CHAPTER NINE
The next few days were both stressful and boring.
Jesse was honestly trying to be on his best behavior as he paid a fortune to get his Jag out of the impound lot and found a secure long-term parking area where he could safely leave his baby.
He unpacked and stuck to Connor like glue while he met more people from the organization, went through orientation shit, and took a behind-the-scenes tour of Boston’s arena. He got his access badges and sat down to meetings about the franchise’s expectations for him this season.
He listened closely to the strength and conditioning staff when they discussed their plans for him and offered his own suggestions for things he wanted to work on.
Mostly, he tried not to piss off Connor.
Although, he’d been pretty nice in the past few days, actually.
After lunch at a great little place not far from the practice facility, they’d driven all over the city. It was confusing as fuck with all of the damn one-way streets and rotaries and, honestly, Jesse was a little relieved that he’d been ordered to ride to and from all practices, meetings, and games with Connor until further notice.
He had a feeling in his free time he was going to be using public transit and walking more than he’d expected. Because fuck, he didn’t trust his car around these drivers. They were fucking lunatics.
Jesse was starting to like the feel of the city though—the historical right up against the modern. There were tons of green spaces and a lot of interesting-looking little neighborhoods, each with their own charm.
Boston didn’t seem so different from Toronto when it came to great food and museums and cultural stuff, but the night life looked dismal. Jesse had already scoped out the bar and club scenes. Bars tended to run to pubs and sports and the clubs didn’t seem that great. Way more limited than Toronto, that was for sure.
He was thankful it was an LGBTQ+ friendly city, which seemed to be his only hope for decent nightlife. It didn’t feel like home yet, but it would soon enough.
This morning, after their workouts, Jesse had been dicking around on his phone while Connor watched the baseball game.
Connor’s townhouse had a finished basement with sports memorabilia, a big TV, and lots of comfy seating. This part of the house felt a lot more like him—casual, comfortable, masculine. Not as cool as Jesse’s former captain’s place with the indoor pool, golf simulator, and table tennis, but still a very chill hangout spot.
Jesse hadn’t met guys from the team yet, though that was what they were doing this afternoon. There was a big thing at Connor’s parents’ house with the team.
But first, Jesse had to meet the ex-wife. Yikes .
“Uhh, are you sure I need to be here for this?” Jesse asked while they waited for Connor’s ex to arrive with the kids.
Connor glanced away from the big screen. “Yeah, why?”
“I dunno,” Jesse said. “I just feel weird about meeting the ex-wife of a guy I hooked up with.”
Connor gave him a sharp look. “You’re not gonna?—”
“No!” Jesse protested. “I know you think I don’t have a single brain cell in my head but I’m not dumb enough to out you to your ex-wife.”
“Uhh, well.” Connor shifted to face him. “She knows.”
“Knows we hooked up?” Jesse yelped.
“Fuck no! That I’m bi.”
“Oh.”
“Not that she was particularly happy about that.” There was a bitter note in Connor’s voice. “She practically accused me of cheating on her with the whole damn team.”
“But you didn’t?”
“What? No!” Connor looked offended. “I never cheated on her. Not even once. Not with anyone on my team or anyone else for that matter. Hell, you were the first guy I …” He cleared his throat. “Anyway… keep it a little toned down right now, if you can.”
“I told you I’d be on my best behavior around the kids,” Jesse protested, honestly a little offended by the idea that he’d go around fucking shit up for Connor.
“Okay, okay.” Connor held his hands up, palms out. “I just wanted you to understand the situation.”
“Your ex-wife is a bigot and she’s going to be suspicious as hell of me,” Jesse said. “Got it.”
Connor winced, but Jesse wasn’t sure which part of that had made him look that way.
“Am I wrong?” he asked.
Connor sighed. “You’re not wrong. It’s just weird. She never used to be so …” He glanced at Jesse with another frown. “She changed.”
“I’ve heard people do that,” Jesse said drily.
