Chapter 26

Delia

Jack. How in the hell? This coat is incredible

It fits perfectly btw

Thank you

Delia stared at her phone as the car pulled up to the Marriott ICE District at noon. No response. She hadn"t expected Jack to text back, he was probably with his team and unable to even see her messages. It didn't relieve the excitement.

That same feeling overtook her, when she'd bolted down the stairs and kissed him in front of his teammates. Like a tea kettle at a full boil about to whistle. How did he keep doing that? Surprising her so thoroughly that she felt like an overfilled balloon.

"You coming?" Mary was already halfway out the door.

Delia nodded. She donned a toque and sunglasses, zipped up her Big Rick coat, and walked in with Mary and Alvin while their driver grabbed their bags and delivered them to the bellhops. Tony had arranged things with the hotel, so all they had to do was show up at the check-in desk and show Mary"s ID. With keys in hand, they walked back to the car and got in.

"What time are we meeting everyone?" Mary asked.

Delia pulled out her phone. "Clara said they were all checking in around the same time as us. We can just head over and find something to do until they"re ready?"

Mary nodded and gave their driver the go ahead once Alvin was in the front seat. They had all afternoon to kill before heading to Roger"s Place for the game, and West Edmonton Mall was the place to be. All the Snowballs players were staying there since it was cheaper and more fun for Curtis"s kids and Ryan"s daughter, Amaya. Delia was honoured that she and Mary had been included in the invitation to hang out with the rest of the team.

"It"s incredible, right? That Jack"s old team would drive all the way up here–bring their families–when they have their own playoff game on Thursday?" Delia watched out the windows, looking for anything familiar. She"d played multiple shows there, but didn"t remember much since she"d stayed next to the venues.

"Honestly, I never thought hockey players cared about anything more than scoring and beer."

Delia snorted. "I see what you did there."

"Seriously, though. It"s been an education." Mary swept her perfectly straight hair behind her ear. "I think Jack"s great, Dels."

Delia stared harder through the glass. "Mmhmm."

"Mmhmm? That"s all you have to say?"

"Yep." Her head started to spin. It was true. There wasn"t a cohesive thought in her head that she could string into something intelligible. She ran her fingers over the smooth fabric of the coat Jack gave her. Her thoughts about Jack were more images than words.

He was a bobbing throat and a lazy blink. A hand half shoved in a pocket. A beautifully uneven nose. A smile with all teeth. Dark chocolate fondue eyes.

Not to mention the feelings that tagged along. Warmth that sank into her skin like she was sitting below the rink heaters. Laughter that bubbled through her chest. A comfort blanket. Home.

Guilt coated that last word with a slick sheen, and Delia pulled out her phone and clicked on the text chain with her mom. She needed to get her out for a visit ASAP.

Delia

Morning! I know you"re probably at work, but I want you to know I love you! I"m in Edmonton for the next two days. I"ll phone in a bit? ??

"Are you going to tell me about the coat?" Mary asked.

Delia set the phone in her lap. "I did. Jack worked for Big Rick, and?—"

"I saw your face, Delia. I know there"s more to it than that." Mary huffed a breath. "You"re not talking to me like you normally do."

Delia shifted in her seat. "We haven"t exactly had a lot of alone time."

"But even when we do, you"re just . . . I don"t know. You hate superficial conversations, and now it feels like that"s all we have."

Delia"s cheeks warmed. "It hasn't only been one-sided." She sent a meaningful look to Alvin in the front passenger seat, and Mary"s eyes widened. Her mouth opened and closed like a fish, then she turned to face the opposite window.

Delia winced. She searched for something to say to lessen the impact of her last sentence when her phone buzzed in her purse. She pulled it out while she searched for the right apology.

Jack

Wow. Didn't think a coat would warrant an I love you

Delia blinked. She re-read Jack's text, then scrolled up and groaned. The last message she'd sent. It had been meant for her mom but ended up going to Jack instead. Just screwing up with everyone it seemed.

