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Luc sat with Kaden at the coffee shop across from Ali’s pet salon. While he was here, he planned to grab some cupcakes for him and Kassie to have later. That was a bonus to meeting Kaden here.
It had been two days since the accident. Luc’s neck was still sore, and he hadn’t practiced since. But it seemed like a good time to talk to Kaden about everything and clear the air. Especially since he was planning to get back on the ice sooner rather than later.
“So,” Kaden said, before taking a drink of his iced tea. His demeanor was calm. The anger he had displayed for so long was gone.
“Yeah.” Luc swirled his usual coffee, dark roast with vanilla syrup. The steam floated into the cool morning air. “Are you opting in to practice this afternoon?”
“Yeah. You?”
Luc nodded. “Coach said I could take some time to recover, but I think the sooner I get back out there the better. I’m still sore, but that’s nothing some ibuprofen can’t help. I know it’s only been a few days, but I’m going stir-crazy not being on the ice.”
They’d had a couple days off since their last game. It was an unusual gap in the game schedule, so Coach Walker scheduled an optional practice this afternoon. Optional, because some guys liked the extra time off and some didn’t. Most didn’t.
Luc took a long sip of the hot coffee and sat back in his chair. He stretched his neck to the side, trying to loosen the tight muscles. “Well, O’Conner, how would you like to start this? I mean, we can continue to sit here and stare at each other, but that seems counterproductive.” He joked because he didn’t know what else to say.
Kaden chuckled. It’d been a while since Luc saw a relaxed reaction like that from his teammate. “I just wanted to talk. Get things out in the open and hopefully move on. I know I’ve made things uncomfortable for both of us. But you haven’t made this very easy on me, Marcella. Your history with the bunnies isn’t an easy thing to forget. And she is my sister. So… yeah.”
“I get that.” What does he want me to say? “That shit is in my past, and I can’t change that. A lot of us have things we did that we regret now, even you, and I don’t see Ali holding that against you. Dom was a serious ladies’ man before Hailee returned, yet her brother isn’t stalking him.” He leaned forward in his seat. “I like Kassie, a lot. I didn’t mean for it to happen, but it did. You either trust me or you don’t. But your decision won’t change how I feel about her.” Luc held his breath, waiting for Kaden to lash out at him or even take a swing at him over the table.
Kaden simply shook his head and sighed. “I want to trust you, Luc.” The look on his face was a cross between nervous and disappointed. “But she’s my sister, and I’m having a hard time with this.”
“Kaden, I don’t know what I need to do to convince you that I care about her. What can I say for you to give me a chance?” Luc was exhausted from trying to convince Kaden of his sincerity. It had become a full-time job, and that time could be better spent with Kassie. Even though their conversations had become less angry and more rational, he wished he could stop explaining.
“That’s the thing, Luc. I don’t know. I just need to hear or see something that will make me okay with it. I mean, I am okay with it. You and her. I just need… I don’t even know. She’s my sister, man. You know? It isn’t easy for me to see her… with you.”
“Excuse me? I thought we were getting past this shit?” Luc’s jaw clenched and his heart sped up. Heat rushed to his face. Was Kaden really going to start this again?
“No, Luc, I didn’t mean it like that. She swore off athletes years ago, once I started playing in leagues and my teammates began to hit on her. It would piss me off that they crossed that line, that they ignored the guy code so easily, and it annoyed her too, since they were my teammates. They didn’t find it important to follow the rules, but at least she knew better. Kassie didn’t want anything to do with them. So, for her even to give you the time of day was shocking.”
Kaden’s words sure didn’t encourage a warm and fuzzy feeling in Luc. He took a deep breath and tried to stay calm. This was one of the hardest discussions he’d ever been part of.
“Um, thanks?” He had no idea how to take what Kaden had said. It didn’t seem like there was any good way.
Kaden waved his hand frantically, like he was telling Luc to forget what he just said. “I just need to figure out a way to make this all okay.”
“Make it all okay? For who? Her or you? Kaden, if you’d take a second and really listen to your sister, you’d see she’s happy. You heard her at the hospital the other night—”
“I know what she said,” Kaden interrupted. “I was there. And I want to add that I’m thankful that neither of you were injured.”
Luc unintentionally ignored Kaden’s last comment, because he was still trying to figure out where Kaden stood with him. “Then you heard how she feels. Kaden, I care about her more than life itself. And I don’t know why she gave me the time of day, either. I’ve never done anything in my life to deserve someone as wonderful as her. She’s a much better person than I can ever hope to be. The sheer fact that she’s been so worried about how our relationship would affect you, and how it would cause a problem between you and me on the ice, shows that. She was going to put her own happiness aside for yours. Did you even know that? I mean, who does that? She is the most amazing woman I’ve ever met. I swear to you, I would never hurt her.”
Kaden nodded and pursed his lips as if he was thinking. “Do you love her?”
“O’Conner, I’m as shocked about it as you are, but for the first time in my life, I can honestly say, yes, I love this girl.”
Kaden didn’t react at all to his words. He sipped at his iced tea and drummed his fingers on the table. His voice was calm when he finally spoke. “You do understand that if you ever do hurt my sister, I will kick your ass. I’m talking ass whooping first, ask questions later.”
“I absolutely understand.”
“Do you also understand that in the case that you do hurt Kassie, I will go to Coach Walker and Nicholas and demand you be traded, that I can’t play on the same ice as you and it’ll be me or you. And Marcella, you are young. You are replaceable.” Kaden’s words were stern, and in another situation, they’d be hurtful. But he was protecting his family. Any man would do the same.
Luc slowly nodded. “I wouldn’t expect any less.”
“This is as much of an okay as you’re going to get from me until you prove yourself.” Kaden sat back with a satisfied smile on his face and his tea in hand. “Marcella, I’m glad we understand one another.”
This was as close to Kaden’s blessing as Luc was going to get. He would take it, knowing he’d be under a microscope until his actions proved his words. But Kassie was worth every bit of it.
Luc swept his eyes over Kassie. She looked so cute tonight in her fitted black t-shirt and Halloween-themed leggings. But the high-heeled black ankle boots were what topped off the outfit for him. She looked cuddly and comfortable, yet sexy as all get-out. He tried to go with a Halloween theme as well: ripped blue jeans, black converse tennis shoes, an orange t-shirt with a skull on it, and a black-and-white flannel shirt.
