18. Chapter 18 #2
“I kinda want to hate it but it wasn’t terrible,” Ethan admitted. “Playing with Gabby was actually pretty fun.”
“Yeah. He’s got the speed and the skill to keep up with you. Something you didn’t have on the line you were on.”
“Not cool,” Ethan retorted.
The corner of Hank’s mouth tilted up. “Just telling it like it is.”
“And you’re happy and Charlie’s happy and Max is happy. Baby bro’s protected.”
“I think we’re all happy about that, sure, but maybe happier you might score some goals and we could win some games.”
“Yeah.” Ethan glanced behind him. Avery was sitting by himself, three rows back.
Maybe Ethan should’ve gone out of his way to sit with him, especially after tonight’s game, but he had a feeling that even if he had, Avery wouldn’t have confided in him.
He would confide in Charlie, but Charlie was allergic to sitting with anyone but Max on the bus.
Still, maybe Charlie would seek him out at the hotel tonight or tomorrow morning.
Worst-case scenario, when they met up with Livvy tomorrow, hopefully she’d smack some sense into him.
Avery couldn’t possibly be a one-man miracle. Nobody was expecting him to be.
Well. Actually. That wasn’t true. But he couldn’t be that, no matter what anyone thought.
“You still going out with your sister for coffee?” Hank asked.
Ethan nodded.
“I was thinking . . . maybe we could do lunch or dinner after? I also heard the aquarium’s pretty good,” Hank suggested. He was flushed a little brighter pink than normal, and Ethan felt his heart melt.
“Like a date?”
Hank nodded.
“I’d like that. Livvy’s got to take off, they’ve got practice and a travel day after, so yeah, coffee in the morning’s the best we can do, all four of us.” Ethan made a face.
“Sucks,” Hank said.
“I can stay with Charlie tonight if you don’t want me to wake you up tomorrow—”
But Ethan didn’t even get the whole sentence out before Hank was shaking his head emphatically. “No, you’re staying with me,” Hank insisted. Then he paused. “That is, if you want to. Like, if you want the space . . .”
“No, no space wanted or needed,” Ethan said softly and let his head tip onto Hank’s shoulder. He tried not to do this too much in team spaces, but it was late, he was tired, and it had been a frustrating game. If only he’d made that fucking shot.
He let out a heavy sigh.
“Don’t,” Hank murmured. “Keep being Ethan, okay?”
He didn’t have to say, don’t turn into Charlie, or even Avery. Overthinking everything. Trying to be everyone’s fucking savior, even if nobody asked you to be. Especially if nobody asked you to be.
“If you’ll keep being Hank,” Ethan retorted fondly.
“You’d have to stop me.” Hank shot him a sweet smile and then slung an arm around him, pulling him in more firmly. “Come on. Get a few minutes of rest, now. You’ve earned it.”
Like Ethan had actually made the shot.
And maybe, Ethan thought as he drifted off, maybe to Hank it really didn’t matter that he hadn’t.
“Whose ass do I need to kick first?” Livvy asked when the four of them were finally settled around the coffee shop table with their orders in front of them.
Avery had dark circles under his eyes like he hadn’t gotten much sleep the night before. Jet lag was probably fucking with him, Ethan thought, or maybe it was everything else.
Yeah. Probably everything else. Ethan reached out and put an arm around his shoulders, tugging him into a quick half hug, and Avery shot him a small smile.
Charlie didn’t look much better, beanie pulled down low over his forehead like he didn’t want to be recognized.
Ethan didn’t say anything about how stupid he was, because he was trying to be a good brother.
And Livvy, clearly, was trying to be a good sister, so he’d help her out.
“Well, I don’t need my ass kicked,” Ethan said. He took it as a win that his statement only came out a tiny bit smug.
Avery made a face and Charlie groaned in the back of his throat.
“What?” Ethan said. “I went to Max’s line. Everyone should be celebrating that I did it and I didn’t even whine about it too much.”
“We should be celebrating that, for sure,” Avery retorted dryly. “Only a little bit of whining.”
“That’s unfair,” Ethan argued.
Livvy rounded on Charlie first. “We’re gonna start with you, ’cause Avery gets like half a free pass, since his entire life just got uprooted.”
Charlie grunted.
“You should give Charlie like a quarter of a free pass,” Ethan said.
Livvy raised a blond eyebrow. “I should, huh?”
“Don’t say she should just because he’s Charlie.” Avery shot Ethan a hard-ish look. Probably the hardest look he was capable of, under the circumstances.
“Well, he is Charlie,” Ethan pointed out.
“I hate you all,” Charlie announced, like this was news.
“He should get a quarter of a free pass because he’s the middle child, obviously,” Ethan said, like they should all know this.
