I do remember her, now that she’s put a name to the face. She was one of those girls who was always around the rink, along with her other cheerleader friends. Our team captain, Boone Hutchins, seemed to think of them as his own personal harem.
I haven’t thought about any of them in years. That’s the way I would have preferred to keep it: forgotten. But small town living doesn’t allow for such luxuries.
“Hey, Kaylee,” I say. “Been a while.”
“Doesn’t feel like it.” She's smiling now, leaning into the counter, twirling a strand of hair. “Wow. You look exactly the same. Better, actually.” Her eyes drop to the paperwork between us, and then to Lila, and the smile dims. “Whoa. You're getting married?”
“That's the plan,” I say.
“Huh.” Kaylee glances at Lila again, quick and narrow-eyed. “That's so funny. You never had the time of day for any girl. Didn’t think settling down was your thing.” A little smile that doesn't reach her eyes as she glances at Lila. “No offense.”
“None taken,” Lila says, smiling back, but a little stiffly.
I take Lila's hand in mine, lacing our fingers together so the engagement ring is on prominent display. “Took me thirty five years to find her,” I say. “Worth the wait.”
Kaylee's eyes drop to the ring. Her smile doesn’t quite recover as she processes everything and hands me our license with an unenthusiastic “congratulations.”
I hold tight to that license the second she hands it over. Technically, it’s just a piece of paper. Doesn’t weigh anything at all as I hold it. Yet it feels like a stone tablet in my hands, something sacred, something with real weight to it.
Lila is trusting me with a year of her life. More than that:she’s trusting me with her family situation, her finances, her daily existence. It took a whole lot of trust to say yes to my proposal.
I don’t take that lightly.
Whatever this is on paper, I know what it is to me. It’s a responsibility. A real one. I’m going to be a good husband to this woman for exactly as long as she’ll let me.
I hold the door for her on the way out of the courthouse.
“She did not like me,” Lila says once we're out on the steps.
“The clerk?”
“Yes, Kaylee. She perked right up when she saw your name and then looked at me like I’d spit in her Lucky Charms.” A sidelong glance through her long eyelashes. “Did you two have a thing or something?”
“God, no.” I shake my head. “Back in high school, she actually asked me to a dance once. Sadie Hawkins, the one where the girls ask the guys. I turned her down.”
Lila stops walking. “You turned her down? Slade, she's so pretty. Why?”
“Because Boone Hutchins got to her first.” I see Lila's confusion and try to explain. “The hockey captain. It was a whole thing with the guys on the team. They'd hook up with a girl, pass her around the team, compare notes. Share pictures.” My jaw clenches just thinking about it. “That was kind of the point, for them. Hutchins, the captain, was the worst about it.”
“That's disgusting.” Lila shakes her head.
“Yup.”
“I’m sure it’s so much better in the NHL,” she adds sarcastically.
“You don’t wanna know,” I tell her. “I never wanted any part of it. All I could think of was my sister Josie and some asshole treating her that way. It made me sick. I didn't laugh at the jokes, didn't look at the pictures. When I could, I justwalked out of the room when they started in. Made me pretty unpopular, honestly. Couple of guys thought I figured I was better than them.” I shrug. “Maybe I did. Still do, when it comes down to it.”
Lila is quiet for a second, looking up at me with an expression I can't quite read.
“What?” I say.
“Nothing.” She slips her arm through mine, leaning into my side. “You’re just a good guy, that’s all.”
I eye her skeptically, even as I savor the feel of her body close to mine. “I’ve broken other men’s bones. And noses. Knocked out more than a few teeth.”
She shrugs. “You all know what you’re getting into. Live by the sword, die by the sword.”
I smile despite myself. “You’re surprisingly ruthless for a girl who wears a sexy bunny costume in her off-hours.”
