Chapter 5
Emalyn
My eyes stick longer than necessary to the pink hair but I peel them away when Ronan speaks.
“Hey, Sunshine” He grins. He looks adorable with a silly disguise.
I know it’s a disguise because why else would he be wearing a hat, sunglasses and a scarf inside.
His blonde hair pokes out from under his hat, the added length from the playoffs.
A lot of the players on the team stop shaving and getting haircuts because of the strange superstitions.
Goalies are notorious for theirs. Maybe even more than the other players.
His blue eyes are locked on mine as soon as I enter the room.
Giving him a little finger wave, I take my seat at the table next to Alli.
“You know you’re not supposed to be eating out and drinking alcohol during the playoffs.” Tate grumbled from the end of the table. Ronan snatches his sunglasses off in disbelief.
“You’re one to talk. You’re here too.” He thrusts a hand in Tate’s direction.
“I’m getting grilled chicken. You’re loading up on crap.” Tate scoffs. He quickly eats his words when a margarita is set directly in front of him and fajitas are delivered to our table. The shit eating grin on Ronan’s face is frame worthy.
“Whatever.” Tate rolls his eyes, “Aren’t you gonna introduce us to your friend?”
“Yeah, Ro. Don’t be rude.” I click my tongue. Ignoring the vicious curiosity taking place in my gut. A laugh escapes him. He quickly places his fist in front of his mouth to muffle it and clears his throat.
“Yes. Right. Uh… Friend. Introduce yourself.” Ronan says. There’s a thud under the table. Ronan makes a pained expression. We all stare at him. He can be so weird sometimes. “Shy. Sorry. Maybe next time.”
As weird as it is to see Ronan with a woman, I decide to suck it up and be the one to make them feel welcomed. That’s what good friends do right? I easily slide into the empty chair between us and tap the surprisingly firm shoulder.
“Hi, I’m—“ My mouth drops open when she— no, he turns. Tate’s margarita sprays across the table and Allison dissolves into a fit of giggles.
“Emalyn, meet Emalyn.” Ronan cackles, his head tipping back. My brain takes too long to process what I'm seeing. I shake my head, mouth ajar.
“Well, it’s obvious our disguises didn’t work.” Ryan sighs, shaking his head. He gets right back scarfing down his food like his life depends on it.
“What the hell?” I cover my mouth as it all sets in. I join their laughter, doing my best to ignore the immense relief that spreads warmly in my chest. No idea where that came from. “You guys are in the playoffs. Coach is going to kill you guys.”
“No, he won’t. Cause you’re not gonna say anything. Right?” Ryan says to me then to the room, “Right?”
He’s so obviously scared of Coach, it's adorable. Tate nods along with Ronan and they seem to make an unspoken pact.
“You guys are crazy. What are you going to do when Ryan moves out, now that he’s not a rookie anymore?” Allison asks.
“I already moved out.” Ryan says, taking a drink of his beer. “I’m in the new apartments not far from the arena. They’re really nice, actually.”
“Don’t worry, It won’t be long and Ro will be throwing you a party in your own house.” I joke. It seems to be Ronan’s thing. He says it makes people feel included in the group. He always says it’s “like a nice prank”.
“Please, don’t let him do that.” Ryan says, putting an arm on the back of my chair. Another thud sounds under the table. He grunts, shifting away from me and withdrawing his arm.
“No promises,” I smile down at my hands. It’s one of my favorite things about my friend. Ronan makes everyone feel like they belong.
Maybe if I let myself, he could make me feel that way too. Like my broken pieces could be worth… something.
But then, what could I offer him in return? Alli’s words ring in my head.
It’s every foster kid’s dream to have a big family of their own.
He deserves that.
A big house full of ridiculously gorgeous kids.
I will never be able to give him that, so I can’t stand in the way of it. Even if it kills me inside.