CHAPTER NINE

The move has gone pretty well so far,Matty decided as he stacked a few boxes in Antoni's room with a happy smile.

Antoni had labeled everything really well and with so many of Matty's teammates helping out, loading had gone quickly. Hopefully unloading would go just as fast.

But when he stepped into the hall to look for more boxes, he came face-to-face with Antoni, who looked a little wild around the eyes.

"Matty!" Antoni hissed. He grabbed the front of Matty's T-shirt and tugged him toward the bedroom. "What the fuck?"

"What?" Matty asked, baffled, as he allowed himself to be pulled inside. "What did I do?"

"You—what about the guest house?" Antoni flung his hands out. "What the fuck?"

Matty frowned, confused. "What about it? I moved all my stuff into there."

"Oh my God. You—I … But I thought that we were staying in there. Me and the kids."

Matty squinted. "But there's only two bedrooms there and there's five of you. That's not enough space."

Antoni sputtered. "We'd make do! I've been sleeping on the couch for months and the kids have been doubling up. It would've been fine. For what I'm saving in rent, we'd make it work."

"You shouldn't be sleeping on the couch!" Matty protested, horrified by the idea. "That is so bad for your neck and back. No, you are sleeping in here."

Antoni looked around the space like he was bewildered. "But this is … this is huge."

"I know, right?" Matty smiled happily. "You're going to be so comfortable. And look, there's a little sitting area where you can do your lesson planning stuff if you want peace and quiet."

"I don't even know what peace and quiet is anymore," Antoni mumbled. He turned to look at Matty. "And you … the kids' rooms! They're perfect! You had to have done all that design stuff recently. They weren't like that when I toured the place."

"Well, I didn't do it," Matty said with a shrug. "It was mostly Charlie. It's his job, you know. He medaled at the Olympics in figure skating but he's an amazing interior designer too. If they gave out gold medals for design, he'd totally win them."

"Oh my God. How much money did you spend on this?" Antoni asked, covering his face with his hands.

"None of your business," Matty said firmly. "Besides, it's a gift from the whole team."

Which was true.

"But …"

"No buts. I want the kids to feel safe and welcome here and the guys got really excited when they found out what Charlie and I were planning. They all chipped in."

"Oh my God." Antoni looked up, then closed his eyes like he couldn't even stand to look at him. "Matty …"

"Did I do something wrong?" Matty asked, worried he'd really fucked up. He'd thought he was doing something nice. And maybe it was a little over the top but …

"No." But when Antoni opened his eyes, he still didn't look happy. "Maybe? I don't know. I'm just overwhelmed. It's so much more than I expected. We were totally happy with the idea of staying in the guest house. I didn't want you to give up your whole house and redecorate for us and—"

"But this makes me happy," Matty pointed out. "I didn't mean to upset you or make you uncomfortable, I just wanted the kids to know that this is their home now. They've been through so much. You all have! And moving to a new place is overwhelming and scary. I wanted you all to feel welcome."

"Fuck!" Antoni said forcefully but he threw his arms around Matty hard enough that if Matty had been any smaller, he might have fallen over. "God, you are the nicest human who ever lived, I swear."

Relieved, Matty hugged him back. "Well, I don't know about that."

"You are though." Antoni hadn't let go so Matty just rubbed his back, liking the way Antoni's head fit right against his shoulder, his hair brushing Matty's neck and chin. "I don't know what we did to deserve all this but …"

"It's not about deserving," Matty said, confused by that idea. "It's about … it's about taking care of people when you can, I think. If the kids are happy and I'm happy then you should be happy too."

Laughing, Antoni pulled back but he didn't let go of Matty, arms still circling his waist. "I am happy. I'm just scared to trust anything right now. I think we all are. It feels like the rug could get yanked out from under us at any time."

