The Orcas would have been fine without him too. It wasn’t like they’d been losing every game. But…. Jordy wouldn’t say this out loud at the risk of sounding up his own ass, but it feltlike the Orcas needed him. There’d been a Jordy-shaped gap in their lineup, and playing with them was easy. And sure, they hadn’t yet decided who would be his go-to linemate and none of these guys clicked the way Sully did, but the rest of the team, the system, the game play, all felt made for him.
Jordy hadn’t felt so energized playing a home game against one of the worst teams in the league since his rookie year. Career-wise, this trade might be one of the better things to happen to him.
And wasn’t that a kick in the teeth to realize.
Especially when he woke up from his medicated coma to find a voicemail message from Rowan and Kaira.
“Hi Daddy! Me and Rowan watched the game highlights this morning and you skated so good. Rowan says the internet says you played a really good game and we should be proud of you for it, ’specially ’cause you didn’t feel your bestest yesterday.”
“… goodbye….”
“Okay, Rowan. Rowan says I have to say goodbye now because I gotta go to school. Bye-bye, Daddy, I love you!”
“Good job, poppet. Go put on your shoes…. Hey, Jordy, she really wanted to talk to you this morning, and time zones are a hard concept. I hope this didn’t disturb your sleep…. Bye.”
Jordy slumped back in his hotel bed. If he hadn’t been traded, maybe he and Rowan would have had time to grow into something solid and real so that when his contract was up, they could have talked about moving like adults.
Or maybe it would have given Jordy two years in the same city as his ex, the love of his life, suffering through awkward visits to the park for Kaira’s sake.
Jordy needed to get over himself and worry about practical shit, like finding a nanny and someplace to live.
He was scrolling through local real estate listings, aghast—they wantedhow muchfor a two-bedroom condo?—when someone knocked on his hotel-room door.
Frowning, Jordy looked through the peep hole and caught a view of a distorted, grinning Ryan Wright, and Ryan’s moody husband over his shoulder.
Okay, so Nico probably wasn’t as moody as he looked. The more Jordy got to know the guy, the more he realized that he was just a prime example of resting bitch face.
Jordy opened the door and gave Ryan a look. “Aren’t young people supposed to abhor showing up without texting first?”
Ryan laughed. “One, I’m barely younger than you. Two, we totally did text, but you didn’t answer and I got tired of waiting.”
“That’s true,” Nico muttered. Jordy had a sudden vision of Ryan pacing and bouncing around their home, begging his phone to buzz.
“Three, you can totally tell us to fuck off and get out of your hair—we were in the neighborhood.”
“That isnottrue,” Nico said. “Well, the neighborhood part. You can definitely tell him to fuck off.”
Jordy snorted. “Good to know.” He eyed Ryan and his barely restrained energy and decidedfuck it. He didn’t really want to sit alone in his room all day worrying about which adulting tasks he should do first. “You know what? I’m feeling generous. I’m willing to hear you out before I tell you to fuck off.”
“You’re a good man, Charlie Brown.”
Nico shook his head at Jordy, encouraging him not to ask, and Jordy shrugged and let them in.
Three hours later, Jordy was dressed and fed, had contacts in his phone for the nanny search, and was on his way to meet Ryan and Nico’s real estate agent, who was waiting for them at a house with an in-law suite that was listed on the market for 2.5 million. Sure, Jordy would be able to afford the mortgage oncehe’d sold his place in Toronto, but the bump in price came with a decrease in square footage that alarmed him.
Kim, the agent, was pretty great. She walked Jordy through the house, asking what he liked and didn’t, then pumped him for more information about his home in Toronto and whether he’d sold it.
“I think I have the perfect rental for you,” she declared. “Because you really should rent until your place in Toronto is sold. Taxes, you know? And I think this place in Burnaby might meet your short-term needs.”
Sure enough, Jordy found himself signing a lease for a four-bedroom house that might not have a nanny suite but at least had two full baths so he could have live-in help without things getting awkward.
Afterward, Ryan insisted on taking Jordy out for more food and dragged him to one of his favorite restaurants.
“So now that we got all the boring adult stuff out of the way, let’s catch up! How are you? How’s the kid?” His expression turned sly. “How’s the nanny?”
“I’m fine. ‘The kid’ is mad at me for moving to Vancouver, though I think the promise of whales is going a long way to fix that.” The team even had a whale mascot, which should also help.
Jordy pointedly ignored the final question.
