Chapter Seventeen

Bex

There’s a knock at the front door of my apartment as I debate whether or not I’m going to head down the Oakley’s later tonight. Tonight is Shawnie’s birthday and all the women are headed out to the club for girls night and the men are all headed to Oakely’s for beer, pizza and pool.

It’s the night before we have to leave for our out-of-town games, which means the bar should be mostly us.

There aren’t a lot of people who have access to the penthouse level of The Commons. It’s probably Reeve coming up to make sure I’m coming out tonight. The elevator requires a code to get up this far and the only three people who have a code to give out are Ryker Haynes, Lake Powers, and myself.

I open my front door to find Ryker standing outside of my door. He must have gotten in last night for Canada. He’s still not allowed to live in the states for another year and a half but he’s allowed to travel here like any normal Canadian citizen, with a passport. And he does, often, as the Head Coach for the Vancouver Vikings NHL hockey team.

He and Juliet drove down from Vancouver last night, a quick two-and-a-half-hour trip to Seattle, for Shawnie’s birthday party tonight.

He’s dressed in gym attire, standing outside of my door as he stretches his arm across his body. He’s either preparing for a run, or just returned from one.

“I’m going for a run. Shawnie and Juliet are getting ready for tonight and the apartment looks like the aftermath of a storewide clearance sale. I needed to get out of there.”

It’s been a while since I’ve ever been forced out of my own place. Come to think of it, I’m not sure that ever happened with Lily. I wasn’t around enough during the few years we were together to experience anything like that.

If I was in town, I was at the stadium practicing or in the gym strengthening. And if she had friends come in from out of town, hell if I would have noticed.

“Give me a minute," I say and turn for my bedroom.

Ryker catches the door and waits for me inside.

In less than two minutes, we’re out the door, headed out of the apartment building, our footsteps pounding the pavement as we pick up a steady pace. It’s the middle of March and the spring weather is starting to show around Seattle.

We settle into an easy rhythm that feels familiar from back when he was still a player on my team. But now as the Head Coach of the Vikings, he and I are peers, and with it, a new found level of respect.

I’ve always admired Haynes as a player, as a leader and as the captain of the Hawkeyes before he was forced to leave the country for a couple of years for faking a marriage to a woman he now shares a life with in Canada.

In the end, it all worked out for him. He and Juliet renewed their vows in Canada last summer with the entire Hawkeyes and Vikings team in attendance, and a guest list that would rival some celebrities' weddings. Now he’s set out to do something he’s always wanted to do— bring his late father’s team back for a playoff victory. With his leadership, I think they’ve got a shot. But since we play them next week, I don’t intend to offer that up.

We cross the street and head toward the park a few blocks away, the sunset starting to color the sky in reds and oranges, the tall skyscapes standing tall around us and the sounds of traffic on the busy streets around us.

“Juliet’s brother, Jerron… how’s he doing?” I ask, keeping my tone casual as we stride side by side.

Ryker glances over, and a surprised grin stretches across his face. “You remember his name?”

“Why does that surprise you?” I huff, a bit annoyed as we match each other’s strides. It’s not like I don’t care about my players’ lives just because I keep things professional. Even if I wasn’t the most sensitive coach, I knew that Juliet’s need to provide for Jerron was the reason she agreed to marry Ryker so he could get his green card.

“Didn’t peg you for being sentimental,” he replies, trying to keep his breathing steady through the pace we’re keeping.

“Does everyone reckon I’m an asshole?” I ask, with a bite to it, thinking about how Rowan’s been dodging me every chance she gets for the last two weeks since the meeting about Keely’s father.

Once Autumn’s connection at the women’s sports magazine heard about the story, they were quick to move on it. The issue went out a few days ago and though questions have come up during interviews with Reeve at our last home game, Autumn and Tessa coached him on his responses to move the conversation forward.

Tessa’s been managing the conversation on the Hawkeyes social media pages, and as far as I’ve heard, the publicity only caused a spike in ticket sales and more buzz around the team. Phil and Sam saw the opportunity as a chance to touch base with sponsors and renew contracts.

“Touched a sore spot, did I?” he laughs, his tone turning slightly mocking as we cross a green crosswalk, scanning around for cars. No point in taking chances, this team’s been through enough injuries as it is.

“Piss off,” I tell him. “I don’t have sore spots.”

He just shakes his head, letting that one pass. We turn onto the path leading through the park, trees rising around us as we cut into the softer light under the branches. I let the quiet sink in for a beat, but it’s clear he’s still thinking about something, his brow creased in concentration.

“Wait…” He finally says, giving me a side-eye. “This doesn’t have anything to do with that reporter who’s got the exclusive, does it? What’s her name, Rowan, right? I read her piece on you last season. She nailed you right on the head, didn’t she?”

I shoot him a glare, but he just chuckles, clearly enjoying this.

