Chapter 42
PEYTON
I had no idea if we were going to make it into the playoffs. If we did, it would be by the skin of our teeth. Losing Leif and, for a little while, losing Avery had been hard for the team, and there was only so much we could play through that.
With our record, we’d probably be comfortably in third place or maybe have the first wild card spot in a less competitive division.
The Metropolitan division was, however, the most competitive in the League.
Our third-place team had more points than did the first-place Pacific team, and Central’s third-place team was tied with our second wild card. This was not an easy division.
There was still time, though. Unless one of the teams ahead of us fell apart—and it did happen sometimes—we’d have to play balls-to-the-wall for the remaining weeks of the regular season to secure a wild card spot.
As I watched Avery stripping off his gear and smiling and chirping with the guys after tonight’s game, though, I didn’t care if we made it into the postseason.
The Whiskey Rebels’ season had been nothing short of miraculous given what we’d been up against all year.
The team had lost their captain, and then we’d watched as our new captain had crashed and burned, but we’d kept going.
Kept playing. Kept holding our own out there even when we brought all the wrong emotions on to the ice.
And Avery…
The man I’d met at training camp had been broken and lost.
The man who’d skated out to the roar of the crowd tonight had been the hockey player I’d admired, the captain this team had believed in, and the man I’d fallen in love with.
Definitely not what I’d expected when I’d signed that contract with Pittsburgh less than a year ago.
As we finished up showering and getting dressed, the wives and kids came down from their box. Several wanted to congratulate Avery on his return, so I hung back, assuring him we didn’t have to leave until he was good and ready.
The locker room was getting a little crowded, though, so I told him I’d wait for him in the hallway, and to take his time.
Out here… much better. Quieter. Not so many moving bodies. I leaned against the painted cinderblock wall and released a long breath. Tonight had been incredible. Whatever fears Avery had about losing a step, I was pretty sure they were gone.
I knew from experience with my mom that addiction was a lifelong battle.
And I knew Avery’s grief wasn’t going anywhere any time soon.
But tonight, I had even more hope than I’d had before that he could and would move forward.
He was strong as hell, and he was willing to both put in the work to get better and to make peace with the pain that would likely follow him for the rest of his life.
I couldn’t help but admire how strong and committed he was.
Falling in love with him? That felt like it had been inevitable all along despite our rocky start.
Footsteps coming out of the locker room pulled my focus back into the present, and I looked up to see Rachel with her new baby in a sling. She was coming right toward me, too.
“Oh. Hey.” I smiled at her.
She smiled back, and when she stopped in front of me, she shyly asked, “Can I hug you, Peyton?”
I blinked. “Um. I… Yeah. Yeah, sure.”
It was a little challenging with her son between us, but she wrapped her arms around my neck and I carefully returned the embrace.
“Thank you,” she murmured in my ear. “For everything you did for Calds.”
I drew back and looked at her.
She smiled, a hint of tears in her eyes.
“I don’t know if we would’ve lost him like we lost—” She swallowed, then swiped at her eyes.
“What I do know is that with the way things were going, we would’ve lost him one way or another.
” Her smile returned. “You saved him, and you brought him back to us.”
I had to fight back the lump in my throat. “He did all the work.”
She was already shaking her head. “He did the therapy and all of that. But he told me how it all happened. There’s no telling how far down he would’ve gone if you hadn’t stepped in.”
That lump got a lot thicker, but I managed, “I saw someone go that far down once before. Twice, actually. I couldn’t…” I shook my head as I cleared my throat. “I couldn’t watch him go there too.”
“I’m glad someone was looking out for him.” Her smile grew. “And the way everything else worked out between you, well…”
That chased away the threat of tears, and I laughed, knowing damn well I was blushing. “I can’t complain about that. Don’t know if it sounds like a great love story, but…” I half-shrugged.
She snickered. “Eh, by the time you need to tell your kids how you met, you’ll have figured out how to tell the story.”
“Our kids?” I scoffed even as a warm feeling rushed through me. “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. We just started dating.”
Rachel just grinned.
Honestly, I hoped it went from her lips to God’s ears. I didn’t know what kind of future lay ahead of Avery and me, and we were still in that shiny honeymoon phase, but I hoped—really, really hoped—that this was only the beginning.
A future? Kids? Forever?
Why the hell not?
After a moment, Rachel broke the silence. “By the way, I think you and Leif would’ve gotten along.” She laughed softly. “Between the two of you, you’d have kept Avery in line.”
