Page 64 of Love You Already
I almost hate that I asked. Family is usually a safe enough topic that I don't have to worry about the conversation going south. Tonight doesn't hold that same weight.
“What about Donnie?” I ask to distract her.
Her lip tips on the right side, a soft grin forming. “He's good. Daddy is just... Daddy. He's taken to checking on Nate and Bridgett more. As for Beckett, he's got his own group of folks watching for Caroline to see if she's intending to start any trouble. From what he's said, it looks like she literally just moved back to be here. She hasn't asked a single person about Beckett or made an attempt to come to the ranch.”
“That's good, I guess. Though I think Beckett really needs to face his past before he can get the closure he needs to move forward.”
She shrugs. “Who knows? I didn't realize he was still hung up over her until you mentioned it. Hell, I think we were all under the impression he just hadn't found the right woman. Not that he was brooding over what he'd lost.”
I still wasn't fully sure that there wasn't more to the story than Beckett told me or what he'd shared with his family. It wasn't my business to pry. Not with me being far away and unable to help with the aftermath of what having such a talk would do to him.
“Oh shoot! Mel is calling. That's never good on a night where she's working. Let me grab this. I'll call you back.”
Rose doesn't give me time to answer her before she disconnects the call. I close my eyes in frustration as I lay my head back. This distance thing isn't for the faint of heart.
She might only be an hour away, but that might as well be hundred for the way our schedules work. I barely have time to sleep as it is. A trip out there and back is a lot when I know it would only make things worse.
My ice bath timer goes off, and I peel myself out of the bin to get dressed. The cold sucks, though it does what I need it to. My muscles already feel loads better than when I climbed in.
My wife calls back before I can do much more than slip on underwear. I sink to the bed as I answer. Her screen pops open to a view of her bedroom from the dresser.
“Ace?” I call out with a laugh.
“I'm here!” She shouts from off screen. “Mel is sick and can't come in. I've got to head in.”
I frown as I go over her schedule in my head. “You won't get another night off until next week though. There's no one else you could hire?”
“Not really. I haven't gone over the books to see if it's in the budget. Besides, we've been handling it fairly well. I've had a few others try but it didn't work out. Sips isn't big enough for me to need a full staff.”
“But if it actually gave you time to rest, it might be worth it. Plus, if you had extra help, you could maybe come visit me.” I drop a subtle hint to see if she'll take the bait.
Her groan sounds as she hops across the screen, tugging up a pair of skintight jeans. Her ass is on display, the boy shorts riding up to reveal that dip right below her cheeks where her ass meets thigh — aka my third favorite spot on her body. She bounces twice until the fabric covers my view.
“We just had the money talk, Superstar,” Rose whines.
I try to remember words or anything about what we've discussed. I can't recall any of it with the way her breasts sit in her black bra. My mouth waters as all my blood flows straight south.
“What did we talk about? Whose money?”
She leans over to look at the camera, a grin on her face. “Enough ogling. I said we just talked about money. I'll handle the bar and you handle your... thousands, millions, whatever. I don't want to know. That will just make it weirder. Beckett already made me feel silly for not thinking about this stuff.”
“Ignore Beckett. He's got his own host of problems to deal with. You and I are good. And I'm sorry for overstepping. I miss you, Ace. I just wish we could have more than these calls and texts. When the season starts, I'll be in and out with the travel. I don't want to go that long without seeing you if I can help it.”
Rose sighs as her forehead hits the dresser in front of the phone. “I'll see what I can do. No promises though. I'm not all that sure what I can make happen.”
“Any movement is movement, baby! I'll let you go so you can actually get ready. I love you, wife.”
“I love you, husband. Be good and show those Coyotes who's boss.”
* * *
Three more days of practice bring much of the same level of pain. I'm dreading going in today even though Fridays are meant to be much easier on us. It's not been the case since Riggs showed up.
When I get to the arena, the routine comes back to me. Despite the soreness of my muscles, I lace up and get out on the ice with the team to run drills. As a defenseman, it's my job to keep the other team from getting to our goalie. That can sometimes look like me taking hits and other times, it's me blocking by attacking first.
There is no clock out on the ice, nothing to connect time to what we're doing. Our lives are at the mercy of Coach and when he decides we need to stop.
We’re midway through a play when I feel the energy in the room shift. Everyone stops skating to turn toward the stands. I whip around to see why everyone has stopped. I'm met by the greatest sight in the world.