“Yeah.” Connor sat back with a bitter little laugh. “And apparently it happens a lot over almost fifteen years.”
“Oh shit, you were together for a long time then, huh?” Jesse asked.
Connor nodded. “Yeah. We met at BU—uh, Boston University.”
Jesse leaned forward, curious to learn more about his captain. “I didn’t know you went the college route.”
“For a bit. I don’t even remember what my major was at the time but I knew I wasn’t gonna stay at school for long. I’d already been drafted by the Harriers. Just wanted a bit of development time at the collegiate level.”
“What about your ex?”
“Ahh, Viv was studying to become a lawyer. She was smart and gorgeous and … way outta my fucking league.”
Honestly, Jesse kinda doubted that but he didn’t argue because he wanted Connor to keep talking. “Was it love at first sight?” Jesse asked.
Connor gave him a faint smile. “I dunno about that . We fell for each other quickly though.”
“How’d you meet?”
“At a party at the hockey house. A friend dragged her there.”
“Ahh,” Jesse said. “Party hookup, got it.”
“Nope,” Connor said, shaking his head. “I found her out on the back deck, reading a book on her phone and we started talking. And it was like we’d known each other forever. On the surface, we didn’t have anything in common but we … couldn’t stop talking. Hell, I didn’t even kiss her that night. Which, honestly, is probably why she gave me another date. She wanted to move slow.”
“In the bedroom?”
“Yeah.” Connor scratched the back of his neck. “She was, uh, she’d never been with anyone before. She’d dated but it had been, um, PG, if you get my drift. I was your typical horny college student, but I loved her, so we took it slow for a while. Her family’s based in New York and I went home with her for Christmas that year. They caught me sneaking out of her room one night—we hadn’t had sex but we were getting close.”
Jesse suppressed a smile and nodded.
“They were pissed. They’re from a small town in Romania. I’m not saying everyone there is that conservative, but her family was. Uh, Eastern Orthodox and all, and they’d been a little wary of me to begin with and this didn’t help, you know?”
“Sure,” Jesse said, although he knew fuck all about what Eastern Orthodox meant. Some church thing, he knew that. But otherwise? Nothing.
The closest he ever got to seeing God was great sex.
“They didn’t tell us we had to get engaged and marry soon, but we knew they expected it. And I—I was fine with it, you know? I wanted to marry her. This kinda sped stuff up is all.”
“Did she want to get married?” Jesse asked, because he could maybe see where this was going.
“Uhh.” Connor sighed. “Yes and no. I think she was afraid that if we did, she wouldn’t be able to finish her degree. So we got engaged quickly and dragged our heels a little on the wedding itself. But her parents were putting a lot of pressure on us so we got married shortly before I turned twenty-one. By then, she had finished her undergrad and I was already playing in the NHL. There was a big fight with her family over the wedding though.”
“Why was that?”
“Well, I was raised Catholic. My whole family is”—he made a face—”I don’t know. I would have said we were strict about it but compared to Viv’s family we’re not. Observant, maybe though? I mean, I still try to go to church on Sundays when my schedule allows it, but like, my ma also threatened to fight the Pope over Kelly being gay, so I don’t know anymore.”
Jesse smiled, because that made him love the hell out of Catherine O’Shea.
“Did the different religions cause issues when you wanted to get married?” Jesse asked.
“Well, Roman Catholicism and the Eastern Orthodox church have some similarities. Enough that Viv and I were allowed to marry without either of us having to convert. Even then, we had to jump through all these fucking hoops and get special permission from both churches and it was kind of a nightmare.”
“It sounds like it,” Jesse said when Connor stalled out, staring down at his hands.
“We got through that bullshit, but by the time that came through, the only date available before the season started was late in August and it fell on a Friday on some fast day for her church.” Connor rubbed his forehead. “Viv didn’t care, but her family had strong feelings about alcohol at the reception. The fasting rules for her church are complicated but basically what’s frowned on is drunkenness and gluttony.”
“Which are guaranteed at a hockey wedding.”
