She hangs out with the other guys’ kids a couple of times a year at events like these. She’s been invited by their moms to playdates and things, but it’s almost always when we’re on the road for games. I already put way too much on Mom. She doesn’t need to be dealing with playdates on top of school, homework, hockey practice and games, and everything else that comes with a child.
But if her mother were here…
No. Not her mother.
We’re both better off without her in our lives.
The day she abandoned her duties as a parent and left me to raise my daughter was the best decision she ever made.
But someone.
Someone who could be a mother figure. Someone who would allow Mom to be the kind of grandmother she deserves to be.
I let out a heavy sigh as Sutton dives through the giant donut floatie beforepopping up on the other side.
I just wish I could give her everything. But as hard as I might try, it’s impossible.
“Peanut,” I call while her head is up.
Instantly, she twists around and smiles at me.
“Thirty minutes,” I say, making her happiness falter.
She wants to complain, but she doesn’t. It’s a school night, and she knows the rules.
“Okay, Daddy,” she says, her lips drawing into another smile. This one doesn’t reach her eyes, and I hate myself for it.
I look around Coach’s backyard, at my teammates and their families all enjoying themselves. They make it look so easy.
Life. Hockey. Families.
I know I’m not failing, but I can’t help but wonder if I’m running at eighty percent on everything.
With a sigh, I climb from the lounger and ask the moms who are sitting closest to me if they’re okay to keep an eye on Sutton while I’m gone before swiping my bag from the floor and heading inside to change.
As much as I might want to spend the night here watching Casey in her sexy bikini, I need to leave.
I need to put some space between us. We’ve already crossed enough boundaries today.
Anyone could have seen us fooling around in the pool.
It was dangerous and risky.
I should have been more self-aware. But in the moment, all I could think about was her.
Touching her. Tasting her. Burying myself inside her and never letting her go.
“Fucking hell,” I mutter to myself as I slip into Coach’s house.
Noise floats down from the kitchen, and as I turn the corner, I spot a flash of blonde hair before the red head walks around the island with a smile on her face.
Despite my body begging me to join them, I force myself to move in the opposite direction.
“Whoa,” I cry, grabbing onto Parker’s upper arms to stop her from stumbling backward. “Are you okay?”
She gazes up at me with glassy eyes. Whatever she’s been drinking, it was strong.
“Yeah, Rivers. I’m good. Are you?” Her eyes twinkle. It’s all I need to know that she’s aware of what was happening with Casey earlier.
