Chapter 44Nick
Chapter 44
Nick
THE FOLLOWING JANUARY | Tarot: Ace of Cups
“Come on. You can do it. I’ve got you.”
Annie scoffed. “Ha. I’ve heard those words before. I know when I’m being lied to.”
I leaned in. “You can punish me as much as you want if I fail. Come on, baby. Just one step.”
Annie made a quick sign of the cross over her chest and pointed to the cloudless sky, then took my hands and stepped on the ice. We were in the middle of Denver’s baseball stadium, gearing up for the Winter Classic. We were playing Colorado, but we still got to enjoy the fun of the outdoor arena. I was stoked to be part of a team that got picked for the New Year’s Day special game.
“There’s my girl,” I said, skating backward to pull her along. She let out a quiet “eeek” noise as I got going, dodging my teammates and their families.
“Go, Annie!” Guy cheered, skating by in tandem with Kitty, looking like a pair of figure skaters with their grace.
Sorrento and his wife directed his kids on skates, all natural talents. Leroy skated with his kids and his girlfriend’s kids. His new girlfriend, Mara, took pictures from the bench. I grinned as Leroy skated to her, pulled her over the boards, and threw her over his shoulder, skating her in a circle while she screamed. It was a real 180 from the drama his now ex-wife had brought into the picture. I don’t know that I’d ever seen Sydney smile in a way that was genuine, but Mara was the complete opposite. I was happy for Jack.
Mikey and Jessie posed for a picture with their new baby, Madeline, who was still in the little lump stage of babydom. Annie and I zoomed by and Jessie let out a cuss.
“Watch it, Obi!”
“Sorry, Mommy!” I called. Jessie was just a few months into being a mom and was quite the protective mama bear. I swirled around them and slid to a stop, making sure the ice didn’t hit Maddie. Annie clutched my side.
Mikey bent to try to put Maddie on one of those little plastic seals that you push kids on the ice with, and Jessie drew a breath, ready to stop him.
“There you go, little girl!” he cooed as he held her on.
“Ben, she can’t even sit up on her own,” Jessie sighed.
“I’ve got her! Look! She loves it!” he insisted. As if to prove that she could care less, Maddie drooled.
“See what I have to deal with?” Jessie laughed to Annie. “He tried taking her to the children’s museum just to show her stuff. She can’t do hardly anything.”
Mikey looked up. “She loved it!”
“She slept half the time and blew out her diaper,” Jessie said.
“Yeah, those are two of her favorite things,” Mikey shrugged.
“Pretty cute, huh?” I said to Annie.
“Oh, she’s perfect,” Annie said, crouching to make faces at the baby. “I want to hold her when I’m not on these stupid skates.”
“Uncle Obi, too,” I said with a grin. I helped Annie get back to her feet and we continued on our lap of the rink.
Annie was skating pretty well this time around, this being only the second time I’d gotten her out on the ice.
“Alright, I think you’re ready,” I said, giving her a heads up.
“No, Nick, don’t you dare,” she warned.
“You are so ready! You’ve improved so much! Look at you go!” I loosened my grip on her fingers, drifting away from her.
“Nick, there are cameras everywhere!” she hissed as she wobbled. I rushed toward her and just like the last time, she fell back on the ice. I knelt between her open legs, laughing with her as the team’s photographer stooped to get our picture.
She pouted at me, but with joyful eyes. “I hate you for this.”
“I know, baby. I’m so sorry.” I grabbed her chin for a kiss. “Now you get to punish me.”
She got a sinister smile. “Can’t wait.”
The social media specialist who had been holding Greg let him go, and he galloped toward us, climbing on Annie’s legs to get off the ice.
“Aw, our little buddy,” she cooed, kissing the top of his head between those marble eyes.
“Let’s get your family picture!” the photographer said. I took Greg and helped Annie up, putting my arm around her as we posed.
“Hey,” I nudged her to tip her face up to me. Then there was that smile: green eyes, two dimples, and freckles across the bridge of her nose. The smile that made her unforgettable. The smile that made my stomach dip, that made me feel like I was the most special and important person in the world. “I love you, Annie.”
“I love you, too, bub.” I bent to kiss her, knowing we were being photographed. It had been almost a year since we stopped having to love each other in secret, and it still felt good any time I could claim my beautiful girl in public. It would never get old. Because I was the lucky guy who got to experience the magic of loving Annie Markham.
* * *
On New Year’s Day in the Mile High City, Annie sat on our hotel bed chanting, “Fashion show! Fashion show!”
I shook my head at myself in the bathroom mirror. “I don’t think anything can prepare you for what you’re about to see.”
I popped out into the hallway with a flourish, letting Annie take in all the neon colors on my body. Her hands went over her mouth.
“Oh. My God. Nick,” she said as Greg started barking incessantly at me.
“Do I look legit?” I asked, adjusting the visor.
Each team picks some ridiculous outfit to represent their city in the outdoor games. We’d chosen nineties surfer dude chic for ours. My board shorts were hot pink with an aqua blue tank top with “Los Angeles” written in airbrush letters. But the real point to note was the highlighter green visor with a tuft of fake bleached hair sticking out the top.
