Colby smiles.
"Pretty much."
"It's so big."
"Wait until you see the rink."
She reaches for his hand without looking.
He takes it just as automatically.
That is the part that gets me.
Not the arena.
Not the famous hockey team.
Not the fact that my daughter is currently walking into a professional sports facility like she belongs here.
It's the hand.
The ease of it.
The lack of hesitation.
Jillie doesn't ask.
Colby doesn't pause.
They just fit into the movement together.
I am still watching their joined hands when a voice calls from across the lobby.
"Reid."
A tall man approaches with the steady confidence of someone used to being listened to. Dark hair. Broad shoulders. Calmexpression. Not flashy. Not loud. The exact opposite of the kind of athlete I expected to meet first.
Colby lifts his chin in greeting.
"Jamie."
The man looks at me first, then Jillie, and his expression softens in a way that immediately lowers my guard.
"You must be Sadie."
"I am."
"Jamie Walker." He extends his hand. "It's good to finally meet you."
Finally.
There's that word again.
Jillie peeks around Colby's arm.
Jamie crouches a little, bringing himself closer to her height without making a production of it.
"And you must be Jillie."
