Chapter Twenty-One

Keely

It's been a few days since Reeve and I kissed on the soccer field, and next week, I'll be moving back out of the apartment since the Hawkeyes only rented the space for me for six weeks.

It seems like things are starting to wrap up from the agreement I made with Sam, Coach Bex, and Reeve. And I'm not sure how I feel about it.

I'm happy, of course, that Reeve will be back out on the ice in no time.

Having that little bit of separation might be good for us. Not living down the hall anymore will give me a reason to cut off our dinner and docu-series routine that we've fallen into. If I'm going to date Jaxson, I can't keep spending as much time with Reeve. And now that Reeve is healed up, he doesn't need me around for dinner prep or delivery.

I'm looking for a new place, but for now, I'll go back to living in my uncle's garage. Seattle's rent prices are ridiculous, and the studio apartment at my uncle's would rent for an ungodly amount, so I'm grateful to have it.

But what I need today is to hear a familiar voice. I need to talk to someone who knows all my family's dark secrets. Someone I can truly be myself with and not worry about my past coming out to ruin their lives.

I lean back in my chair, holding my phone to my ear as Paula's voice comes through. "So, tell me about this cute doctor you're going on a date with next week," she says, her tone light and teasing.

I can't help but smile, even as a twinge of guilt tugs at my heart. "His name is Jaxson. He's a surgeon at the hospital where Reeve had his surgery."

"Ooh, a surgeon. Impressive," Paula says. "And he got my girl back on the soccer field. I like him already."

"Yeah, he's really great," I admit. "He's smart, kind, and definitely easy on the eyes."

Paula chuckles. "I sense a 'but' coming."

I sigh, running a hand through my hair. There shouldn't be a 'but'. He's perfect for me, and if Reeve were nowhere in sight, I think I'd be head-over-heels for Jaxson.

"It's just... I don't know. I thought there might be something with Reeve, but..."

"But he's your patient," Paula finishes for me.

"Exactly. And even when he's not anymore, there's still the whole issue with my dad. I can't risk ruining his career. And you should meet all the amazing people in the Hawkeyes franchise. If I stay down below where no one can see me and keep my head down, there won't be an issue. But dating a player is going to draw attention. There's already a reporter doing a whole story on the Hawkeyes. She's already been asking more questions than I care to answer."

There's a pause on the other end of the line. "Keely, honey, you can't let your father's mistakes define your entire life forever. You deserve happiness too. I've never met anyone who's punished themselves for someone else's mistake harder than you have."

"I know, I know," I say, feeling the familiar weight of my family history settling on my shoulders. "It's just complicated."

"Life usually is," Paula says gently. "So, tell me more about how Reeve is doing. You must be proud of his progress."

I can't help the smile that spreads across my face. "He's doing amazing, Paula. You should see him. The doctors are talking about clearing him for practice soon."

"That's wonderful news," Paula says, and I can hear the pride in her voice. "You've done an excellent job with him, Keely. But of course, I had no doubts that you would."

Just then, my phone buzzes with a text notification. I pull it away from my ear to check it, seeing Penelope's name pop up on the screen.

Penelope: Meet at Serendipity's at 2pm? It's time for your official initiation into the Hawkeyes girls group. I just saw an email from my dad to legal telling them to start working on your new hire contract for next week. Congratulations girlie!

Penelope: Unrelated question: how many sticky buns do you think you could stuff in your mouth in 30 seconds or less?"

I laugh out loud, causing Paula to ask, "What's so funny?"

"Oh, just a text from one of the Hawkeyes' girlfriends. Apparently, I'm getting officially initiated into their group."

"That sounds exciting," Paula says. "You're really starting to build a life there in Seattle, aren't you?"

I pause, realizing the truth in her words. "Yeah, I guess I am."

Walking into the warm, dry coffee shop with the bright red door, I'm instantly put at ease with the soft sound of jazz music over the speakers, the smell of coffee and pastries. My eyes scan the room for a group of girls who are gathering just for the simple fact that they want to celebrate with me.

"Keely! Over here!" she calls out.

As I approach, I'm happy to see almost everyone is here. Tessa, Autumn, Brynn and Penelope and sitting together at a round oak table and chairs.

"Hi everyone," I say, sliding onto the wooden chair next to Brynn, an open seat to my right.

