Rowan stood frozen while Jordy put on a brave face and found food for his daughter, because the idea of the trade wasn’t some unknown specter now but a full-on apparition sitting at the breakfast table, waiting to ruin their cute little domestic scene. Rowan couldn’t confess anything now, couldn’t ask for anything when Jordy might be in Florida by the end of the week. What was the point of asking for more when the shelf life was so brief?
Sure, they could do long distance, but long distance when Jordy was a single parent with a demanding job that had him on the road half the year? Jordy didn’t have time for long distance. In the past couple of weeks, Rowan had gotten a glimpse of what a relationship with a player would be like during the season. Between practices and games, there would be stretches whereRowan and Jordy would only be able to eke out stolen moments here and there. Just yesterday, before they went to bed together, they’d barely seen each other all day beyond quick meetings in the kitchen. If they lived apart, they wouldn’t have those moments, and Jordy probably wouldn’t even have time to chat with Rowan. He’d be too busy being a dad.
No, the ticking time bomb that was Jordy’s trade was a firm reminder that anything more was just a pipe dream.
Shield on the Move? Shaw Trade Rumors Abound
By Krista Eckhart
October 27
Trade whispers are echoing in the hallway outside the Toronto Shield front office.
Nothing is officially confirmed yet, but rumors persist that the Shield are entertaining—or even soliciting—trade offers, and one name keeps coming up: Jordan Shaw. A source within the Shield confirmed that Shaw, who has a limited no-move clause in his contract, was asked to provide his list of teams he cannot be traded to.
Despite being a fan favorite, a Norris Trophy winner, and an Olympian, Shaw is a good candidate for a trade. Shaw is a talented defenseman and a veteran with plenty of experience. He’s also thirty-two years old with steady numbers and two years remaining on his contract—years the Shield, with their 3–4–3 record so far this season, are unlikely to be Cup contenders.
No one wants to give up an All-Star talent, but the Shield aren’t in a position to put him to good useunless it’s a trade for a piece that will be ready when the Shield’s forward core hit the peaks of their careers. And plenty of teams are willing to pay for experienced defensemen, especially when it comes in the form of Jordan Shaw, who is well-known for his amiability and boring off-ice life. Expect several front offices to review Shaw’s résumé and check their AHL stables for anyone who could sweeten the pot for the Shield.
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WHEN THEseason started, Jordy’s busy schedule only got busier.
Thankfully, Rowan’s and Kaira’s work/school routines were already established and getting more practiced, which meant that despite Jordy’s chaos, their day-to-day felt almost uninterrupted.
Almost.
Because of course Kaira had big feelings about the season starting and her dad being back at hockey. Rowan did his best to hear her and help her process those emotions, but even as he helped her find balance, he couldn’t help but feel guilty for not being Janice and for knowingly keeping a secret about even bigger changes to come.
Because no matter what, Daddy getting traded and moving them to another city—maybe even another country—and the finding of a new nanny? Well, that would probably inspire feelings that needed more than just a couple of heart-to-hearts.
Not that Jordy was getting any closer to hiring that new nanny, or if he was, he hadn’t told Rowan about it.
When he asked, back at the beginning of September, Jordy had admitted to having trouble finding applicants he wanted to interview. But when Rowan sorted through a stack of candidatesand picked out a handful he thought were promising, Jordy had rejected them all.
“Okay, clearly I missed something. Tell me what’s wrong with these two so I can help better.”
“Which two?”
“Uh, let’s start with Allison.”
“She was a volunteer canvasser for Pierre Asshat,” Jordy said and shuddered.
“What?” Rowan flipped through her CV and wow, okay, yeah. She’d listed canvassing for a right-wing extremist. “How did I miss that?” He shook his head, then asked, “Don’t tell me Christine had the same problem.”
“No,” Jordy admitted slowly. “But her first-aid certificate is out of date.”
Rowan flipped through the paperwork. It had expired at the end of July. She probably just hadn’t updated her résumé. But it wasn’t as if he could just ask,That’s it?when this was Kaira’s life that might be at stake, so he accepted the feedback and kept wading through the CVs.
In his weaker moments, Rowan thought maybe Jordy just didn’t want to replace him because he was that amazing and Jordy wanted to keep him around. Of course, in his more realistic moments, he reasoned Jordy was a paranoid single dad who’d been just as ridiculous the first time around. After all, these were nannies through an agency. They’d already been vetted by someone else. It wasn’t like they were going to serve Kaira candy for dinner and let her drive the SUV. Jordy might not like them all, but surely some of them qualified for a conversation.
Whatever. It wasn’t Rowan’s problem. If Jordy wanted to drag his feet, let him. It was his kid. It wasn’t like this was affectingRowan’s life at all.
Rowan thought this last bit to himself rather sarcastically as he pulled up to the school’s aftercare program to pick up Kaira. Jordy had left yesterday morning on the first of many road trips. It just so happened that today also happened to be Rowan’s monthly staff meeting, which some arsehole had scheduled for half six on a Wednesday night.
“Hi, Rowan!” Kaira cheerfully kicked her feet as he buckled her into her car seat. “Can we have dino nuggets for dinner?”
Rowan tweaked her nose and reminded himself he was annoyed with Jordy, not her. “Sorry, poppet. We won’t be home for dinner tonight. How do McDonald’s nuggets sound instead?”