Delia

I've said it for a lot less

She regretted it the instant she sent it. It wasn't true. She'd never said "I love you" to someone. And Jack had.

He'd never stopped loving the person he'd said it to.

Delia's mouth dried out like it had been swabbed by strips of gauze as she typed.

Delia

Kidding! That text was meant for my mom. Sorry, I'm not detail oriented in the least

Now I want to intercept more texts. Preferably juicier

That would require me to have relationships outside of you, Mary, and my mom

Mary. Delia exhaled. "Mary, I didn't mean?—"

"It's fine." Mary cut her off. What was happening between them lately? Mary had been distant, but had she spent two seconds thinking about it? She hadn't made time for two seconds of thinking about it.

Delia looked back at her phone.

Jack

Top three. I'll take it

Her blood hummed under her skin. That was flirting, right? It was hard to read tone over text, but that had to be flirting.

I'm excited to watch the game tonight!

At least she could say something right to someone.

I think I might throw up. So same

Delia snorted, then remembered she was still in a car with three other humans. And one of them was annoyed with her.

Chug a litre of water. Always used to work for me before a big show

Thanks. I'd brush my teeth between periods but I don't have anyone stocking extra toothbrushes in the dressing room

I'll let Mary know you're in need of her services

Jack sent a laugh emoji but didn't write back.

She and Mary sat in silence the rest of the way to the mall. When the car pulled to a stop, Delia pushed her door open and drew a deep breath of the crisp spring air, then pulled her new coat tighter around her.

"It doesn"t look like much," Mary said as they walked through the doors to entrance twenty-four. She wasn"t wrong. The outer walls looked like any regular mall they had back home in Toronto.

"How high do these numbers go up?" Delia"s voice echoed as they pushed through the airlock with Alvin a few steps behind. Sears was on their right, so they turned left and started down the hall. It was the middle of the week and at that time of day, there weren"t many people wandering through the shops. Delia still pulled her toque a little lower over her head to hide her waves.

"Do you know where we"re supposed to meet them?" Mary asked.

"Probably by the hotel, I would think." Delia pulled out her phone to see if anyone had texted.

Emma

Almost ready. Meet at the pirate ship?

"Let"s find a map." Delia scanned until she found one, grateful they were on a mission so they didn"t have to deal with whatever had happened in the car. Mary"s words ran through her head. Now it feels like that"s all we have.

The words stung because they were true. When was the last time Delia had opened up to Mary? Talked about something real? When was the last time she talked to anyone about something real? Moments ticked one by one in her head, and they all had one person in common. Jack.

Delia swallowed the lump in her throat as she scanned the map, trying to orient herself. "I think . . . maybe I have feelings for Jack. And I know that"s stupid because he"s only with me because he"s being paid, which, ugh. That sounds so pathetic saying it out loud and ridiculous that I"m even entertaining the idea that there could be something more, but Mares. He makes me feel things, and I think about him all the time, and he"s been there for me even when he didn"t have to be, and I"m nervous and confused, and I think excited because I haven"t met someone like this in so stupid long, and?—"

Mary pulled her into a hug, and Delia"s eyes filled with tears. "Thank you for finally admitting it. I can see it all over your face every time you talk about him or look at him."

"I didn"t want to say it because what if—" Delia sucked in a breath. What if it was all in her head? What if Jack was just bucking athlete stereotypes left and right and happened to be the most thoughtful, sensitive guy who?—

Delia pulled back in a panic. "Damn it, Mary! What if he"s gay?" That would be exactly her luck. Find the guy of her dreams through Tony, of all people, and he wasn't even remotely attracted to her.

Mary laughed out loud. "Oh. He"s not gay." She shook her head resolutely.

"But that would make sense, wouldn"t it? Why he was willing to do this in the first place?"

"He didn"t want to do this in the first place. You had to bully him into it."

Delia scoffed. "I didn"t bully him!"

"And wasn"t he engaged?"

Delia"s heart rate immediately dropped. Right. Jack had been engaged. To a woman who died.

