Page 61 of Blindsided

I knew I shouldn’t have, but I wiggled, willing to push just a little bit, and the movement had me wincing. Easton just shook his head and released my ass. “I’m starting to remember what a handful you were.”

CHAPTER 27

LINCOLN

Easton

Danger. T-squared incoming.

I got the text just before Trevor and Tory arrived at my door. Trevor was grinning broadly, though Tory looked more exhausted than happy to be in my office.

“You okay?” I asked Tory, ignoring Trevor for the moment.

He nodded, yawned, then nodded again. “Just tired. Kids, man, they aren’t for the faint of heart.”

Trevor giggled and we both shot him knowing looks. “I’m guessing you’re not talking about Trevor, so what did your kids do to you?”

Tory shook his head. “Pink eye. Do you know how contagious that shit is? Hell, it’s literally shit! Why are kids so gross?” I wasn’t convinced the gag he let out was completely fake. “Do you have any idea how many loads of laundry I’ve done in the last three days? Disinfected every fucking surface they’ve touched, chased them around with eye drops, and washed my hands every time I turn around. They are cracked and bleeding!” He held his hands up, and I could admit they looked angry.

“Oof, that sucks. Is there anything we can do for you?” I asked. I didn’t have kids, but I’d heard Bodhi bitch about her nieces and nephews enough times to know they weren’t as easy as society made kids out to be.

He collapsed into the chair across from my desk, a hand flung over his eyes, and moaned. “Find me a man with a really big dick who’s willing to bend me over at a moment’s notice and fuck my brains out?”

A sound far closer to avian than human came from just outside my office, and I turned my head in time to see the back of my social media director as he hastily disappeared from view.

Tory lazily turned his head and glanced at the doorway, then rolled it just as slowly back to me. “Let me guess. Dane?”

I nodded. “We had a meeting scheduled for a biography thing before training camp. You really do need to remember to shut my door when you come in. Your lack of filter is going to give someone a heart attack.”

Tory waved his hand dismissively, not bothering to open his eyes as he did so. “Fuck ‘em. If they can’t take the heat, stay out of the kitchen.”

Trevor changed the subject with an impressive pout. “I’m not ready to go back!”

“You sound like a kid on summer break, not a professional athlete getting ready to return to work,” Tory said with an exhausted half laugh.

It wasn’t far from the truth, though I kept my mouth shut.

“Summer’s nice. I get all the snuggles and all the attention. And so many naps.”

Easton had told me Trevor was a little, but aside from brief glimpses when he got excited or overly exhausted, I hadn’t experienced what little Trevor was like. I had a feeling I was seeing more of his little side this afternoon. “You sound like that meme. The one that says, ‘Things we hated as kids: spankings and naps. Things we love as adults: spankings and naps.’”

Trevor’s head nodded vigorously. “Yes, that! And there is not nearly enough of either during the season!”

Tory rolled his eyes. “I can assure you there are no naps or spankings in our house, for anyone—ever. It’s terrible, really.”

I snorted a laugh. “Yeah, spanking children is frowned upon.”

Tory groaned. “I used to be terrified of my grandmother. The woman had wicked accurate aim. I was always on my best behavior around her. Hell, does anyone know where I can rent an old-school grandpa with a strong arm? I’d happily bend over for a wooden spoon.”

Trevor dissolved into giggles and Tory lifted his eyes to stare at him. “It wasn’t that funny. I just need more adult interaction that does not involve children. I’ve turned into that person who’s waking up early on the first day of school to pack fancy lunches and fill in those chalkboards with their kids’ names, ages, what they want to be when they grow up, who their teacher is, and all that shit.”

“Yeah, sounds like you need a night out.” If only I had the ability to go out for the night. I was losing my shit trying to get everything buttoned up before training camp started next week. I’d told Easton at DASH that I was starting to find the part of myself I’d left behind when I’d left him, and since then I’d been finding long-forgotten confidence. I’d always been stubborn to a fault, but I was discovering not all my confidence in the business world had come naturally. A lot of it had been born from hours reading documents before meetings paired with hundreds of meetings with attorneys.

I was still making sense of what had been bluster and bravado born from knowing the material inside and out, and what had been real inner-confidence in myself as a leader all those years. It had been most evident when I’d walked into work the day after our visit to DASH, my ass still tender from the spanking Easton had given me the night before, and for the first time, I hadn’t questioned what the hell I was doing with a hockey team. I’d gone in, gotten to work, and hadn’t questioned every decision I made. The new confidence had allowed me to finish everything in my inbox before I’d left for the day.

By the end of the week, Daisy had been coming in to talk with me about decisions instead of coming to tell me what needed to be done next. The shift was subtle, but there.

My brain started to focus on everything that needed to be done in the coming days instead of the men sitting in front of me, but Trevor’s gasp drew my attention to him and made Tory crack his eye open to glower at him. “This better be good. I think I was sleeping.”

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