“What do youwantto do?”she asked as they followed the kids down the street.
“I want him to be in love with me and help me raise my kids and have a lot of…snuggles.”Duh.
“Well, then what you need to do is go after your man.”She said it like the word ‘duh’ was totally included at the end of her sentence too.
“Yeah.Maybe.”He wasn’t that brave.In fact, he was a bit of a coward like Petey.“We’ll see.”
She snorted.“Honey, you’ve got a captive audience!”
“Ha.I don’t even know if he…” Cheated.“Had someone on the side.”
“Then ask.”Like it was just that simple, that easy.
“What if he says yes?”
They made it to the park, and they sat while the kids ran to play.
“If he says yes, then you know and you can decide if it matters or not in the end.”
It would matter.He didn’t want it to matter, but it would.“It would break my heart, Ally.I want him to…”
Love him.
She leaned in and gave him a hug.“I wish I had all your answers for you.”
“You and me, both.”But he hadn’t had answers in years, so why start now?
“I still think you should just talk to him, but what do I know?”She bumped shoulders with him.“He seemed to be happy he was in your home.”
“He’s very frustrated.He wants to start walking around and getting exercise.”
She nodded.“I bet.People who do a lot of physical things don’t like it when they can’t.”
“Yeah.And his whole world is hockey.”He sighed softly.“Everything.”
“Yeah, that was clear when he left for Florida without you.”
“To be fair, he didn’t choose to go – he got traded.”
“Don’t ask me to be on his side, honey.I’m team Ian, all the way.”
He nodded and leaned over, sniffling a little bit.“Thanks.You know, I’m so glad I met you.”
He’d been a teacher when they’d decided to have a baby.
A baby.
Not two babies.
Then he’d had to leave his job to care for the little ones.
Then JP had been traded to fucking Florida of all places, and he’d expected Ian to just pack up everything along with the babies and follow him there.
He’d lost both grandparents the year before, he loved his house, and he had his brother here — how could he go?
They’d fought and yelled and said things they shouldn’t have and, somehow, at some point, they stopped speaking.Until JP got hurt.
They hadn’t gotten divorced but hadn’t really been married anymore.They’d been living totally separate lives — but he’d been living on JP’s dime.