“I do not have middle-child syndrome, for the millionth fucking time,” Charlie argued.
“Sure, definitely not,” Livvy said, meeting Ethan’s eyes before they both burst into laughter.
“Was there a point to all this?” Charlie complained.
Livvy straightened and picking up her coffee cup began to gesture with it.
“Yes, actually,” she said primly. “The point is that you don’t have to do it all yourself.
You never had to, because you had Max, but now you have Ethan and Avery, too.
You’ve got all these people in your corner and all these are people who love you, who can help you win. ”
Ethan applauded, so loudly they got a few weird looks from the other people in the coffee shop, and Charlie shot him a glare.
“I should’ve brought Max; he’d be on my side.”
That was apparently the step too far for Avery. His jaw dropped as he stared at Charlie. “To our family coffee? Eth didn’t even bring Tuck—”
“Leave me and Hank out of this,” Ethan interrupted.
“And,” Avery continued with emphasis, like Ethan hadn’t said anything, “they’re actually dating.”
Charlie’s expression froze. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“Nothing,” Avery said, but Ethan was relieved that he didn’t exactly sound convincing.
“We’re getting off topic,” Livvy said gently.
“I know you’re all neurotic and shit, Charlie, but this is a good thing.
You’ve got your brother back. And as for that brother—” She broke off, pinning Avery with a hard look.
“You get the same lecture, but with a gentler delivery. Enjoy this opportunity, okay? See it as an opportunity.”
“How did you get so smart?” Ethan asked, even though he had a few good theories why.
Livvy just laughed. “It’s my extra X chromosome.”
When Ethan just looked confused, Avery barked out a laugh. “She means we’re all idiot men.”
“Well, that’s true,” Ethan agreed.
“As for you,” Livvy said, turning to Ethan. “Stop worrying about the protection thing. And even more, stop worrying deep down about being the next Charlie—”
“Hey,” Ethan argued.
He didn’t do that. He wouldn’t do that.
“Sure, you would never,” Livvy said wryly.
“Maybe you guys didn’t win that game, but I bet if Silas had put out that line earlier, the Gabby-Max-Eth line, I think you might’ve.
You just didn’t have enough time to create enough opportunities.
Honestly? Protection or no protection, I’d have put you together ages ago because that’s a powerhouse of a second line. ”
Ethan didn’t say anything because he was half convinced his sister was right.
And he wanted her to be right, but he also still wanted her to be wrong.
To go back to the sure certainty that he was a center, that he’d always be a center.
Too many things were shifting, and they weren’t all bad.
Livvy was right about Avery. That was an opportunity.
Maybe playing on Max’s wing could be the same.
“I’m not gonna disagree with any of that,” Charlie said, apparently deciding that this was important enough to comment on to come out of his sulk. Ethan wasn’t stupid enough to think it was because of him; it was probably only because Livvy had brought Max up.
“Me either,” Avery chimed in and Ethan rolled his eyes.
“So you’re going to pretend now that this is all because I should be a winger, and not because you want Max to stop guys from checking me too hard?” Ethan asked archly.
But Livvy just shrugged. “The best coaching decisions have multiple reasons behind them. Will Max protect you better? Sure. Will playing wing give you some more dimension as a player and give your team a better second line? Yep, also true.”
“And that’s why you’re so fucking good at your job,” Avery chimed in. He sipped his coffee, looking marginally more awake than he had ten minutes ago. “How’s it going for you, Liv?”
“Oh, you know. Fine.” Livvy waved a hand. Like it was no big deal to be slaying it like she was. Gorgeous and good at hockey and fucking brilliant, too. It was an embarrassment of riches. Nobody was cooler or smarter or better than Livvy.
“Oh, yeah, just fine,” Avery said, chuckling darkly under his breath. “You’re not going to talk about it, then?”
“Talk about what?” she said, but Ethan was pretty sure she exchanged some kind of knowing glance with Avery.
“Okay,” Avery said. “I get it.”
“Get what?” Charlie wanted to know, because of course the worse thing in the universe would be a secret that Charlie didn’t know.
“It’s nothing,” Avery said dismissively, and Charlie made a face.
“Dude, not everything’s about you,” Ethan reminded his brother. “Livvy’s allowed to not tell us shit.”
She smiled. Reached over and patted Ethan on the head. “You’re a good guy, Eth. Next time bring Tuck, okay? I’ve heard so much about this guy, I want to meet him.”
“Oh he’s just your typical hockey guy,” Charlie said. Even though Hank was very much not the typical hockey guy.
Ethan bristled about it, but then Livvy only laughed. “Someday, kiddo, you’re gonna realize when Charlie’s riling you up on purpose.”
“Funny he manages to do it back just fine,” Charlie muttered. “No, but Hank’s cool. A good guy. A good d-man, too.”