"Yeah, I get that," Matty said. He cupped Antoni's face and brushed his thumb across his cheek. "You've all been through a lot lately. But I'm not gonna yank the rug out from under you, I promise. If you'll just let me make your lives a little easier …"

"God, I feel like I shouldn't." Antoni looked up through his lashes and something in Matty's stomach went tight when Antoni's lips parted and he wet them. "I want to but …"

"Trust me," Matty whispered. "You can trust me, Antoni, I swear."

Antoni released a shuddering sigh. "I want to."

"It's okay," Matty promised. "Doesn't have to be today or tomorrow. I'm not going anywhere."

Matty suddenly felt off-balance like they were talking about something and he didn't really know what it was. Something more than just moving in and decorating and all that but he wasn't sure what that would be so he squeezed Antoni a little tighter and said, "Now, do you want to see the rest of the place?"

"Uh, yeah," Antoni said, clearing his throat as he pulled back, gaze sliding away from Matty's. "That's a good idea."

Antoni followed Matty out of the room in a daze. He still couldn't believe how much Matty and the team had done for him and the kids. It was crazy.

And Antoni had made it awkward, getting all up in Matty's space like that. The hug was one thing, but to look at Matty and think about what it would be like to kiss him … yeah, he'd crossed a line.

He'd just been so overwhelmed by Matty's generosity and sweetness. All of the team's, really. But Matty was the one who had started it all. And he hadn't just made space in his house, he'd made it their space.

Who wouldn't get a little mushy after a gesture like that?

Plus, Matty hadn't seemed awkward about Antoni flinging himself at him like an idiot so hopefully he'd just taken it as a friendly gesture. Because while Antoni wanted to believe that Matty had wanted that too—there had been that sweet little brush of his thumb on Antoni's cheek—he couldn't be sure it wasn't just wishful thinking.

What if Matty was like that with all his teammates?

Antoni would just have to keep himself in check going forward. No hitting on the landlord, he reminded himself sternly. Though Matty seemed like anything but the typical landlord.

He already felt like a friend.

A friend who looked and smelled really, really good.

"Reese's room is the closest," Matty said, stopping in the doorway. "Right next to yours."

Antoni stared at the room. It was so perfect. The walls were deep sage green with white trim, and the room held a light wood crib and a big, cozy black and white rug on the hardwood floors. There was a comfortable-looking upholstered rocking chair and a stool for Antoni to put his feet on, with shelves nearby to hold books.

Perfect for when he read to Reese before bed.

There was a dresser with a changing table and a little bit of hanging space. There were cubbies with baskets to hold all of the stuff babies needed—which, if Antoni wasn't mistaken, were not things they'd brought with them—and everything looked so soft and cozy and relaxing already.

"Do you like it?" Matty asked anxiously. "Charlie suggested doing something neutral that could be transitioned into a space for a bigger kid as he grows and …"

Antoni's eyes swam. "It's perfect," he whispered, even though they wouldn't be here long enough for that to happen.

"Good." Matty squeezed his shoulder. "I'm glad."

"Is someone missing a baby?"

Antoni glanced over to see Matty's captain carrying Reese.

"Whoops," Antoni said. He'd carried a snoozing Reese into the house in a carrier and left him in the living room, tucked safely out of the way. "I didn't even hear him cry. This house is too big. I can take him if you want."

Dustin chuckled but made no move to hand Reese over. "No, he wasn't crying. Just awake and curious about his surroundings so I decided to give him a little tour of the place. Hope you don't mind. And don't worry about leaving him with us. With as cute as this little guy is, I'm not sure you'll ever get him back. We've all been taking turns carrying him around, haven't we?"

Dustin smiled and tickled Reese's belly, making him squeal happily.

Matty smirked. "Feeling a touch of baby fever there, D?"

"He better not be," Charlie said tartly, sashaying down the hallway with a smile. "A girl has to get her career established before she lets her man knock her up."

Matty laughed. "I think you're doing pretty well. I still don't know how you got all this done with all of the other projects you have lined up."

"Mmm, thankfully Jonah and Felix were flexible about the dates of their project."

