19. Hadley
Hadley
I can’t feel my face. I’ve been smiling since Bryce scored that last goal, clinching the win for the team. “I think I finally understand why people love sports.”
Paige and Taylor burst out laughing. Taylor is wearing her one-year-old daughter in a wrap over her chest and leading us to a room deep in the depths of the arena where the families wait for the players.
“Considering you’re dating a professional hockey player, that’s likely a good thing,” Paige says.
“You’re probably right,” I say, blushing, as we enter the room.
“Don’t worry,” Taylor says, smiling warmly. “You’re not the first Wag to come in not knowing a thing about hockey.”
Did she just include me in the wives and girlfriends club? Play it cool, Hadley. Don’t be awkward. “Is there some kind of initiation for that?” I blurt. So much for keeping it cool.
Taylor grins. “Maybe back in Colorado, but here? Nah, you’re in. You even get a tournament jacket. It should be ready tomorrow afternoon.”
Paige squeals and hugs me. “I told you the ribbons were necessary.”
While I don’t think that’s entirely true, I am glad that Taylor came over and introduced herself to me. She’s so sweet and instantly made me feel included. In just a few minutes of conversation, I knew I’d made another friend.
Plus, she’d explained Bryce’s suddenly green hair. Apparently, the players have been victims of pranks all tournament long, and while no one knows who’s doing it, Taylor says she suspects it’s got to be more than one person. Especially since the pranks have been happening in both locker rooms.
Taylor looks at her phone. “The guys are on their way,” she says. “You’re coming to dinner with us, right?”
I shouldn’t. I should go home and go to sleep. I have to work in the morning. “Yep!” I hear myself say. What the heck. I’m not going to be able to sleep, anyway. Besides, Bryce won! And he’s the third star. Paige said that’s kind of a big deal.
I make a mental note to find some instructional books about hockey. Somehow, I don’t think the ones in the children’s section at the library will teach me all I need to learn.
“There are my girls,” Kingston says, pulling Taylor to him and placing soft kisses on her lips and the baby’s head. “Ready?”
Bryce leans in and kisses my cheek. The warmth of his lips lingers long after he pulls away. “Ready?” he echos.
“Yeah,” I say, my voice weirdly breathy.
“Fair warning,” he says softly. “Reporters are still hanging around. They’ll be taking pictures and asking questions, but we don’t have to stop or say anything.”
I nod. “I figured. It’s okay, Bryce. This is part of being a hockey player. I get it.” The reporters still make me want to crawl under a table somewhere and hide, but this is a part of his life I can’t avoid forever.
Bryce grins and places his hand at the small of my back, guiding me gently through the door. Paige and Colt fall into step behind us, and we walk down a maze of hallways and outside to a waiting rideshare minivan.
“Bryce,” a reporter calls out. “Who’s the girl?”
He looks at me and winks. “She’s my girlfriend,” he calls before shifting his body slightly to block me from the cameras all pointed in our direction.
Once everyone’s inside the car, and the door closes, Bryce places a hand on my knee. “Are you okay?”
I nod, still smiling. It’s surprising how well he can read me already.
“You handled that like a pro,” Paige says from her second-row captain’s chair, glancing over her shoulder to the back row where Bryce and I are squished together.
“Where are we headed?” I ask.
“Taylor sent a text for an Italian restaurant,” Colt says. He’s sitting in front of me, next to Paige. “Apparently Kingston’s entire family rented out the back room.”
His whole family?
Bryce’s stomach rumbles loud enough for the whole car to hear. “Sounds good to me,” he says, laughing.
A few minutes later, we pull up outside a charming brick building with a red and white awning over a heavy wooden door. “It smells good,” Colt says, opening the side door for us.
When we step inside the restaurant, the aroma of pasta sauce and garlic greets us.
Colt gives our information to the hostess, and we’re quickly led through a dimly lit dining room to a back area that’s more private.
There are globes with tea light candles as a centerpiece, giving the table a soft glow.
