50 The ironic bomb to my life
CHAPTER FIFTY
The ironic bombshell to my life
RILEY
The bad news was that Allentown had won – but the good news was it wasn’t a total beating. Like last game, it had come down to overtime. Only this time it was Allentown who’d come out on top.
Not wanting to get caught in the post-game crossfire, I kept my distance from the team and coaching staff as they trudged down the tunnel. With my things packed up, I headed to the concourse where most people waited for the players to come out. Brooklyn had text saying her and Marnie were waiting. It was a shame I hadn’t been able to watch the game with them, though working alongside Richard was worth it.
“Riley,” Marnie called out, waving me over.
Once reaching her I hugged her and Brooklyn simultaneously. They were decked out in Allentown gear, with Marnie wearing Lucas’s jersey. Will had never offered me his jersey, which was fair given I’d never watched a game as his girlfriend. But Marnie did look super cute.
“Are you celebrating tonight?” I asked.
“Hell yeah. Any win against Phil-U is worthy of a hangover.” Marnie grimaced. “No offence.”
I chuckled. “None taken. Lucas and Tanner were good tonight. They deserve to let loose.”
Brooklyn’s eyebrows notched up. “So was Will Caufield.”
I mean, I’d obviously noticed. But it made me smug knowing my friends had too. Whether it was the pre-game bang or not, I honestly didn’t know. All I knew was that him playing well made me happy .
Even though Phil-U hadn’t secured the win, there’s nothing he could’ve done more than he had. And I knew that as an experienced hockey-watching-veteran. Despite what he thought, I’d grown up watching the game. I knew way more than he’d ever expect.
Marnie lowered her voice. “It looked like he was having words with Tanner before the first period. Any clue what that was about?”
I simply shrugged. I’d seen the same thing and I had no idea. I was planning on asking Tanner.
On cue my brother walked out of the home team change rooms. He was chatting animatedly to Lucas, clearly ecstatic about the win.
After hugging me in greeting, Lucas held me at arm’s length, his lips thinning as his gaze danced from my Phil-U hockey jacket to my beanie.
“I’ll give you a pass because we won, Riley.”
Lightly punching his arm, I shoved him away before looking at my brother. “Hey.”
Tanner’s half-hearted smile didn’t reach his eyes. “Hi.”
I frowned. “What’s up with you? I thought you’d be grinning from ear to ear about that win.”
Lucas reached for Marnie’s hand. “Babe, let’s wait in the car for Tanner.”
“Um.” Marnie looked confused. “Okay?”
“You too, Brooklyn.”
My stomach sunk at Lucas’s lack of subtlety. Something was up. Something Tanner and Lucas had clearly spoken about before coming out here.
As my friends exchanged bewildered looks with me I merely shrugged, defeated. I had no idea what was going on either.
“We’ll see you tomorrow night, Riley?” Marnie checked.
It was Tanner’s birthday tomorrow. I’d organised to drive up and spend the night at his place in Allentown. Come to think of it, I should’ve just stayed the entire weekend. Driving back tomorrow was going to be déjà vu.
I nodded. “I’ll be back in the afternoon.”
After hugging them both goodbye, they followed Lucas outside. As they left I caught sight of Grace, Parker and a model-like-looking brunette standing at the far end of the concourse. I held up two fingers signalling I wouldn’t be long before turning back to my brother. For reasons unclear to me, he seemed pissed off.
“Did something happen with dad?” I cautiously checked.
“Nope, but speaking of him...”
I braced myself, preparing for whatever bullshit dad was up to now, but what Tanner said instead floored me.
“Does he know you’re hooking up with one of his star players? ”
It took me a moment to gather my bearings and answer my brother’s question.
“No.”
“And does Caufield know his idolised coach is your father?”
I gulped. “No.”
There was the ironic bombshell to my life.
My father, the man I’d despised growing up, was a man Will looked up to. Will loved a man I’d once hated. He spent extra time with a man I actively tried to avoid. Hell, he had probably spent more of his life with my own father than I had.
Laughing in disbelief, Tanner restlessly shifted. “How the hell are you hiding that?”
“Dad and I agreed to keep things professional. That way I can get Richard’s recommendation on my own credit.”
Before I’d accepted Richard’s offer, my first port of call had been to check in with dad. I’d convinced him that keeping our father-daughter relationship private was in each of our best interests. It was mainly true, but also a partly selfish request.