He wouldn’t have put that together on his own, which means, I probably have Penelope gossiping with Juliet to thank for this. Rowan likes to share a good story, but now I know she can keep a secret better than anyone I’ve ever met too, and she doesn’t give up much about herself freely.

“Well, fuck you too, traitor,” I mutter. I’m trying to stay serious, but his laugh is loud enough to echo through the park, and I feel the corners of my mouth twitch in spite of myself.

“Christ, I’m kidding!” He grins, struggling to catch his breath. “She was way off base; she doesn’t know you like the team does. But it was funny as hell, I’ll give her that. ‘A feral cat at a garden party’? Where’d she come up with that one?”

The problem is, Rowan knows me a lot better than Ryker thinks. And if I don’t get a hold of myself and remember my boundaries, she’s going to end up knowing a hell of a lot more about me than anyone else ever has. More than anyone in that locker room, that’s for sure.

Still, I shake it off. I didn’t bring up Juliet’s brother just to get on the subject of Rowan. I wanted to feel Ryker out, see if he’d even consider coming back to Seattle to take over coaching when the time comes, whenever I decide to hang it up. So I change the topic, sidestepping the chance for him to dig deeper.

“It doesn’t matter,” I say, focusing my gaze on the path ahead. “Like you said, she’s off base.”

Ryker glances at me, eyebrows raised, but turns his eyes back forward with a quiet, thoughtful “Huh.”

“What?” I demand, annoyed. “What was that?”

“Nothing.” He shrugs, feigning innocence. “It just seems like she’s getting off easy.”

I brush off his comment with a shrug. “She’s got the team by the balls. I’m playing nice, that’s all.”

Ryker throws me a sidelong glance, a smirk curling his lips. “Just the team’s balls?”

I give him a good hard shove, and he has to dodge out of the way of a bicyclist coming in the opposite direction.

“Fucker,” he yells with a laugh.

I keep my pace as he comes back around, meeting back up with me and falling back in sync.

“I’ve got no idea what you’re on about,” I mutter.

“Yeah, sure you don’t. Bexley Townsend, man of mystery,” he teases, breathing heavily as we keep up the pace. “Look, I’m only saying, I’ve been where you are before. If there’s something there, just… don’t go blind trying to pretend it’s not there. Especially if she’s got her claws in your head.”

“Trust me, mate, I know what I’m doing,” I say, feeling my jaw tighten.

“Alright, if you say so,” Ryker replies, though I can see he’s not convinced. “Anyway, we’ve got bigger things to worry about.”

We stop at our usual park bench to stretch before we head back for the apartment build and get ready for Oakley’s.

I take the opportunity to shift the conversation back to where I wanted it. “Right. Bigger things—as in finding a coach who might be up for taking over the Hawkeyes after next season if I call it quits.”

Ryker stop mid lunge, his eyes shifting to meet mine. “Wait…you’re serious?” he says "I thought you’d be stuck in that rink until they scraped you off the ice.”

“Maybe it’s time I take a good look at the future. Consider what else might be out there for me. My family wants me to move home, and my mum isn’t getting any younger. My dad isn’t around to take care of her as she gets older, Leo has a family of his own, and Archie might stay a nomad forever.”

Ryker doesn’t answer right away. We’re both silent as we turn down a narrow, winding path through the park, surrounded by tall trees and the faint rustling of leaves in the breeze. I wonder if he’s going to press me on what’s waiting for me outside the rink. I’ve been keeping it close to the chest, mulling over what retirement might look like. Hell, I never thought about it seriously before now. Hockey’s been my life, my constant, even when the rest of my world turned upside down. But lately… lately, there’s been more than just hockey waiting for me when I walk out of that stadium.

“I think you could handle it,” I say finally, glancing at him out of the corner of my eye. “Juliet’s brother’s well looked after now, yeah? And you’re already splitting your time here and Vancouver. It wouldn't be a stretch to make it permanent.”

Ryker lets out a long breath, considering. “Jerron’s in a great place now. He’s thriving and even has a part time job with Juliet’s new step-dad at the rock climbing gym. But I made a promise to myself that I’d bring the Vikings to the playoffs for my dad,” he says, glancing at me. “Are you really ready to leave it all behind and move back to England?”

I exhale, feeling the weight of the question settle between us. The truth is, I don’t know. But with Rowan there, a glimpse of something more than just hockey, something that feels like home… I can picture it. I’ve tried not to let it settle in, but it’s there, tugging at me more than it should.

Her life and her career is here, and my future is in Liverpool. I’ve had someone move an ocean away for me before. Even if I could get Rowan to not hate me, I can’t ask her to give up everything for me.

“Maybe I am,” I say quietly.

Ryker nods, as if understanding more than I’m saying out loud. We turn back toward the street, picking up the pace as we head back to the apartment building, but there’s a quiet resolve in his expression that tells me he’s considering it.