Derek’s snarky reply isn’t why I’m grinning. I have Sophie to thank for that. To think how close I came to writing her off for all the wrong reasons wipes the smile right off my face. I’m a very grateful man for her determination to correct my erroneous assumption about her.
And I plan to make that up to her for the rest of my life, if she’ll have me. “Yeah, actually, I do. Kind of a date.”
My teammates jump in with the usual catcalls, including Jayce who’s fast becoming one of our MVPs. I’d be surprised ifhe doesn’t get bumped up to the NHL faster than expected. The kid may well be my competition for a chance with Tampa Bay Lightning. But I’m okay with that. I like playing for the Sun Kings. These guys feel like my family now. And Kins and I are doing okay so far. Maybe staying where I’m at is okay too.
Bigger doesn’t always mean better. If I take a page from Sophie’s playbook, staying put in Sarabella with the team could be exactly what I need…and want. I’ve known players who were content to just play the game and didn’t care if they made it to the NHL. Plus, being near Sophie is a bonus.
After a couple more scrimmages, Gabe gives Derek the signal to wrap it up. I’ll be late by the time I get cleaned up and dressed for this shindig tonight, but at least I’ll make it. And I can’t wait to see Sophie and share some of my thoughts about the future. Turns out my sister isn’t the only one she inspired.
I finish showering in record speed and dress in the dressing room, so the slacks and button-up I brought won’t smell like the locker room. As I’m about to leave though, Gabe calls me back.
“Luke, hold up a minute.”
I stop in the doorway. “Can it wait? I’m already late.”
He runs a hand down his mouth and shakes his head.
I knew something was off. First Gabe’s tense mood at practice, and now this? Whatever it is must be more serious than I thought, like he’s being replaced or I’m being cut loose. But the team is performing better than ever. I don’t see how it could be anything like that.
What if…
I shut that fear train down faster than a flying puck. If Kinsley needed me, she’d text. And Sophie’s safe and sound at the Turtle Tide, most likely tapping her foot and wondering what happened to me.
But the pressure in my chest continues to grow as I follow him through the locker roomtoward his office.
I see Kinsley first. That’s my first alarm. I stride over to her. “Kins, are you okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine.”
“This isn’t about quitting school again, is it?”
She shakes her head, but the look in her eyes is a weird mix of concern yet hope. She slides her gaze to someone standing a few feet away. I track mine the same direction and land on an older man with a healthy sprinkle of gray in his hair and beard. I don’t recognize him, but he seems familiar.
Kinsley twines one of her hands into mine—something she used to do when she was little—and gestures to the man. “Luke, he’s our father.”
A hush falls over the rest of the locker room, but then a rasping, robot-like breathing sound breaks the silence.
I glance over to catch Jayce with his helmet over his face as he continues his Darth Vader impersonation. “Luke, he is your father.”
Muffled snickers break out, but Payton slaps Jayce’s helmet down.
Jayce holds his hands out. “What? It’s funny, right?”
“Or is that irony?” Wade pipes in.
Mathéo nods thoughtfully. “Could be satire.”
Payton silences them with a loud whisper. “Pipe down!”
Payton and Wade round up the rest of the guys and heard them out of the locker room.
I fist my hands at my sides, unable to move or speak. I don’t know what to say to, let alone think of, the man standing in front of me—the man who walked out on us, leaving our mother to handle an infant, an eight-year-old, and a mortgage all on her own.
All I can think about is what would our lives be like now if he’d chosen a different path.
And that maybe my mother would stillbe alive…
If it weren’t for Gabe, I probably would have walked away. But then that would make me no better than him…
