Chapter 12
CHAPTER 12
ALEC
We finally make it back to Harvest Hollow just after dinner on Sunday night. I’m anxious to see Evie, tired of my teammates and even more tired of being on a bus, so I don’t linger at the Summit.
I’m halfway across the parking lot to my truck when my phone buzzes with a text.
Evie
I have no idea if you’ll be hungry when you get home, but I made soup and there’s plenty left over.
My pace quickens but then a second text pops up, and my enthusiasm wanes the slightest bit.
Evie
There’s enough for Theo and Carter too, if you want to let them know.
I look over my shoulder at the twins, who are only a few paces behind me. We all rode to the Summit together when we left town, so they’re riding home with me too. I turn and look over my shoulder. “Evie says there’s food at the house. She made soup.”
They both grin, their expressions identical in a way that still gives me pause. “Home cooking from the missus,” Carter says. “Sign me up.”
Theo only grunts, but after the bracing conversation I had with him before our last game, when I pinned him against the boards during warmups and made it clear it was time for him to check his attitude, I don’t expect much more.
I didn’t like getting in his face like I did, but he kept trying to pick a fight with Dominic, who, for all the trouble he gave us his first season on the team, has really stepped up this year. He made a perfectly reasonable suggestion to Theo about how to improve his passing accuracy, and Theo practically lost it.
Carter clearly got a double share of impulse control, leaving his twin with barely any at all.
Except, I’m not entirely sure that’s what’s happening.
Theo talks a big game. He’s got enough swagger for the whole team, and he frequently pushes around his teammates, like he’s just trying to make them respond. That’s what he was doing with Dominic. But it seems less like a lack of impulse control and more like intentional antagonizing. Carter is a good bouncer, and he’s talked more than a few guys down after Theo has annoyed them.
But how long will he be able to keep that up?
Eventually, people will tire of Carter protecting Theo as much as they tire of Theo’s antics in the first place.
I just wish I could figure out what Theo was thinking. Why he seems so determined to sabotage the start of what could be a very impressive career. I’ve always felt some sense of responsibility as captain to make sure everyone is doing okay, but lately, with these younger players coming in—and now, living with me—it feels like the stakes are higher somehow, and I really don’t want to let them down.
If I can’t be a hundred percent on the ice, I can at least get this part right. But how?
As soon as we pull into my garage, I force myself to move slowly, intentionally, as I pull my bag out of the back of my truck and wait for the twins to do the same. I don’t want to look overeager, even though I absolutely feel that way.
But then we step inside and hear music, and I can’t keep myself from hurrying.
It’s nothing like the Taylor Swift Evie blasted in the kitchen while she was making cinnamon rolls. It sounds like a violin, and it’s crisp and bright enough that I know it isn’t a recording. It has to be Evie.
I drop my bag by the garage door and follow the sound of her playing.
I find her standing beside the piano, her violin lifted to her chin, fingers flying over the strings as she plays a melody that feels familiar even though I can’t quite place the song. Juno is sitting in her bouncy seat beside her mom, eyes wide, feet kicking. She looks enamored with her mother, and I completely understand the feeling.
Evie is incredible.
She sounds amazing, confident and sure, but more than that, she looks amazing. Like she’s doing something she was born to do. Her face is relaxed, her eyes filled with a peace I’ve never seen in her expression before.
Evie smiles when she sees me come in, but she doesn’t stop playing, her eyes closing as she moves with the music.
“Dude, is that Maroon 5?” Carter says from behind me. “‘Memories?’ I love that song.”
The second Carter names it, I recognize it as well.
Theo leans forward the slightest bit as he listens. “I think I’m falling in love with your woman,” he says under his breath.
I shoot him a warning look because one, as far as he knows, Evie and I are only friends. And two, I have no clue if Evie can hear him, and my goal is to take things slow with Evie. I don’t need his idiot mouth messing that up.
Theo lifts his hands. “Sorry, sorry. I meant that as a compliment. She’s just…” He nods toward Evie. “She sounds really good.”
“She went to Juilliard,” I whisper back. “She should.”
Evie plays out the last few notes, then finally lowers her instrument.
“I thought people only played classical music on the violin,” Theo says before I can even say hello.
“You can play whatever you want on the violin,” Evie says. “Technically, ‘Memories’ was influenced by Pachelbel Canon, which is absolutely classical. It’s one of the reasons I have so much fun playing it.” She lifts her instrument again. “See? Listen.”
She plays another song, and I immediately pick up on the similarities. I don’t know a lot about classical music or the violin, but suddenly, it’s my new favorite instrument.