Connor shot him a grateful look, like he was relieved that Jesse got it. “Exactly. So there were fights about that and by the end I was so fucking tired of all of the bullshit. I loved her but I was so goddamn sick of the crap with her family, you know?”
“Yeah, I bet.”
“But we got married and Nolan was born eight months later.”
“Ohh. Didn’t quite make it to the wedding, huh?”
“Not quite.” Connor gave him a lopsided grin, but it quickly fell flat. “And that meant Viv had to put law school on hold.”
Jesse winced. “Did she go back?”
“In between Nolan and Evie, yeah. Graduated law school top of her class and everything. But she got pregnant with Maura while she was studying to take the Bar exam …”
“And she had three little kids and you were gone all the time,” Jesse filled in.
“Yeah. I kinda don’t blame her for being pissed at me. Being a hockey wife wasn’t her thing. She did it because she loved me but she had to give up a lot of shit she wanted to do.”
“That’s rough.”
“It was.”
“Is that why you got divorced?”
“Yes and no. There had been cracks forming for years in our relationship and when I was home, we fought a lot. And the sex was, uh, not happening by that point, and when it was, it was pretty routine and boring. And I guess I kinda lost track of who she was, you know? She was more involved in her church and getting more conservative about stuff and I—it kinda all came to a head when Kelly came out.”
“Oh shit.”
“Yeah. And I, um, I kinda shouted that I was bi and that was the end of it. The end of … us.”
“Fuck,” Jesse said. “So that sucks.”
Connor laughed but it didn’t sound amused. “Yeah, yeah it does. And we’re trying to co-parent now and it’s better now that we’re not pretending to be in love for the kids’ sake but it’s still tense. And she just—she wants to meet the guy who is gonna be living in the house her kids are in part of the time. And I have to respect that.”
“Honestly, I get that too.” Jesse winced. “And my reputation is, uh, sketchy, huh?”
Connor huffed out another laugh. “Yeah. You could say that.”
“Well, I’ll?—”
But Connor sat upright, reaching for his phone and thumbing through it. “Shit. Nolan said they’re a few minutes out. Let’s head upstairs.”
Jesse nodded and unfolded himself from the big comfy chair he’d been curled up in. Connor turned off the TV.
Jesse followed Connor up the stairs, trying not to stare at his ass in the sweats he wore. Jesse was going to be on his best behavior today, he totally was.
They’d barely made it upstairs before a teenage boy stepped inside the front door.
Nolan.
He was a few inches shorter than Jesse, with a mop of messy dark-red hair, vibrant blue eyes, and thick brows. A little awkward at the moment, especially with the acne dotting his cheeks, but he’d be cute eventually. He wore a pair of headphones, but he slipped them around his neck when he spotted Jesse, shooting him a curious, assessing glance.
“Hey,” Connor said and Jesse could hear the emotion in his voice when he hugged his son. “Missed you.”
“Missed you too, Dad,” Nolan said, his voice muffled against Connor’s shoulder before they separated.
“Nols, meet Jesse. He’s our new goaltender.”
“Hey.” Nolan shot Jesse an easy smile but didn’t offer a hand. “Great to meet you.”
“You too,” Jesse said, stuffing his own hands into the pockets of his hoodie.
“Daddy, Daddy!” A little girl ran through the door, followed by the older one.
Maura and Evie, Jesse reminded himself.
Connor swooped up Maura, kissing her cheek even as he pulled Evie close too, patting her back when she wrapped her arms around his waist. “Missed you girls,” he said thickly.
A moment later, a gorgeous woman stepped through the door and closed it behind her. She was tiny—short and thin—with oodles of gorgeous dark hair that flowed down her back.
She shot Connor a tense smile. “Connor,” she said tightly.
“Vivian.” He let Maura slide to the floor but she clung to him, gripping his hand. “Uh, everyone, meet Jesse. He’ll be billeting here for the season.”