I didn’t want people knowing Bryce Hall was my dad. While I was officially Riley Hall on my birth certificate and Tanner was Tanner Hall, we’d both always used our mother’s maiden names. After all, they were the parents who raised us – not dad.
“How’d you find out about Will and me? Did he say something?”
Tanner shook his head. “I noticed him tracking your every move during the warm-up.”
I raised an eyebrow. “And that was enough for you to draw a conclusion that something was going on?”
“I’ve been wondering ever since you mentioned he was one of your student athletes. Call me cynical, but you’ve never been able to coexist with him, Ri.”
While I wanted to be offended, Tanner was right. Case in point, Will and I had relapsed almost immediately after being thrust back into each other’s lives.
“And you’re angry about it?”
“Not angry I’m...” Tanner trailed off. “Are you dating again?”
“No. You know the real reason we broke up. It’d never work.”
Tanner ran a doubtful hand through his drying hair. “Sure, Ri.”
At that moment, who better than to come over but dad and Marcus Lak, dad’s agent friend. Tanner stiffened, his entire body going rigid. My defences climbed sky-high on my brother’s behalf.
“Tanner Holbeck,” Marcus began, holding out his hand. “I’m Marcus. It’s great to meet you. Quite the game you played tonight, kid. ”
Despite being beside dad, this guy didn’t look like a douche. He was dressed casually and there was a kindness in his features that dad didn’t possess.
“I wanted to introduce myself,” Marcus went on. “Your father’s told me a lot about you.”
Tanner cautiously glanced around the concourse. Like me, Tanner was very choosy about who knew about his relationship to Bryce Hall. Dad might’ve been a hockey hall-of-famer, but in terms of fathering, he didn’t even come close to being mid-tier. He was farm team quality. Forth line at best.
Guardedly, Tanner placed his hand in Marcus’s. “Is it a smart idea for you to be here?”
There were strict rules about NCAA players having contact with agents. This was risky, even for dad. Clearly he was desperate.
Marcus smiled politely. “I’m here to watch an old friend’s team – nothing more.” He winked at Tanner. “Though while I’m here, unofficially, I wanted to gauge your interest about what happens after you graduate.”
“Nothing,” Tanner answered hurriedly. “I have no plans to play hockey after graduation.”
I could literally feel the steam rolling off dad, though I knew him well enough to know this matter wouldn’t be settled in a public setting, especially with his friend standing right there.
Marcus extended a business card to me. “How about I give my card to your sister? If she calls me on speaker while you’re in the room and you’ve happened to change your mind, I’d be happy to talk to her.”
All Tanner managed was a nod. Taking the business card from Marcus, I slipped it into my jacket pocket. It felt much heavier than a small piece of paper.
News had it that dad had also introduced Marcus to Will and Levi, but Levi’s dad had intervened. Supposedly he had an agent in the wings for his son and Will. I’d heard that news filtered through dad. He’d divulged it over one of our many awkward dinners. That was the first time I’d learnt which team Will had been drafted to.
“You can ditch his number, Ri,” Tanner said the moment dad and Marcus were out of earshot. “I’m not calling the guy.”
I exhaled patiently. “Tanner, you’re throwing away an amazing opportunity purely to piss dad off.”
It’s the first time I’d said that out loud, though I’d thought it plenty of times. I’d tried remaining patient with my brother, tried to allow him time to overcome his feud with dad before he messed up his future, but the clock was ticking.
Tanner flinched. “You’re one to talk. ”
My eyes widened. “Pardon?”
“Come on, Ri. You wrote Caufield off before he even made the league.”
I crossed my arms over my chest. “What do you mean?”
“You really need me to spell it out? I mean you purposely fucked things up with him because you have a grudge against hockey players thanks to dad.”
Tanner was clearly annoyed at dad and lashing out at me because I was here. Usually I’d find that easy to forgive, but he’d hit an incredibly sore spot.
Tanner’s gaze travelled past me and his mouth settled in a grim frown. Though I was quite confident what had snagged his attention, I still turned to check.
Will had just walked out of the visitor changeroom. He slowed to a stop, glancing between Tanner and me.
Tanner leaned in close, his voice dropping to a spiteful whisper. “Once you’re done letting dad manipulate your life, then you can lecture me about making the same mistakes.”