Pitchers of water are already on the table, with glasses at each place setting.
People are beginning to gather, and I hesitate, unsure where to sit. Bryce seems to understand my discomfort and gently steers me toward the back corner where a table is set for six.
“Why haven’t we been here before?” Paige asks, scooting her chair in.
“I don’t know, but if the food is half as good as it smells, it’s going on the list,” I reply.
“The list?” Bryce asks.
“We keep a list of places we like on our phones. If we can’t decide where to eat, we put the list into a random picker generator online and it chooses for us,” Paige says. “Saves us time.”
“That’s genius,” he says.
“Hadley came up with it,” Paige says.
“Do you mind if I steal that idea?” Colt asks.
“Not at all,” I say. “Honestly, I got the idea from a dating app.”
Bryce coughs, choking on his water. “You’re on a dating app?”
Paige snorts. “No, she refused to let me make her a profile.” She shakes her head like my refusal was ridiculous.
I shrug. “You never know who you’re meeting with those things. Besides, I’d kind of given up on dating for a while.”
“So, how did a dating app inspire this idea?” Colt asks.
“Well, you swipe right or left to decide who to date. Why not create something similar for food choices?” I say. “Except I’m not a programmer, so a random generator was the best I could come up with.”
Colt. “She’s smart,” he says to Bryce. “I hope you can keep up.”
Bryce laughs. “I think I’m doing okay so far.”
I nod. “That reminds me,” I say quietly to Bryce. “Mom and Dad asked if you could get away to have dinner tomorrow? I said I’d have to check.”
“What time?” he asks.
“They offered to meet us halfway around 7.” I refused to drive all the way to Maryland on a worknight, or I’m sure they would’ve insisted on having him over to their house. Besides, meeting at a restaurant feels safer somehow.
“That should work,” he says. He leans close and my breath catches. “I’m looking forward to it, Hadley. Don’t look so nervous.” He winks and moves back to his own space.
It’s getting louder, and then a cheer goes up as Kingston and Taylor arrive. The baby is immediately taken from her and I watch with interest as they greet and are greeted by over a dozen people from at least four generations, and more are arriving.
Taylor manages to sneak away and plops into a chair at our table. “King will be over soon. Mind if we join you?” She signals to a server who’s carrying a high chair. He sets it at the end of our table, and Taylor thanks him as she settles the baby in the seat.
I’m out of breath just watching the woman.
“They’re a lot at times,” she says, gesturing to the family, “but after so many years in Montana, we’re just glad to be back.” She grins and picks up a menu as Kingston settles into the seat across from her.
“Welcome in,” a waiter dressed smartly in all black with a white apron tied around his waist says, placing a basket of warm garlic bread in the center of the table. “Are we ready to order?”
Kingston and Colt order the lasagna. Taylor orders the chicken parmesan.
Paige looks at me. “Want to split the fettuccine?”
“Add chicken and I’m in,” I say.
“That sounds good,” Bryce says. “I’ll have the same.”
The waiter collects the menus and says he’ll be back shortly with our food.
“You didn’t order dessert,” Colt says, looking at Paige.
“I usually don’t,” she says.
“Hmm,” he grunts.
“Not everyone has a sweet tooth like you,” Kingston jokes.
I feel Bryce’s arm slide across the back of my chair. The warmth of his nearness seeps through the jersey and makes me want to lean into him. I’m going to miss him when he leaves, I realize. The thought almost makes me cry.
“Are you okay?” he asks, causing me to turn and meet his concerned eyes. “You just tensed up.”
“I’m okay,” I say. “Just realized Game 5 is the end.”
He smiles and wraps his arm around me, pulling me to his side. “Game 5 is the end of the tournament. It’s not the end of us, okay?” he asks.
“Are you coming to the gala?” Taylor asks.
I glance at Bryce.
“It’s something the organizers are putting together to celebrate the tournament,” he says. “I was going to ask you later, but Taylor beat me to it.”