“All part of my rehabilitation plan,” Jesse said with a grin. He stuck out a hand. “Nice to meet you, Viv. I’m sure you’re nervous about having some strange guy living in the same house as your kids, but I promise you, I’ll be on my best behavior.”
She shook his hand, studying his face for a moment before she lifted an eyebrow. “No more fountain frolicking?”
Surprised and amused that she’d called him out and pleased that there was a flicker of amusement in her dark eyes instead of judgment, Jesse nodded. “No more fountain frolicking. Those days are behind me. I left them in Toronto.”
“What’s fountain frockling?” Maura asked.
“It’s frolicking, Maura,” Evie said, dropping her backpack and unzipping her little puffer vest. “It means dancing, I think.”
“Why can’t we do that?” Maura looked at Jesse with pleading eyes. “That sounds fun.”
“Umm,” Jesse said, because shit, that had backfired.
“Because it’s not July,” Viv said firmly. “And it’s about to get cold here. Getting all wet outside doesn’t sound like much fun when it’s cold out, does it?”
“Nooo,” Maura said with a sigh.
It had gotten cold the past few days. Connor had warned Jesse that they’d likely get another hot spell but right now, the temperature had dropped and it was windy and dreary.
Maura struggled with her jacket and Jesse dropped to one knee. “Want some help with that?”
She studied his face for a moment before she thrust her arm out. “Yeah, I’m stuck.”
Jesse carefully peeled her out of her coat and when he handed it to Connor, who was hanging the girls’ stuff on peg hooks by the door, Viv gave him a thoughtful look.
“Do you have many siblings, Jesse?”
“No. Only child. But I used to spend a lot of time with my goaltending partner and his family,” he said truthfully. Anton Makarov and his wife, Elena, had invited him over quite a bit. Their house had been loud and crazy and with five—now six—kids, Jesse had pitched in wherever he could help.
Damn, he was going to miss them.
“Momma, can Jesse ride ponies with Maura and me?” Evie asked, wide-eyed behind her glasses. “At Uncle Kelly’s wedding, he said he would if it was okay with you and Daddy.”
“You ride?” Viv shot Jesse a skeptical glance.
“Little bit,” he admitted. “Just enough to be, uh”—he’d been about to say dangerous but that probably wasn’t going to impress her—”familiar with horses.”
That was kinda underselling it when his mother was a competitive dressage rider. Though he’d never had a horse of his own or had much time to ride.
“Please,” Evie pleaded. “It’ll be so fun.”
Viv shot a look at Connor, who shrugged. “I’m fine with it if you are. The stables have plenty of horses to rent.”
“I suppose,” she said, looking down at Evie. “If we can find a time that works.”
“Maybe this week?” Jesse suggested. “We’ve got a little time before training camp and my schedule is pretty open until then.”
“Maybe,” Viv said and Jesse wondered if that was her blowing him off. “We’ll see, girls. But I need to get going.” She gave Jesse a tense smile. “Nice to meet you, Jesse.”
“You too, Vivian.”
“Your mom is leaving, Nolan,” Connor called out. “Say goodbye.”
“Bye, Mom,” he said thickly and Jesse glanced over to see him with a sandwich crammed in his mouth. PB&J by the look of it.
Jesse hadn’t even noticed Nolan going into the kitchen, though he did remember the days when he literally couldn’t get enough food in his body to keep up with what he burned.
Nolan walked over but he didn’t reach out to hug his mom. Viv gave him a weak smile. “Have a good time, Nolan. See you in a few days.”
“See you,” he said, flopping into the couch and pulling out his phone.
“Bye, girls!” Viv said.
She got hugs from both of them, said a tense but polite goodbye to Connor, and then she was gone.
“So, we’re gonna go to Grandma’s and Grandpa’s place in a couple of hours,” Connor said, closing the door behind her.
“Are you coming?” Evie asked Jesse. “You should come. It’ll be tons of fun.”
“Jesse will be there. It’s basically a party for him,” Connor said, gently tugging her hair.
“Is it your birthday?” she asked.
