Chapter 20 #2
I laughed, squeezing her tight, making a mental note to tell Liam how excited she was, just in case she reverted back to moodiness by the time he saw her.
“Those were some awesome goals,” I said, releasing her.
“Glad to hear you think so,” a deep voice rumbled, and I snapped my head up to see Liam towering over us. He’d already taken his shower and was now dressed in a shirt and tie, his hair still wet around his ears. My knees felt a little weak—God, the man was gorgeous.
“Daddy!” Josie cried, flinging herself at him, and I could see the way his entire body seemed to melt with relief as he lifted her into his arms. My heart ached as I watched him pick her up off the ground and hold her tight, whispering something in her ear that made her laugh.
Every ounce of his love for her was clear on his face, and it really hit home how hard these last few months must have been for him, watching helplessly as she turned away from him over and over.
“Not a bad game, son,” a man said, coming up next to Liam. I did a double take when I realized it wasn’t Peter, who I had been expecting. No, this was a man I hadn’t seen in a decade. Josie’s other grandfather—Liam’s dad.
“Hey,” he said, setting Josie down, his entire face lit up and happy. “I didn’t think you guys were gonna make it when I heard the flight was delayed!”
“We barely had time to pick Josie up at Evelyn and Peter’s,” Mr. O’Conner said, then grabbed his six-foot-five son into a bone crushing hug.
“Nana!” Josie called, bouncing on her feet in excitement, “come meet my teacher!”
My mouth dropped open a bit when I saw Leigh O’Conner coming up behind her husband in the crowded hallway.
It had been years since I saw her last, and while there was a lot more grey in her hair, mostly everything else remained the same.
Same short, roundish figure. Same soft blue eyes, the exact shade as her son’s. Same sweet, loving smile.
When she saw me, she gasped. “Grace Knight, is that you?”
I swallowed, feeling a lump come to my throat as the woman threw her arms around me. A hundred memories rushed over me as I took in her familiar scent—cinnamon and vanilla, exactly the way her kitchen always smelled.
“Hi,” I managed to whisper, feeling close to tears, and she tightened her arms around me.
This was the woman who had cooked more meals for me than my own mother, the woman who had taught me to bake a cake from scratch, taught me to knit.
Came to more than one of my senior year debate club matches because she knew I was the only person on the team to never have a familiar face in the audience.
I didn’t think Liam had ever realized just how much his family had meant to me back then.
“When Liam told me he’d been traded to Andrew’s team I just prayed it meant he’d see you again,” she said into my ear. “And then he told us you were Josie’s teacher! I couldn’t believe our good luck.” Her voice sounded choked up. “It is so, so good to see you, honey.”
I closed my eyes tight, letting the warmth of her hug wash over me. I was sure I was going to start crying, right in front of my brother’s players and my own student. But then I felt a comforting hand on the small of my back and I just knew that Liam had come over to stand next to me.
Maybe he realized how much his family meant to me after all.
Leigh O’Conner finally released me, wiping at her cheeks a little, and I didn’t feel so embarrassed about the wetness in my own eyes. “You know Miss K?” Josie asked.
“I knew Miss K before you were even born,” Leigh said, ruffling her granddaughter’s hair. Liam’s dad pulled me into a hug then, not as long as his wife’s but just as warm.
“Look at how nice this is!” Leigh said. “All of us here together to celebrate such an exciting win.”
“Told you I’d score for you,” Liam whispered into my ear, and all the hairs on the back of my neck stood up at the feel of his warm breath across my skin.
I happened to look over at his mom and saw a sly little smile on her lips as she watched us.
I was sure she had noticed my reaction, and I felt a familiar blush coming to my cheeks. Just great.
Luckily Jay showed up then, hopefully distracting everyone from the tomato blooming on my cheeks. “If it isn’t the O’Conner family,” he said cheerily. “How’s everyone doing?”
“Jason Briggs,” Liam’s dad said, slapping his back. “You nearly gave me a heart attack with that goal.”
He chuckled, shaking hands with Mr. O’Conner. “I nearly gave myself a heart attack with that goal.”
“I can’t believe you scored, Uncle Jay!” Josie cried, and he picked her up just like her Daddy had done, kissing the top of her head.
