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“Everything turned out as it should, so you should always listen to your mother.” I can hear the smile in her voice, and it saddens me a little to know it won’t stay there after my next words.
“I should, but not this time. I don’t need you playing matchmaker when I’m not ready for a relationship. I’ve been burned by a pretty face before. I’m certainly not up for repeating my mistakes.”
“She’s not Patricia. You can’t assume that every gorgeous woman is out for your money or content with being a trophy wife, Aiden.”
I’m sure that Mom is right, but I’m not willing to risk taking a chance to find out. My head needs to be in the game with the playoffs coming up. I don’t need any distractions or to be thinking about a woman I have no business trying to get to know better. Anna will be living under the same roof as me, so I’ll have to find ways to keep her at arm’s length. I’ll simply have to be more polite in how I go about it.
“I’m going to have to let you go, Mom. I’m pulling into the parking lot. Just for the record, Anna doesn’t date athletes, as she clearly pointed out. That makes the topic of this conversation a moot point.”
“Word,” she says.
“What?”
“I just wanted to get the last word in,” she says, laughing at her own joke.
I smile. “Bye, Mom.”
“Have a good practice! Love you lots!” She hangs up, and my fingers grip the steering wheel a bit tighter. I have zero doubt that my mother is nowhere near done with trying to fix me up with the nanny.
“What is up with you today, Aiden?” Swank asks as we finish up our spin bike session. The trainer is top-notch, and I’m dripping sweat. He kicked up the intensity, and I know I’ll feel it later.
After chugging down a bottle of water, I look at him in confusion. “What do you mean?”
“Bro, you weren’t just bringing your A-game! You went through the whole alphabet! I know that we said we would lead by example, but I don’t want to die trying to keep up with you. Something’s on your mind, I can tell. Tell Papa Swank what’s going on.” He opens his arms as if he plans for me to hug it out. I push him away instead.
“Get away from me!” I gesture to the space in front of me. “This is my personal space. You’re only allowed in by invitation when we’re not on the ice.”
He takes a step back. “Seriously, Aiden. What’s going on? You were riding that bike like something, or someone was chasing you. We still have strength training, agility, and rink time ahead of us. You’re no good to anyone—especially the team—if you hurt yourself.”
“It’s nothing.” I wipe the sweat from my face with a towel and use the excuse of putting it in the soiled linen bin to walk away from him.
“It’s not nothing,” Swank says, catching up to me. “I’ve known you since we were five years old. You’re not the type to get rattled, so what gives?”
I don’t want to tell him that I couldn’t get Anna out of my head, but he won’t leave me alone if I don’t give him something. He’s like a tick. He burrows in deep when he smells fresh blood.
“I plan to talk to Patricia next time I see her.” It’s not a lie. It just wasn’t what occupied most of my thoughts.
“Oh, you’re finally going to open that can of worms, huh? She should be at the game tomorrow, so you’ll have your chance if you can get security to escort her to the underground tunnels. What are you gonna say to her?”
That’s a good question. “I need to know why she’s back and what she’s after. If it’s Penny, she’s in for a fight.”
“Are you telling me that you wouldn’t allow Penny to see her mother? That’s cold, Bro.” Swank shivers, pretending to feel chilled.
“No. I’ve never had any issues with Patricia spending time with Penny, but she’s never exercised that option. Penny still spends plenty of time with Patricia’s parents, so she isn’t closed off from that side of her family. I’m more concerned that Patricia might be trying to bide her time and go after custody of my daughter.”
Swank nods, “It’s possible, but she wouldn’t stand a chance in court. Who’s the beneficiary of the trust fund you received? Penny, or your parents?”
I cock my head, curious as to why he brought up the trust fund. He knows it’s a sore topic for me. “Why does it matter?”
Swank answers with a slight sneer, his disdain for Patricia evident. “Because if it’s Penny, then Patricia would get custody if anything happened to you and, in turn, control over the money. It doesn’t matter that she signed away her rights; she’s a great actress and could woo the court into believing she is a doting and loving mother.”
I frown, not having remotely thought of that possibility. “Do you think the recent bout of threatening notes might be from Patricia? I know my parents have expressed their thoughts on the matter, but I find it hard to believe that she would be willing to take my life for a buck.”
He begins walking toward the weight room where we have our next workout session. “I wouldn’t put anything past her, but then again, we haven’t seen her in five years and have no idea what she’s like now.”
“That’s a non-answer if I ever heard one.” As we enter the weight room, the rest of the team is already working out. As the ‘old men’ in the group, we both decide to show the rookies that age is just a number. I lay down and prepare my mind and body to bench press 350 pounds. The norm for offensive players is around the 250-300 pound range, but our defensive players are used to doing a little more.
Swank spots me as I grunt, pushing out a few reps. I’m on my third one when he says, “I wish I could say with certainty that Patricia isn’t behind the notes. She left Zach Shilling last year when he broke his collarbone and could no longer play. She took him to the cleaners in their divorce. Last I heard, she got four million and has already blown her way through it.”