“No.” Jesse smiled. “That’s in December.”
Connor smiled at his daughter too. “This party is to introduce him to the team and stuff.”
“Ohhh. Is everybody gonna be there?”
“Some of them,” Connor said. “Some won’t be back for a few more days. And, remember, Kip left. He’s in Toronto now.”
“I hate trades,” she said mournfully.
“I know. Sometimes I do too. But that’s how we got Jesse.” Connor shot him a brief, warm glance.
Jesse swallowed hard. Holy shit . Connor usually looked like he either wanted to light Jesse on fire with his brain or fuck him, but that look of soft appreciation was … something else.
It was like he didn’t actually hate the idea of Jesse being here.
Evie narrowed her eyes. “Will you play toy ponies with me like Kippy used to?”
“Sure,” Jesse said. “Whenever you want.”
Connor groaned. “You’re gonna regret you said that.”
Evie grinned. “I like you. You can stay.”
“Glad he has your stamp of approval, Eves,” Connor said with a laugh.
“Can we do movies and pizza this week too?” Evie asked.
“Sure,” Connor agreed. “We’ll do pizza and movies tomorrow night. How does that sound?”
“Awesome!” Evie hopped up onto the stairs, hanging off the banister. “You have to come to that too, Jesse.”
“Okay,” he said, amused that she had apparently decided she liked him.
“I wanna go see my new room now!” Evie shouted.
“Me too!” Maura said, scrambling to her feet. “And it’s our room, Evie.”
They were gone with a thunder of small feet on the stairs and for a moment, Jesse looked at Connor’s soft expression as he stared after them and something in his chest twisted.
Connor adored his kids.
“The girls have new rooms?” Jesse asked, turning away and plopping into a chair.
Nolan glanced up from his phone. “Yeah, Dad kicked Evie upstairs to Maura’s room so you’d have a place to stay.”
“I didn’t kick Evie out!” Connor protested. He took a seat at the other end of the sofa from his son. “Jesse, you could have slept in the basement—there’s a room down there—but I talked to the girls about it. Maura was fine with moving in with Evie and Evie was good with it too. Maura was always coming down to the second floor to sleep in Evie’s room anyway.”
“Why didn’t you put me up on the third floor with you?” Jesse asked, shooting Connor a sly look.
Connor glared back. “ Because Maura gets nightmares sometimes and I want her on the third floor for when she needed me.”
“Oh.” Whoops. Jesse had only been trying to flirt but now he felt a touch guilty about the question and that he’d put everyone out so much. “How’d you get the room swaps done so fast?”
“My mother. And the decorator who did this house after I bought it last year. They worked together to get it all done.”
“Huh. I thought this place didn’t look like you,” Jesse said thoughtfully.
Connor glanced around and shrugged. “What’s wrong with it?”
“Nothing! I like it! But it doesn’t seem like you,” Jesse pressed.
“Hey, I’m gonna go to Kyler’s house for a bit!” Nolan said, already pulling on shoes. Shit, the kid was sneaky. He kinda moved like a cat.
“You could ask , you know,” Connor remarked drily, getting to his feet again.
Nolan grinned up. “Dad, can I go to Kyler’s?”
“Sure. Just be home by two-thirty, okay? We’ll head over to your grandparents’ house then.”
“It’s like a five-minute walk,” Nolan protested. “I thought we didn’t have to be there until three?”
“Yeah, well, it takes a while to get us all out the door,” Connor said. “And we’ve got him to worry about now.”
He jerked his head toward Jesse.
“It’s true,” Jesse said with a shrug. “I’m the biggest problem child of them all.”
Nolan laughed, then hopped to his feet and was out the door.
“Well, that was my kids,” Connor said with a sigh. He picked up a discarded suitcase and set it at the bottom of the steps. “Welcome to the O’Shea House of Insanity.”
Jesse smiled. Honestly, the chaos and clutter of three kids made the picture-perfect designer look of the place feel like it actually was a home.
Like a place where he’d fit right in.