She exhaled, and her shoulders slumped. So why hadn't he tried anything? He'd obviously pushed past his initial physical hesitancy. They'd had plenty of opportunities, but it was always her pushing past the boundaries of their contract.

What if there was something else? What if it was her? Or . . . what if it wasn't her, but he wasn't ready to move on with anyone? She couldn't decide which option was worse.

He"d told her as much, hadn't he? In the café over breakfast? I have things, he'd said and she"d been more than happy to accept that. She was broken. He was broken. Perfect. But now? The idea of his things making it so he didn't want to touch her—didn't want to be with her—made her stomach ache.

Mary pointed at the map. "There"s the hotel."

They continued on down the hall and made their way past the ice rink. Delia gaped at the tall ceilings and massive sunroof. "I"m sorry I haven"t been opening up."

Mary exhaled. "You were right. I haven"t exactly been forthcoming either."

Delia glanced behind them, making sure Alvin was out of earshot. "Is there something going on between you two?"

Mary pursed her lips, linking her arm with Delia. "There can"t be because that would be problematic with his job."

"To protect us?"

"Technically, he"s just hired to protect you."

Delia turned to look in a tattoo parlor. She"d never seen one of those in a mall before. "Well, if he"s interested in you, wouldn"t that increase the chances that he"d do everything possible to protect your best friend?"

Mary gave her a sidelong glance. "Theoretically."

Delia laughed. They walked past the aquarium and finally spotted the Snowballs group in front of the pirate ship. Clara ran forward and gave them both hugs, then introduced them to the people they hadn"t officially met, even though Jack had given her the rundown in the stands.

Their first stop was Bourbon Street. They perused the long line of restaurants and settled on an Italian place for lunch, then the rest of the afternoon was taken up with mini golf, laser tag, skating—which Delia was more than happy to watch from the sidelines—and a lengthy discussion with Amaya about how they didn"t have time to go to the water park before the game, but they"d absolutely go in the morning before they drove back to Calgary. It was a team effort, and Penny was finally able to convince her that Galaxyland, the indoor amusement park, was more fun in the afternoon anyway.

By the time they parted ways to get back to their hotel in time to change for the game, Delia felt like she"d known the whole group for far longer than four hours. Better yet, she felt closer to Mary than she had in weeks. Which was a good thing since she started to spiral the second they walked into their hotel room.

"Where"s my bag?" Delia moved Mary"s to make sure she wasn"t crazy. She checked the closet, the washroom, the opposite side of the second queen bed. Nothing.

"I can run down to the front desk?"

Delia shook her head. "We can tell them it"s missing on the way out, but we don"t have time for them to search for it. We need to be at the rink in fifteen minutes."

Mary nodded and flopped her bag on its side, then unzipped the suitcase and opened it like a clamshell. She pulled out her toiletry bag. "You can use anything in there."

Delia took her up on it. She reapplied blush and powder on her forehead, then used a flosser, and lastly slathered Aquaphor on her lips. She'd had an outfit picked out for the game, but it wasn't like what she was wearing was terrible. A little more casual, maybe, but at least her sweater was blue.

"Ready?" Mary stood at the door. Delia set her makeup back in the case and grabbed her coat and toque. Her hair was already flat from wearing it at the mall, so she wasn't going without it.

Alvin found them in the lobby and they all hopped in the car for the short drive to the arena where full chaos ensued. Reporters and paparazzi swarmed them as they exited the car, making it almost comical that nobody had approached them in the mall earlier.

She signed a few autographs for kids and teens who were lined up at the barriers, her favourite being a glossy picture of Jack with his signature already on the top right corner. Warmth spread through her at the sight of their names scrawled in Sharpie next to each other.

They walked down the mostly empty corridors to their booth and got settled. Delia was about to grab the spoon for the queso dip when the door to the suite opened. She looked up and was fairly certain her spirit left her body.

Standing in front of her was a slight woman with dark hair that swooped over her forehead and a man that looked exactly like Jack.

Twenty years older Jack.