"We ordered you a latte," Penelope says, pushing a large mug towards me. The foam on top is artfully swirled into a leaf pattern. "Hope that's okay."

"It's perfect, thank you," I say, wrapping my hands around the warm ceramic. "So this is a real thing, huh? The girls of the Hawkeyes? And where is Isla?"

Autumn speaks up. "Yep and our membership is growing in numbers every year," she grins.

Tessa finishes her sip. "Isla texted; Berkeley has the sniffles, so she can't make it tonight," she tells me. "We're also missing Cammy who has to study for her midterms, and Juliet and Shawnie who are in Canada this weekend organizing some big celebrity wedding. They couldn't even tell us which couple."

Autumn wasn't kidding about this group growing.

"That's a lot of women inside the group. So you don't have to date a player to be invited in?" I ask, pulling my warm latte up to my lips.

Penelope's eyes twinkle, and the other girls settle back on mine. "It's not a requirement. Juliet is married to an ex-player, Shawnie works for the Hawkeyes as an event planner, and you know Cammy… she's taking over my position, and she's Seven's daughter."

"But if Penelope has her way, and she often does," Tessa chimes in. "All of them will end up as WAGS of a Hawkeyes player or coach."

I see Brynn shake her head with a smirk on her face.

"I'd be careful if I were you –trying to matchmake Cammy into the "family". Seven will lose his mind if she ends up dating a Hawkeyes player, and you know it," Brynn says.

"Well then, why am I here? I'm not dating a player, and even though you saw the paperwork, I technically haven't signed anything, so I'm not even officially an employee."

All four women look at me, calculating grins on all their faces. I'm starting to think that I was brought here under false pretenses.

"Don't worry… soon all will be revealed," Penelope says, wiggling an eyebrow, and then takes a sip of her drink.

"What does that even mean?" I ask.

Tessa rolls her eyes, annoyed with Penelope not getting to the point. "It means that Penelope, and well, all of us, think you're going to end up with Reeve."

"What?!" I practically yell.

I feel the butterflies break loose in my belly at the idea of being with Reeve and I hate that just mentioning his name does that to me.

It's incredibly inconvenient since I'm supposed to be going out with someone else next week. And because a relationship with Reeve isn't on the table.

They ignore me and move on while my brain spins. And then I feel someone sit down in the open chair next to mine.

Rowan.

"Hi girls, sorry I'm late. My tool of a boss kept all of us in a meeting that I thought would never end," she says, blowing out a breath of frustration.

"No problem, we haven't started without you," Autumn tells her.

"Okay, the initiation of the Hawkeyes Girls Club can officially commence," Penelope says with a theatrical voice.

"She's enjoying this too much," Autumn says to Brynn.

"Uh-huh," Brynn says back

Rowan bends her shoulder toward me to whisper. "I didn't know you were Oakley's niece. How come that never came up before? That's huge to the story of how Reeve met you at the bar the night you guys were in the accident. Readers are going to eat that up."

I feel a flutter of anxiety in my stomach. "Oh, um, it just never seemed relevant, I guess."

"And be honest… off the record. Are you really not dating Reeve Aisa? Because it's so obvious he has it bad for you," she whispers.

I need to squash her dreams as soon as possible. I know she wants the story with a happy ending but it's not going to happen.

"We can't date. I'm his PT… and even if I wasn't, a relationship with me could kill his career." I wince… I said too much. But maybe she'll forget it. She did say "off the record".

Tessa jumps in. "Leave the reporter act at home, Ro. We're here to celebrate Keely's new job."

Penelope pushes a plate with a sticky bun on it and a candle. She pulls a lighter out of nowhere and sets the candle ablaze.

Everyone stares at the sticky bun… no one knows what to do now.

"Are we supposed to sing to her?" Rowan asks.

Penelope shakes her head. "This is as far as we got."

"What should I do? Should I just blow out the candle?" I ask everyone in the cafe is staring and smiling at me, thinking it's my birthday.

Penelope nods.

I blow out the candle, and everyone applauds.

"How does it feel to be officially joining the Hawkeyes family?" Autumn asks.

Better than I could have ever imagined.

"Really good. Thanks, everyone," I say.

Rowan holds up a hand in question.

"Uh, okay, don't take this the wrong way but if this is a Hawkeyes girl's initiation…why am I here?" Rowan asks.

Penelope gleams over at Rowan. "Don't worry, we have plans for you next."