“Hey!” Avery appeared beside her. “Peyton would’ve been trouble, too.”
“Nobody is as much trouble as you and Leif were.” She glanced at me, an eyebrow arched. “Though, I don’t know. Maybe you could give them a run for their money.”
I flashed them both a grin. “I could sure try.”
“Oh my God.” She rolled her eyes. “Two peas in a pod, right here.”
“You have no idea,” I said.
“I think I can guess.” She glanced down and bounced her baby just a little. “I should get out of here.” She looked at us with an apologetic expression. “It’s late, and I need to find my other three.”
“Locker room.” Avery nodded in that direction. “They were playing with Eminem’s kids.”
“I figured. Well, they need to get to bed, and quite frankly, so do I.” She smiled at him. “It was great to see you out there again tonight.”
He returned the smile. “It was great to be there. And I’m glad you and the kids came, too.”
They shared a quick, careful hug over the baby, and then she hugged me again too before heading into the locker room.
Avery watched her go, a sweet, serene expression on his face.
It was almost impossible to imagine what a wreck he’d been not very long ago.
At the same time, it wasn’t—a man with a heart as big as Avery’s was bound to be hit hard when he lost someone, and when someone dear to him had lost her husband.
After Rachel had disappeared through the door, he turned to me. “Ready to go?”
I made an after you gesture and we walked down the hall toward the player parking garage. In the car, I started the engine but didn’t put it in gear. Instead, I rested a hand on his leg. “Do you want to go out with the guys? Or head home?”
He quirked his lips. “What do you think?”
“It’s up to you.” I drew him in a little and pressed a kiss to his temple. “Tonight’s your night.”
He held my gaze. Then he smiled and lifted his chin for a kiss. “Well, if it’s my night, I think I’d rather spend it with you.”
I grinned. “Yeah?”
“Mmhmm.” He curved his hand behind my neck and claimed that kiss, and I let it linger for a moment, reveling in this gentle touch and this closeness. Touching his forehead to mine, he whispered, “It’s so good to be back with the team. And with you.”
“It’s good to have you back. That conditioning loan felt like forever.”
“Seriously” He drew back a little and met my gaze. “You know, Rachel was right.”
I blinked. “What about? That Leif and I would’ve gotten along?”
“Well, that, yes. But also, I heard what she said outside the locker room.”
“Oh. You did?”
“Yeah.” He studied me over the console, the streetlights casting harsh shadows over his beautiful face. “She’s right, you know. I don’t know how bad things would’ve been without you.” He took my hand and squeezed it gently. “I’m just really grateful I didn’t have to find out.”
I leaned over and kissed him. “I’m glad you were receptive to it. Not everybody is.”
He blinked.
I caressed his cheek. “The morning after I picked you up at the club, I was fully expecting you to tell me to pound sand and kick me out of your house.”
Avery’s lips parted. “But… you did it anyway?”
“Yeah. I couldn’t just sit back and let you self-destruct.
I had to at least try.” I exhaled. “I can’t tell you how relieved I was that you didn’t fight it.
And I mean it—that takes a lot of guts. Admitting you need help, and getting that help.
Especially for someone who’s in the public eye like you are. ”
“I… never thought about that.”
“I watched two people in my life crash and burn,” I whispered.
“One had to hit absolute rock bottom and almost lose everything before she finally admitted she needed help. The other…” I shook my head.
“So I’ve seen for myself how hard it is.
It took a lot to accept help the way you did. I’m proud of you for it.”
Avery smiled as a blush rose in his face. Clasping my hand, he said, “Well, it definitely helped to have someone step up and stop me from destroying myself. All of this?” He held up our joined hands. “I’m still amazed you can see past everything I did and said and still want me.”
I drew him in again and brushed my lips across his. “You’d have to try a lot harder than that to make me lose interest.”
His lips curved against mine. “I think I’d rather try to keep you interested.”
I grinned, too. “Oh, yeah?” Sliding my fingers up into his hair, I asked, “Any thoughts on how you’re going to do that?”
The hand on my thigh made me gasp a second before Avery had my mouth.
When he broke that kiss, his hand was nearly at my groin and we were both out of breath.
“Am I on the right track?” he asked in a sultry voice.
“Mmm, I think so.” I nipped his lower lip. “But how about we go back to one of our places so security doesn’t bust us?”
Avery laughed, making me warm all over. “Good idea.” He gave my thigh a squeeze before pulling his hand away. “Let’s get out of here.”
We did.
And Avery had no trouble keeping my interest for the rest of the night.