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Thanks for reminding me how self-centered you could be and how me and my daughter are doing just fine without you.
“And captain,” Andrew replies, giving me a glance. I hate that it causes goosebumps to run down my spine.
I turn to mom. “Um… when does dad arrive with Alissa?”
I’m feeling overwhelmed by emotions and just want Alissa to get here so I can leave.
“Oh, now you’re worried.” Mom rolls her eyes and sips her third mimosa.
“Who’s Alissa?” Andrew asks, confused.
Time suspends. I wouldn’t be able to give him an answer in a million years, but I don’t have to because Dan steps in.
“She’s my niece!” Dan exclaims, immediately taking out his phone. “She just turned five. She’s such an angel.”
Now Andrew appears completely puzzled. Looking back and forth between everyone at the table, he tries to piece the information together, but it’s clear he’s lost.
Andrew’s face is so distorted by confusion, it looks like his blue eyes are about to pop out. It would be hilarious if I wasn’t trying to prevent myself from hyperventilating.
Mom steps in and explains, “Alissa is Emily’s daughter. Or as my husband Dave calls her, ‘Emily’s college degree,’ because all the funds went to her.”
Now Andrew stares at me, dead in the eye and he raises an eyebrow. I bite my lip and stay silent.
I think he’s suspicious, but I’m not about to let him in on my secret.
He let me down and broke my heart. After he left, I tried calling him and texting him for months, but he never responded. I felt like he kicked me to the curb and made it clear what his priorities were. S eventually I decided to block him everywhere and move on with my life.
I also have to protect Alissa. She doesn’t need the attention of being an NHL player’s secret daughter, and we have been doing just fine without him all these years. She has a stable, loving, reliable family environment right now and the last thing I want to do is mess that up for her.
“Does this place still sell that honey-spiced ale I love?” Andrew randomly asks. Dan looks surprised by the change of subject but nods his head. Andrew continues, “Order me one, would you Dan? Emily, can we talk in private?”
I freeze and shrink in place so hard I probably look like a prune.
“Go ahead, dear.” Mom elbows me in the ribs, incentivizing me to go.
“Please, Emily,” Andrew offers me his hand.
He looks vulnerable and it takes me back to the last time I saw him. Back when he told me he’d wait for me, and that he loved me.
Lies.
I shake my head to free myself from my memories and mentally order my eyes not to cry.
I take a deep breath and then reach out and take his hand, but I let go of it the second I’m standing. I follow him through the restaurant, past the lobby, and finally outside.
As I step onto the sidewalk, my shoes sink slightly into the damp ground, leaving imprints behind. A soft crunch accompanies each step, the remnants of yesterday's snow compacted beneath my weight. When I slip, he holds me by the arm and keeps me there.
I try to ignore the shivers that run down my spine.
“Can I ask you something?” He looks confident, his six-foot five frame towering over me, but I hear it when his voice shakes.
“Go ahead,” I say, carefully untangling myself from him, even though there’s a part of me that doesn’t really want to.
“You didn’t wait for me, did you?” He has the audacity to look hurt.
I let out a loud snort. “I didn’t wait for you? Look who’s talking. You fell in love with the NHL and never looked back. You ignored my calls, my texts, everything. I tried to reach you for months. How could you?”
Everything is starting to look blurry because of the hot tears forming in my eyes. Not crying is becoming harder and harder.