“I couldn’t believe it either,” he laughed.
“And the game winner, too!” Josie went on as he put her down. “Has that ever happened?”
Jay narrowed his eyes at Liam. “What exactly do you tell your daughter about me?”
Liam just shrugged, looking about as happy as I had ever seen him. He’d won the home opener, scored two goals, and was now celebrating with his parents, best friend, and daughter. Then his hand flexed on my back and I realized I just might be part of that happiness as well.
“Hate to break up the party,” Jay said. “But Skylar wants us both at the press conference.”
“You’re doing the press conference!” Josie crowed, and Jay actually looked a little sheepish.
“Will wonders never cease, right?” He looked at Liam. “We should get going.”
Liam nodded then leaned down to whisper in my ear again. “Don’t you go anywhere.”
I shook my head, trying to manage my reaction to him. He winked at me once, ruffled Josie’s hair, then followed Jay down the hall to the press room.
I chatted easily with the O’Conner’s, Josie doing most of the work. I didn’t think I had ever seen her so excited or talkative. I said a little prayer that this would be a fresh start for her and her dad.
The guys weren’t gone long, and the hallway hadn’t cleared out much by the time they came back. “We should have brought you all to the family lounge,” Liam said. “I keep forgetting all the fancy amenities this place has.”
“You think it’s a step up for you,” Jay said. “My last team played in a rec center. Our practices were regularly cut short by figure skating lessons for six-year-olds.”
We all laughed and Mr. O’Conner slapped Jay on the back. “You keep playing the way you played tonight, son, and you won’t be heading back to the minors anytime soon.”
“I’m starving,” Liam said. “We’re all up for dinner, right?”
Josie looked ready to jump out of her skin with excitement. It must already be past her bedtime. “Me too?”
“You too, Josie-girl,” Liam said. “You can go in a little bit late tomorrow, since it’s a special occasion.” He winked at me. “If your teacher doesn’t mind.”
I grinned at her. “I guess I’ll allow it.”
“You’re coming too, right Miss K?”
“Uh…” my eyes scanned the hallway. “I should probably see what my brother is up to.” Knowing Andy, he was likely already back to work, but you never knew. If he wanted to go out to celebrate with the management team, I should probably be there.
“Invite him along!” Mrs. O’Conner said. “It would be nice to catch up with another Minnesotan.”
The look of horror on Liam’s face would be funny if I wasn’t equally horrified at the prospect of spending an evening with both him and my brother.
Before either of us could argue with this plan, Andy appeared at my side. “There you are,” he said. “Thought you got lost in the crowd.”
“Hey, Andy,” I said, and from the way his eyes narrowed I could tell he caught how high-pitched my voice had gone. And that right there was exactly why this dinner would be a bad idea. I could never hide anything from my brother. Stupid twin powers.
“Andrew Knight,” Mrs. O’Conner said. “How nice to see you!”
I watched as my brother adopted his professional facade and greeted Liam’s parents.
Anyone else watching would probably see his expression as warm, but I knew better.
This was the persona Andy had forced himself to adopt when he went into business.
He didn’t want his colleagues and competitors to see him as a bitter kid, someone with a chip on his shoulder—that would be too easy to exploit.
So he’d worked hard to show the world this version of himself, instead.
The confident, friendly, unaffected business tycoon.
“Josie this is my brother, Andy,” I said. “Andy, this is a very special student in my class, Josie O’Conner.”
He held out his hand to shake the little girl’s and she stared up at him with wide eyes. “My Granny said you have more money than God,” she whispered, and Andy let out a true bark of laughter.
“I haven’t seen God’s quarterly earnings, so I can’t say for sure.”
“Andrew, we were just discussing dinner,” Liam’s dad said. “We’d love for you and Grace to join us.”
Andy glanced down at his watch. “I have a conference call with some Chinese investors in a few hours,” he said. Then his eyes traveled from me to Liam, who was once again standing very close to me, before narrowing. “But I suppose I could spare a few hours to eat with my sister and her friends.”
I could practically feel the tension radiating off of Liam. Across from us, Jay looked like he was trying very hard not to laugh.
Seeing no way out of the awkwardness I was sure was coming, I plastered on a smile. “Shall we head out then?”