“Yeah?”
“Does it ever get easier? This single parent thing?”
The vulnerability in his voice transported Liam back to those dark days after Kate’s death — the overwhelming responsibility, the bone-deep fatigue, the constant fear of making irreversible mistakes. For a moment, he considered offering platitudes:It gets better. You’ll figure it out. Time heals.
Instead, he opted for honesty. “The hardest part for me was admitting I was drowning,” he said quietly. “Not to my parents or the team, but to myself. Once I did that, I could accept help without feeling like I was failing Kate… or the girls.”
Tyler swallowed hard. “I think I’m drowning,” he whispered, the admission clearly costing him.
Liam squeezed his shoulder. “You just took the first step toward the surface.”
For the first time that day, Tyler’s smile reached his eyes. “Thanks, man.”
“Parents incoming,” Beth called from the stands, pointing toward the lobby where the first families were arriving for practice.
“Places, everyone,” Liam said. “Let’s make this the best practice ever.”
As the ice filled with young skaters of varying abilities, Liam settled into his coaching role, guiding, encouraging, occasionally catching a wobbling child before they fell. From the corner of his eye, he kept tabs on his family — Sunny helping the youngest skaters, Maddie solemnly explaining drills to anyone who would listen, Hailey demonstrating moves with exaggerated grace, and Ethan determinedly following along, his face a study in concentration.
Watching Sunny, Liam was struck anew by how natural she was with children — not just their own, but all of them. It had been that way from the beginning, that innate ability to connect, to make each child feel seen and valued. It was what had first drawn him to her, even when he’d been too stubborn to admit it.
The session ended with cheers and high-fives all around. As parents began collecting their children, Liam made his way to where Sunny was helping Ethan remove his skates. They collected their things and prepared to leave, the familiar chaos of bags and equipment and children’s requests swirling around them. As they headed toward the exit, Liam paused, looking back at the empty rink.
There was a time when the ice had been his battlefield, his proving ground. Now it was something else entirely — a place of joy, of connection, of teaching rather than competing. Sometimes he missed the adrenaline rush of high-stakes games. But those moments were fleeting compared to the satisfaction he found now.
“Penny for your thoughts,” Sunny said, appearing at his side.
“Just thinking about how things change,” he said, smiling down at her. “If you’d told me three years ago that I’d be happier coaching kids than playingprofessionally, I’d have said you were crazy.”
“And if you’d told me I’d have three kids and a thriving business, I’d have said the same.” She leaned into him slightly. “Life has a funny way of surprising us.”
He wrapped his free arm around her shoulders. “That it does.”
As they walked to the car, Liam couldn’t help but notice how Sunny seemed to glow despite looking a bit tired. There was a softness to her expression, a certain anticipation in her movements.
Liam studied her face. “Sunny—”
“Daddy! Can Emma come over to see my butterfly collection?” Hailey interrupted, bouncing on her toes beside the car.
“I’m sure she’d love that,” Liam assured her, making a mental note to find a quiet moment with Sunny later.
The drive home was filled with chatter — Maddie analyzing the practice, Hailey planning what to show Emma later in the week, Ethan singing a made-up song about ‘pengeens’ on ice. Liam kept glancing at Sunny in the passenger seat, noticing how she participated in the conversation while occasionally drifting into what seemed like happy daydreams, a secret smile playing at the corners of her mouth.
As they pulled into the driveway of the home they’d built together — not the mansion he’d shared with Kate, but a new place, one filled with fresh memories and growing happiness — Liam was struck by a sudden wave of gratitude. Whatever Sunny was waiting to share, despite the challenges Tyler was facing, despite the bittersweet memories that occasionally surfaced, he was profoundly grateful for this life.
“Dad, are you coming?” Maddie called from the front door, jolting him from his thoughts.
“Be right there,” he called back, turning to Sunny who was gathering her things. “Hey.”
She looked up.“Hmm?”
“I love you,” he said simply. “Whatever’s going on — and I know there’s something.”
Surprise flickered across her face, followed by a flash of something that looked almost like excitement barely contained. Then she smiled, a radiant smile that warmed him from the inside out.
“I love you too,” she said softly. “And I promise, it’s worth the wait.”
Sunny
