At five o’clock on the dot, I walk outside of my house to meet Leo. He’s waiting at the end of my driveway with Callum sleeping in a stroller next to him. I pull my sweatshirt over my head and then a cap down over my ears. We haven’t had any snow the past week, but it’s still freezing outside.
“Are we not running this morning?” For the past two years, we’ve done this damn near every day. It stopped being about conditioning a long time ago, though that is a nice benefit. Staying in shape year-round has made me faster.
“No, we are. Check it out. It’s a jogging stroller.” My buddy beams harder than he did when he bought his first nice vehicle as he pushes the fancy contraption around in a circle.
Chuckling lightly, I smile as I take in the change in him. Pushing a stroller on our morning runs? That’s not something I ever saw in our futures.
We take off on our usual route. The quiet morning stretches in front of us. Callum is fast asleep, and Leo and I are both lost in our own thoughts.
He’s the first to speak. “It was fun hanging out last night. I like Bridget. Scarlett does too.”
“Yeah. She’s cool.” The thought of the woman still lying in my bed makes me instantly wish I were back there. The hours we get together are few and sometimes far between. She’s got school and work, and we’ve had two weeks of some brutal travel for games.
“It was good to see you two out together. It was starting to feel like Talia all over again.”
My hackles rise instantly. “Bridget isn’t like Talia.”
Talia wanted to date a hockey player because of how she thought it made her look. She liked going to fancy events and big parties, but otherwise, we didn’t really date publicly. It was casual sex when our schedules allowed. That’s not what is happening with me and Bridget. She’s guarded and hesitant, but it’s not because she doesn’t feel strongly about me. Even if she won’t say it, I know it. I feel it.
“Don’t glower at me.” Leo laughs softly. “I just mean that you mostly go to her place or yours and it’s nice to see you two out. You dig her and we all just want to get to know her better.”
With Talia it was basically just about fun and sex. Sure, we went on dates occasionally and she came to some games, but I never felt like we were a couple. Not like I do when I’m with Bridget. Though Leo is right, we haven’t really left the house together.
“She’s still pretty hesitant about us being seen together because of Gabe,” I admit. “I should probably be worried too based on how poorly I’ve been playing. I’ve got a giant target on my back, and he’d love to take me out.”
One brow rises. “Do you really think Gabe would do something shady just because you’re dating his ex?”
“I don’t know, but I don’t trust him.” Even if he’s not prepared to trade me, the threats are enough to tell me he isn’t focused on the well-being of the team when it comes to me.
We fall back into silence. Leo’s pace is slower this morning and I glance back as we make the turn at the halfway point to head back home. “Everything okay? You’re dragging.”
“You try pushing a stroller up that last hill.”
“Are you seriously trying to blame your baby right now? What does he weigh, ten pounds?”
“More like seventeen.”
“Yeah, but he’s on wheels.”
Leo angles the stroller toward me. “Let’s see you do better.”
With some trepidation, I take Callum from him. The stroller is light and glides over the pavement nicely. It takes a little getting used to, but soon I’ve got the hang of it.
Leo picks up his pace with a wicked grin. “Race you back.”
He takes off, leaving me and Callum to chase after him.
By the time we make it back, I’m questioning my earlier statements.
“What are you two feeding this kid?” I ask, panting as I come to a stop in front of my house.
“I told you.”
I blow out a breath and peek over the top of the stroller at Callum. His eyes are open, but he’s just laid back, chubby fingers in his mouth and completely unfazed. “It’s a good thing you’re so cute or I might have left you a couple miles back.”
Leo chuckles and takes the stroller back from me. “Same time tomorrow?”
I don’t bother responding as I lift a hand in a tired wave and head inside.
I find Bridget in the shower. She smiles shyly as I step in to join her.
“Hi.” She rubs sudsy hands over her stomach and breasts. “Tough run?”
“I learned a hard lesson about physics and weight distribution.”
“O-kay.” Her brows scrunch together.
“Leo brought Callum in a jogging stroller. It’s harder than it looks,” I explain.
A smile spreads across her face. “I cannot picture you running with a stroller.”
“I looked cool as hell. I’ve got future DILF written all over me.”
Sliding a hand over her wet skin, I rest my hand on her hip and pull her closer. My lips brush over hers quickly. I know she doesn’t have time for what’s on my mind so I let her go.
“I was thinking, we should go on a date.”
“A date?”
“Yeah, a date. We put on clothes, leave the house, go eat some food, maybe see a movie or…whatever.”
The spark in her eye is at odds with her initial hesitation. “When?”
“Tomorrow night? We don’t have a game and you’re off work, right?”
“Okay.” She moves to stand under the spray of water, rinsing off the soap. “You’re not worried about being seen out with me? You’re kind of a celebrity around this city. Even if we don’t run into Gabe, it’s possible it’ll get back to him.”
“It won’t. Trust me. I know just the place to go.”
When I pull up behind the building twenty minutes outside of the city, Bridget looks unsure.
“Where are we?”
“You’ll see.” I hurry out of the truck and around to her.
Together we walk, hand in hand, into the old ice rink. It’s a far cry from the big and fancy arena where the Wildcats practice and play, but the sounds and smells are the same.
The game has already started, but we find seats behind the bench of the Mini Mite team.
Bridget’s mouth hangs open as she looks from the little kids skating around the ice to me. “What is this?”
“The Razzle Dazzle Unicorns.”
She laughs. “I’m sorry, what?”
“That’s the name of the team.” I unzip my jacket and show her I’m wearing a purple T-shirt that has the team name in bold across the front.
“How? And why?”
“I help coach when I have time.” Which lately hasn’t been much. “They’re actually pretty good. Watch number eleven.”
Beatrice Fisher, Tris for short, is five years old and can skate as well as half the guys on my high school hockey team. She’s incredible. I have no doubt someday I’ll be watching her dominate leagues. The skill level at this age varies greatly. A lot of them are still learning how to stay upright while navigating around teammates and defenders, or they shoot with so much strength it throws them off-balance. But they never fail to bring a smile to my face.
“Ash, this is so cool.” Bridget drops one hand to my knee but keeps watching the action on the ice.
I stare at her hand for a few seconds before threading my fingers through hers. We sit that way, holding hands and watching the game. A simple thing maybe, but after hiding away for weeks, it feels big.
A few of the players spot me between shifts, but their excitement at seeing me has nothing to do with me being a professional hockey player and everything to do with the promise I made them at the beginning of the season: Win more games than they lose, and I’ll get them onto the ice at the Wildcat arena. A promise it’s looking like I’m happily going to get to make good on.
Bridget squeezes my fingers when Tris skates down the ice on a breakaway, and stands and cheers when the puck slides in between the goalie’s legs. It feels so damn good being with her, watching her enjoy something that I love.
I turn to smile at Tris’ parents sitting a few rows behind us. They’re cheering so big. That’s the thing I love about hockey at this age. It’s all for fun and the love of the game. Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy to do it as a career, but it’s a good reminder of why I started playing. I love it down to the very core.
And sharing that with Bridget feels so perfect.