"Oh, right," Matty said. "You're redoing the place they bought from Jonah's grandma, right?"

"Ehh," Charlie said. "Not doing a ton, to be honest. Lim Cho's designs are so perfect I hardly have to tweak anything. Gah, I can't even believe I get to touch the work of an architect like that. He was incredible."

Charlie must have spotted the blank, vaguely confused look on Antoni's face because he smiled. "You're feeling a little lost, aren't you?"

Antoni nodded. "Yeah."

"Do you know who Jonah and Felix are?"

"Yes," Antoni said, although it was only because earlier, he'd hidden in the bathroom and pulled up a team roster online and hurriedly tried to memorize it so he didn't accidentally call someone the wrong name.

"Well, Jonah's grandfather, Lim Cho-eun, designed some stunning homes in the Toronto area. Jonah and Felix just bought one of them off Jonah's grandma and are having me do some work on the primary bedroom."

"Oh, very cool," Antoni said. "And thank you for everything you did for me and the kids. I'm overwhelmed. I … don't even know what to say."

"Aww, you like the rooms?" Charlie beamed. "That makes me so happy."

"Everything I've seen so far has been incredible," Antoni said. "Honestly, I'm amazed at what you did in such a short time."

Charlie smiled, reaching out to squeeze his arm. "Just glad I could help. When Matty told us what the kids had been through … well, what you've all been through, the entire team wanted to help."

"But none of you even know me," Antoni pointed out, still bewildered by the whole thing. "You don't know any of us."

"I feel like I do a little bit," Charlie said with a shrug. "From what Matty said about you all."

"Huh." Antoni peeked into the nursery to see Matty walking with Reese in his arms, pointing out things in the room.

Oh dear God. If that man got any more attractive, Antoni was doomed.

"Talk about baby fever," Charlie said under his breath. "Someone needs to get that man some children."

Antoni laughed. "We'll see how he feels after living with all five of us for a while."

Charlie laughed, eyes sparkling with amusement. "Mmm. We'll see."

"Look, look!" Antoni felt a tug on his arm and he glanced down at River. "My room. Come see."

"Of course," Antoni said taking her hand. "I'd love to see your room."

He'd peeked into the room across the hall from Reese's earlier but he hadn't looked closely.

It was as perfect as Reese's.

Three walls were painted a soft, creamy off-white but the fourth was a deep blue dotted with gold stars and a crescent moon. The wooden bed was arranged on that wall and it had a canopy in the shape of an outline of a house. A little fence ringed three sides of it and it was made up with cozy sheets and blankets in blues and whites and pinks.

There was a puffy cloud pillow that River made a beeline for and a big soft rug with blue and pink splotches that reminded Antoni of painted brushstrokes. A comfortable chair and footstool sat near a low bookshelf and Antoni could picture reading to River there at night before tucking her in to sleep under the glow of the string lights draped along the canopy.

Antoni suddenly remembered the random questions he'd gotten from Matty recently. Or, maybe not so random. At the time, he'd just thought Matty was trying to get to know him and the kids but maybe it had been more than that.

Maybe he'd been gathering info to help Charlie make their rooms perfect.

Antoni's eyes felt suspiciously damp as he listened intently as River talked—in her halting but excited speech—about the room. Her eyes shone and she looked so happy.

Antoni's heart felt full as he knelt on the rug to look at the books on the little shelf. Because he hadn't seen her look like that since Bethany and Corey died. And he'd do anything to make her that happy again.

He glanced over to see Charlie and Matty smiling at them and he thought maybe Matty wasn't the only miracle around here. He felt like he'd landed in a dream.

Were hockey players and their families really like this?

"Are you happy with your room?" Antoni asked River and she nodded, her pigtails bobbing.

"Love it!" She threw her arms around Antoni's neck. "Thanks!"

He hugged her. "It would be nice if you thanked Matty and Charlie too. They did the hard work."

She trotted right over and hugged Charlie around the knees. "Thanks, Charlie."