She stops after a few more seconds. “You hear it?”
“Totally,” Carter says. “That’s really cool.”
She looks at me, eyes warm. “Welcome back,” she says without breaking eye contact. “Are you hungry?”
“Starved,” the twins say in unison.
“Go ahead and help yourselves,” Evie says. “There’s soup and a loaf of bread you’re welcome to slice and eat.”
“Thank you, ma’am,” Carter says before dragging his brother toward the kitchen.
“Please just call me Evie,” she says. “Ma’am makes me feel old.”
“Yes, ma’am—I mean Evie,” Carter says. He stops before he disappears completely and says, “I’m sure we’ll be fine on our own while we eat so don’t feel like you have to check on us.”
I have to appreciate Carter’s effort, even if it is a little pointed.
Once they’re gone, I look back at Evie, holding her gaze for a long moment. “Hi,” I finally say, wondering if she can tell how quickly my heart is beating. It hasn’t slowed since I first pulled into the garage, knowing I was on my way in to see her.
“Hi,” she says back. “You’re home.” She turns and sets her violin on the back of the piano, then takes a small step forward, her bottom lip tucked between her teeth. “In my head, I thought I would hug you once I saw you again.” Her tone comes out a little sheepish, and her cheeks flush a light shade of pink. “But now I feel a little…I don’t know.”
I cross my arms and lean against the door jamb, offering what I hope is an encouraging smile. I’d love to pull Evie into a hug. In fact, as soon as she mentioned it, my muscles practically vibrated with the ache of wanting her in my arms. “It’s not too late.”
She quickly shakes her head. “It would be weird now. I imagined greeting you at the door, jumping into your arms.” She grimaces and drops her gaze to the floor. “That sounds so stupid now that I’ve said it out loud.”
She wasn’t the only one who imagined what it would be like to see her again. With all the texting and talking we’ve done over the last week, it definitely feels like we’re closer. But closer in text messages is different than closer in person, and there’s a slight awkwardness hovering between us.
I step forward and offer her my hand. When she slips her fingers into mine, I tug her toward me and wrap my arms around her shoulders. “It’s not stupid at all,” I say into her hair.
She leans into my chest, her arms looping around my waist, and breathes out a sigh as she relaxes against me. “This feels really good. I’ve been…weirdly lonely the last few days.”
In an instant, the awkwardness is gone. There’s a rightness to holding her like this that doesn’t leave room for any other emotion.
I shift my hands to Evie’s shoulders as she steps back, giving them a quick squeeze before I drop my hands. “You finally got good at that thing,” I say, motioning to her violin.
She rolls her eyes. “The last time you heard me play, I was what, eleven? Twelve? I’m feeling pretty rusty, honestly. This is the first time I’ve played since she was born.” She tips her head toward Juno, who kicks her feet like she can tell her mom is talking about her.
“You sounded amazing,” I say, and Evie smiles.
“Thanks. It felt good.”
“Are you ready for tomorrow?”
“Gah,” she says, lifting her hands to the top of her head. “I don’t know. I’m so scared. I came all this way, you know? And now it’s finally here and I’m starting, and I just don’t want to screw up.”
“You’re going to do great,” I say. “You’ve got this.”
Her hands drop to her hips as she takes a deep breath. “You think?”
The vulnerability in her expression tugs at me, and I feel a sudden need to lift her up, to ease her worries in some way. “I don’t just think,” I say gently. “I know. You’re going to be amazing.”
She bites her lip and breathes out a long sigh. “Remind me again tomorrow? And probably the next day too?”
“As many times as you need it,” I say. I push my hands into my pockets. “So I was thinking, since you met Gracie already, maybe we could all get together for dinner at Felix’s. Just like a group thing,” I add, emphasis on the word group .
Evie’s eyes narrow the slightest bit—that was possibly a little too pointed—but then she smiles. “I would love that. Would they mind if I bring Juno?”
“They won’t mind at all. I’m sure they’d love to meet her.”
“Count me in, then. That sounds like fun.”
“Cool,” I say, doing my best to minimize the excitement in my voice and find that perfect balance between I’m looking forward to this and I’m so eager you should probably be concerned. “I’ll talk to Felix and figure out a night that works.”
She crouches down and picks up Juno, tucking her against her before heading toward the kitchen. “Perfect. Now come eat before the twins devour all the soup.”
I follow after her, keenly aware that for the first time, this too-big house full of furniture I didn’t buy feels a lot like home.