I look across the table at Paige, who is grinning from ear to ear. “She’d love to,” she answers for me.
“Yeah?” Bryce asks, waiting for me to answer for myself.
“Sounds fun,” I say.
“It should be,” Taylor says. “It sounds like they’re going all out.
You should take Paige,” she says, turning her attention to Colt.
“You don’t want to be the only one without a date, and that way Hadley has a friend.
Well, two friends. I hope you consider me a friend,” she says, looking in my direction.
This woman is a mile a minute, and I love her for it. “Absolutely.”
“We can go dress shopping while they do their exit interviews on Wednesday,” she says. “Unless you already have something you’d like to wear?” She grins. “I didn’t bring anything. I figured I’d find something perfect in DC.”
“I might know where to go,” Paige says, smiling. “I can help you two pick out your outfits.”
Colt looks at her. “You already have something to wear?”
Kingston laughs. “I think you need to ask her to go with you, first,” he says.
Colt looks confused. “I thought Taylor did that for me already.”
I laugh at his hopelessness. “She’s not just going to assume you’re on board with someone else’s plan to take her.” I say, hoping that helps him out.
He turns to her and smiles. “Wanna go to a gala?” he asks.
“She does,” I answer when Paige turns bright pink, her mouth opening and closing like a fish out of water. “She’s just too busy internally freaking out to answer you.”
Taylor laughs. “Looks like it’s settled, then!”
Dinner arrives, and conversation flows naturally while we eat. Taylor’s telling stories about her cheerleading days, making everyone laugh. Who knew competitive cheer was so cut-throat?
“Now I’m glad I never tried out,” I say when there’s a pause in conversation. “That sounds intense.”
Taylor grins. “It was, but it was also amazing. I miss it.”
“What do you do now?” I ask.
“I’m a sports psychologist specializing in clinical counseling. I work with athletes and retired athletes, helping them strategize and cope with emotional distress, injuries, retirement, those kinds of things.” She tugs at her ponytail, almost as if she’s uncomfortable talking about what she does.
“She’s also an amazing mindset coach,” Kingston pipes in, and his expression has gone all moony. “No one gets you feeling better about yourself than my girl here.”
Taylor blushes redder than the marinara dipping sauce and quickly changes the subject, turning to me. “If you couldn’t be a librarian anymore, what would you be?”
“I can’t imagine not being a librarian,” I say. “I love my job.”
Kingston sighs. “Unfortunately for most athletes, our bodies quit before our hearts do.”
I glance at Bryce. “What would you do if you weren’t a hockey player?”
He shrugs. “Honestly? I have no idea. Probably coach peewee for my kids' teams or something. Thankfully, as long as nothing happens, I have a few more years before I need to think about that.”
“I think I want to do that, too,” Kingston says. “That’s how I got into hockey. My dad coached all us Brewer kids. And Taz Houlihan, too. He’s from our town.”
“I didn’t know that,” Colt says. “So we can blame your dad if the East wins Game 5?”
The guys laugh and the waiter comes by to clear the plates and brings dessert menus, just in case anyone changes their mind.
“You should order something,” Colt tells Paige. “We’re celebrating, after all. Seems like a good time to splurge.”
She shakes her head. “I couldn’t eat another bite.”
Colt frowns, but he lets it drop.
“Want to split some chocolate cake?” Bryce asks me.
“Sure,” I say. “That sounds good.” His offering to split dessert feels intimate. It reminds me of my grandparents before they passed away. No matter where we went, they always shared dessert. As a kid, I never understood why they didn’t ?each order their own.
Now I do.
I glance at Bryce, laughing at something Colt said, his green-tinted hair still visible under the soft lights.
I want a love story like that.
I want to be the couple that grows old together, sharing dessert, holding hands at the park, and watching the sunset together.
I’ve finally stopped wondering if this is real.
Now, I’m wondering what I’m going to do when the tournament ends and he leaves.
I’m not ready to say goodbye.