Page 103 of Replay

“Don’t worry. I have a girlfriend and she’ll help me.” And if she was busy, I could hire in-home care.

“You didn’t tell me you’d started dating. Don’t you think I should meet her?”

“You already know her. Katie Baker.”

She froze in place. “Katie Baker.”

I braced myself.

“How long has this been going on?” Her voice was accusing.

“I told you when I met her before the season started.”

She sniffed. “And you think that was an accident?”

“I know it was an accident.” Mom was not going to like this, but I wanted to make it perfectly clear that Katie had not organized our meeting so that she couldn’t use it against her. I pushed up against my pillows. “I met someone at a bar and went home with her. She was a hookup. We both knew it was just sex.”

Mom’s lips were pursed.

“When I got to her place, Katie was there. They’d just become roommates. If you think there’s some way Katie made that happen, that I met her roommate at a bar and she asked me to go home with her so that Katie could meet me? You’re insane. It was a terrible way to see her again, and I had to work hard to get her to trust me enough to be a friend. And just recently to be more than that.”

Mom spoke. “You were too young back in high school to get that serious. I think you’re confusing nostalgia for something more.” Her arms were crossed, her expression grim. She really didn’t like Katie. Was it a control thing, like Katie thought?

“Maybe we were young, but we’re not now. She’s not taking advantage of me. I’ve had to deal with people doing that, and Katie is different. Why don’t you like her?”

She wouldn’t meet my eyes. “I just don’t think she’s good for you. You have a demanding career, and you need a certain kind of person to support that. She won’t do that—her parents have pushed her to put her career first.”

That was true, but it wasn’t an insurmountable obstacle. “I’m sorry you feel that way. Because she’s perfect for me.”

“How would you know? You’ve never dated anyone else.”

I closed my eyes for a moment. “I didn’t tell you, but do you really think I’ve spent five years as a professional hockey player and not had a chance to meet women? A lot of women?”

She blinked. “But you never dated.”

“Nothing serious. Because I could never find anyone better than Katie.”

“You didn’t really try.”

“Yes, I did. I never thought I’d see Katie again, and I wanted to have what we had back then. I never found anyone who made me feel the way she did. When I saw her that night, I knew I’d do anything to get her back.”

Mom didn’t answer for a minute. I braced myself for an argument. “You won’t listen to anything I have to say, then.”

“Not if it’s against Katie. She’s…when I’m with her, I don’t feel like a dumb jock. She makes me feel smart. She doesn’t want me to buy her stuff, like a lot of women do. She just likes being with me. She’s more interested in talking to me about Star Wars than hockey. No one else is interested in that Josh.”

“That’s why she was in your hospital room when I arrived.”

I shrugged. “I guess. I didn’t even know she was here, except she left her tablet.”

“I might as well leave. Since you prefer her.” She stood, gathering her coat and purse.

“I don’t want you to go.” Damn it, was she really going to do this?

“But I’m not allowed to talk.”

“I said I wouldn’t hear you say anything bad about Katie. You can still talk.”

“Is she coming here?”

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