Page 54 of Crossing Lines

“Hey, Mom.” I smiled at the phone. It was always great to hear her voice. “How are things?”

“Eh, they’re pretty much the same. Some raccoons got into my garbage again last night and spread it all over the road.” She chuckled. “How’s the new job?”

“Mom, I told you to take the cans out in the morning.” Irubbed my eyes as a grin broke out over my face. She never listened.

“I didn’t want to forget.” She huffed. “And you never answered my question. Everything going okay?”

“Yes, it’s fine.” The image of Jonah popped into my head. Should I tell her about him? Why not. “I met someone.” I bent forward, propping my elbows on my knees. Hopefully, I’d be formally introducing them this summer. Jesus, was I really going there? Yes, I was.

“You did? Tell me more,” she said.

I drew a deep inhale. “Well, his name is Jonah, and he’s a player on my team, but?—”

“A player? Is that allowed?”

Furrowing my brows, I said, “It’s complicated, so we’re keeping it under wraps for now. I’m technically not his coach. He’s a forward and?—”

“Ryan, don’t get yourself in trouble.” She tsked. “You just got this job.”

“Yeah, I know, but it’s only for another six weeks. Or, eight weeks tops if we make it to the championship.” I rubbed my palm down the leg of my joggers. Shit, this wasn’t going as well as I’d thought. Maybe I should have waited to tell her.

“Okay, I suppose you know what you’re doing.” She puffed out a breath. “So, tell me about him. Where is he from?”

“He’s from Minnesota, the Twin Cities area.” I hadn’t been able to tell anyone about Jonah, and nothing had happened between us yet when I’d spoken to Laurent about him.

“Okay, what are his prospects?” she asked.

My mom knew hockey… “Good, in fact, he’s being scouted by the Maple Leafs.” Who were, of course, Mom’s favorite team. I lifted my chin.

“Oh, really now. He must be good. What position does he play?”

“He’s a left winger.” It was time to talk him up. A grin curledmy lips. “He scored two goals in our games against RMU last weekend, both on the same night.”

“My that’s impressive,” she said. “What’s he like off the ice?”

“He’s uh…” How to describe Jonah? My heart warmed. “He’s persistent and protective and humble. He also has a tight-knit group of friends he seems very loyal to.” I wouldn’t say a word about Owen. She didn’t need to worry about me.

“Good.” A smile carried through her voice. “I hope I get to meet him some day.”

“I’m hoping that too, Mom.” I relaxed my shoulders. Now the scolding was done, she was coming around. “How’s your health? When’s the next checkup?” She wasn’t out of the woods yet with her cancer diagnosis and every checkup was a little nerve-wracking.

“Next one is in about a month.” She chuckled. “Don’t worry, I’ll call you as soon as I’m done.”

“Thanks, Mom.” I glanced behind me at the clock over the stovetop. It was after five and Jonah should be here soon. “Hey, I have to go. Jonah is coming over, and we’re eating in.”

“Okay, well, have a good time tonight and be careful. I love you, son.”

“Love you too, Mom. Bye.”

“Bye,” she said, and the call ended.

I tapped open my text app.

Ryan

Be careful when you come over tonight. It might be a good idea to drive around the garage and make sure Owen isn’t around.

I brushed my fingers over my lips. Shit, we had enough to worry about without Owen poking around. My phone buzzed.

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