“You look far out, dude,” she giggled. “Cowabunga. Hang ten. All of it.”
Greg was still barking. “Greg, it’s me,” I said, taking off my visor. The barking stopped and he lunged for the visor, trying to rip out some of the fake hair. “Hey! Hey! I need my hair!”
Later, after all the rigamarole and festivities, I sat in the net, the cool air on my face.
Frankly, these games are supposed to be a friendly of sorts. But somehow, we totally blew it. We started off strong, Beatty getting off a goal in the first two minutes of the first. Maybe it made me lax, because they answered for that goal after the next faceoff, their star center driving it straight for me. I cut left and he went right at the last second. I shook it off like I always do, but for whatever reason, our defense was absolute shit. Did everyone go get drunk New Year’s Eve and not tell me?
There ended up being forty shots on goal, meaning I was wiped by the end. Though the game was a loss, it was still such a fun time. While I’d have loved to have beaten Colorado on their home turf, playing outside with all my friends was a rush regardless of whether we won.
Immediately after the game, Annie, Greg, and I took off up to the Rockies for a couple of nights. Annie’d been working so hard leading up to the new year, and we needed a little break that didn’t revolve around rushing to see our families for Christmas. I overpaid so we could fly to see her family for a couple of days before returning to L.A.
Then my parents came out to L.A. and we had a great time, meeting up with some of the other hockey families. My parents insisted on doing a second Christmas celebration with me and Annie, not wanting us to miss the holidays together. Annie charmed the hell out of my parents, not by doing anything special, but just by being herself.
I thought about doing her big surprise at that second Christmas celebration, but I wanted to be alone. I’d told my parents, and her dad, and I don’t know how everyone kept their mouths shut. Annie seemed none the wiser.
On our drive out of Denver, Annie turned to me.
“Nick, I know I’m really busy with the agency, but there’s something else that’s been on my mind.”
“Oh yeah?”
She took a breath. “I couldn’t do it alone, though. I’d need help.”
“Alright. What do you have in mind?”
“I want to start a foundation to help people with medical bills. And to work on advocacy to lower healthcare costs so the bills aren’t so big in the first place. I didn’t realize how much all that was weighing on me until it was gone.” She sighed. “It’s a big job, though. I don’t know if I have the capacity to do something that big.”
“Maybe in the summer I could help with some of it. Plan some fundraisers. I’m sure some of the guys would want to help out, too.”
She flinched. “So it’s not a bad idea?”
I reached for her hand. “No. It’s amazing. I think we should look into it.”
Her eyes sparkled looking at me. “Really?”
“One of the things I love about you is that you didn’t forget where you came from. Just because you’re out of debt doesn’t mean you forgot what it’s like to struggle. And you want to do something about it. It’s really beautiful.”
She shook her head. “That’s how I feel about you. The first moment I considered that maybe you were worth my time was when you didn’t hesitate to say you’d fund the goalie school for anyone who couldn’t afford it. You know what it’s like to not have it all.”
I laughed. “Aw, shucks, aren’t we the best?”
“Ugh, we’re insufferable,” she groaned. “Maybe we need to do something evil to balance it out.”
“I can think of fun evil stuff I can do to you,” I offered.
She cackled and bit her lip. “Would love to see what you have in mind.”
We were exhausted by the time we checked into the rustic hotel at Estes Park. The next day, I woke early, the bright Colorado sunrise peeking through the blinds.
Annie was being her usual sneaky self, wearing just my t-shirt and no panties. Streams of sunlight her golden legs, and I buried my face in her neck. These times were some of my favorites: her crackly morning voice and imperfect hair, her soft skin against mine, taking it slow so I could build her up for a bigger climax, her stomach quivering under my hand as I brought her over the edge.
And as wonderful as lazy morning sex was, I lived for the moments after: cleaning Annie up, reflecting on the fun, and snuggling in the afterglow.
After we marinated in bed for a while, we dropped Greg off at the doggie daycare and took our cozy satisfaction down to breakfast, having a leisurely time while we sipped coffee.
Then my bigger plan came into effect. We headed out for a snowshoeing trek, a trail I’d scouted online that was known for its views at the top. When we got up there, we stopped for a water break.
When I went home with Annie for Christmas, I’d already told her dad that I had big plans for our future. He was fully on board, giving me his blessing and then some.
So at the top of this mountain, with Annie beside me, I pulled out the ring. Her mom’s engagement ring.
I told her how I wanted to start the new year. That I wanted it to be a year where we promised ourselves to each other. Where I wanted to know that forever, I’d claim her as mine. That I wanted to make an honest dog out of Greg. That no mountain was too high if she needed me to climb it. That no valley was too low that I didn’t want to go through it with her. That I wanted to know we’d spend every day we could in each other’s arms, supporting each other, being a family.
And she said yes.
I opened my pack and offered her either a beer or a Diet Coke to celebrate. We took elated selfies and kissed until our chapped lips couldn’t take it anymore.
But I knew there would be more days, and more kisses, and more time. Because now, we had all the time in the world.