"Aww, you're welcome, sweetie," Charlie said in a soft voice, gently touching her hair. "I'm happy you like it."

River turned to the man next to him, looking up. "Thanks, Matty."

Matty beamed and held out his free arm, the one not holding Reese. "Aww, you're welcome. Can I pick you up and hug you?"

"Please."

She went right into his arms and Antoni tried not to let his eyes bug out of his head at the sight of Matty carrying two children around like they weighed as much as a feather.

And fine, maybe they weren't that heavy, but there was something intensely attractive about a big man holding children.

The children Antoni loved so much.

Oh I am so screwed, Antoni thought with a resigned sigh as he got to his feet. And this is only day one.

When Antoni moved on to Eli's room, they were already in there.

Unsurprisingly, that room was gorgeous too. It was light and bright with one wall decorated in a pattern that looked like bookshelves. It looked like someone had hand-painted blue lines in the outline of books, then washed some of those spines with bright paint, but when Antoni stepped closer, he could see it was actually wallpaper.

The design could have looked childlike but something about it seemed incredibly sophisticated, like something he'd see in a hip Toronto apartment or indie book shop.

"That's so cool," he said, touching the wall. Charlie beamed.

"Isn't it beautiful? When Matty said Eli was a reader, I knew I had to design the room around it. I couldn't resist using the house frame canopy bed in here for Eli as well, just without the fence part. Probably too much to do it two rooms but—" He shrugged.

"But I love it!" Eli said. They sprang up off the bed, making the decorative pompoms draped across the top sway. "This is so cool."

"It really is," Antoni agreed, awestruck.

There was a bright cobalt blue rug on the floor and a blue throw blanket on the bed along with plenty of space for books and a comfy chair for reading. Plus a desk and chair set up for homework and studying.

"You really thought of everything, didn't you?" Antoni said, amazed.

Charlie shrugged. "Don't feel you have to keep things the way they are now. If the kids have stuff they want to move in, they absolutely can. I don't want them to have to get rid of any of their old stuff. Especially stuff that might hold important memories."

And Antoni's throat went really tight because talk about thinking of everything. "I appreciate that. I'll let the kids decide but from what I can tell so far, they love it all."

"Anything you don't need, let me know. I'll either try to reuse in another project, return it or donate it, so no worries about it going to waste."

"Thanks. I hardly know what to say." Antoni shook his head. "This is all so incredible."

"It was a fun project for me," Charlie said, beaming. "You ready to see the next one?"

"I think so." Although that was probably a lie. He was already so overwhelmed by all the generosity.

Antoni was still shaking his head when he reached Alexis' room.

The walls were a bold Kelly green and there was a black and white striped comforter paired with black and white polka-dot sheets. Bright pops of vivid pink were scattered around and there was a big Fisher Cats poster on one wall.

Fisher Cats … black, white, and green … Antoni put the pieces together and smiled. Charlie had created a Fisher Cats themed room in the most stylish way possible. Perfect for a teenage girl who loved hockey but not overly feminine or sports-y.

"Oh my God, look at this place, Uncle Antoni," Alexis said, hugging a plush animal to her chest. It kinda looked like an angry ferret but Antoni assumed it was a fisher cat. "Look at my room."

"Do you like it?" Antoni asked, hoping she wasn't mad she hadn't personalized it herself. With Alexis, it was hard to tell what her reaction would be.

"It's perfect." Her eyes shone as a smile lit up her face. She looked happier than she had in months.

Any remaining protest Antoni might have about the outrageous amount of effort and money that had gone into these designs immediately died on his lips.

The kids all loved their rooms. And if it made their transition to a new home easier? Well, who was Antoni to argue?

"Thank you," he said again, voice a little thick with emotion as he turned to face Charlie and Matty. "I … don't have the words to tell you what this means to me. To all of us."

"Welcome home," Charlie said as he gave Antoni a hug. "And welcome to the Fisher Cats. You're one of ours now."