Eli grins. “I’ve never heard her fart. So, I don’t have definitive proof.”

“Are you kidding?” Van yells. “Everyone farts!”

“So, you’re telling us Coach’s daughter is extremely flatulent?” Felix raises an eyebrow at Van. “Got it. I’ll be sure to tell Coach you said that.”

“Come on, man,” Van whines. “I just got him to stop hating me. Mostly. Don’t ruin it.”

“Clearly,” Logan says, once again turning back to me as he raises his voice, “we’re all a bunch of idiots just trying our best. And sometimes failing.”

“Or farting,” Felix adds. It’s an oddly out of character quip from him, and a laugh bursts out of Eli.

Van pulls up his sleeve and flexes. “Speak for yourself. About failing, anyway.”

“I was speaking foryou,” Logan says. “Specifically.”

Dominik says something in Russian. We don’t need a translator to get the gist, which is something like,You’re all idiots. Or maybe he’s saying something about farting. Dom speaks very good English, but at times, he prefers to toss out things in Russian that we all just nod along with like we understand.

“Looks like I’m walking in on something fun.”

Parker, Logan’s fiancée, strides into the room, pausing to drop a noisy smack of a kiss on Logan’s cheek. She tries to spin away, but he hooks an arm around her waist and we all groan as he kisses her for real. Much longer than necessary in a public space, but I think that’s the point.

“Don’t forget little eyes are watching,” Felix says, and Parker yanks back from Logan, wiping her mouth as she glances through the window where both Liam and Naomi are staring. Coach, even, is glaring.

“Oops,” Parker says, smoothing back her ponytail. “Coach texted me a 911. What happened?”

I should be the one to explain, but Van jumps in first. “To sum up: the woman in there glaring at Cole is his ex. Her son got hurt in the hockey camp today. Oh, and he didn’t tell us either of those things.”

Parker’s eyes are wide. “Wow.”

“And we’re all idiots who make mistakes in relationships,” Felix says.

“Got it,” Parker says, taking all of this in stride. “Is he okay?”

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