Page 129 of Mine For The Winter

When they got to the kitchen, Cole was eating a huge bowl of cornflakes. A grin split his face when he saw Kris standing there.

“Hey, bud. How you feeling?” Kris asked him, grabbing a bowl and filling it with cornflakes.

Kelly lingered in the door, watching as Kris sat down beside her son, and Cole leaned in to show him what he’d been watching on his iPad.

“You think they’ll make the playoffs this year?” Cole asked.

“They’ll need to amp up their defense to make it anywhere close. Jackson is weak as hell.” They were leaning in so close their heads were touching. Kris’ dark against Cole’s blonde.

“Yeah but their offense is whack. Nobody can hit a puck like Goran.” Cole paused as they continued to watch. “See? He’s amazing.”

Kelly picked up the cereal box and put it back in the cupboard, trying to figure out why there was such a big lump in her throat.

“I’m ready.” Her dad walked into the kitchen, wearing a sports jacket over his crisp shirt. “What are you watching?”

“The Boston Razors. They won last night, again.”

Her dad leaned over between the two of them, leaning on Kris’ chair. And for a moment the sight of the three of them overwhelmed her.

Three generations all watching sports together. Her past, her present, and her future. She hadn’t known how much she needed this. To watch the three men she loved the most enjoy each other’s company, bonding over hockey.

Tears pricked at her eyes as they laughed at something on the screen.

And then Cole turned to look at her.

“Why are you crying?” He sounded concerned. “Did I do something wrong?”

She tried to blink them back. “No, honey. Not at all.”

Cole turned back to Kris. “You’d better go kiss her before she sobs all over the floor.”

Kris looked over at her, lifting a brow. She shrugged back.

“You are her boyfriend, aren’t you?” Cole continued. “Isn’t that what boyfriend’s do?”

A smile pulled at the corner of Kris’ mouth. “Would you be okay with that?”

“Yeah, as long as you promise to keep taking me to hockey.” Cole turned back to his iPad as though it wasn’t a big deal.

And maybe it wasn’t. Not to Cole. He hadn’t been through the emotion and the pain and the years of yearning. But to her it was huge.

The biggest.

It was Kris’ turn to shrug as he stood and walked over to her, a wry smile still playing on his lips.

“You okay?” he murmured, wiping a tear from her cheek.

She nodded. “Happy tears.”

He leaned in closer, his hands on the counter on either side of her hips. Her dad and Cole weren’t even looking at them, too busy watching the final play on Cole’s iPad.

“I’d like to see more of those.” He leaned in, brushing her lips with his. The smallest of kisses but it sent a shiver down her spine anyway.

“And I’d like more of those,” she whispered, her heart so full it could burst any minute.

“Okay, one more,” Cole yelled out. “And then enough of the kissy kissy. I know I said it was okay, but still…”

Kris caught her eye and laughed, then kissed her softly once more. It felt like a promise. And she liked that very much.

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