She scurries off my legs and stands with her hand stretched out for me to take. I rise to my full height and take her hand, walking us toward the doors. Once inside, we find everyone in the living room with the kids.
“I’m heading out to get this one some ice cream, does anyone want anything?” I ask, looking around. There’s a few show of hands and shouts. I quickly take out my phone and note down the orders one by one.
“Do you want me to come with you? You can’t carry all of that alone and drive at the same time,” Aubrey asks as she holds onto my arm.
“It’s fine, I’ll go with him.” Greyson stands from his seat beside his wife, kissing her cheek and coming over to us.
Aubrey watches him with caution. “Are you sure?”
“Yeah, I know a good place not far from here.” He places his hand at the back of my girl’s head and kisses her forehead. “We’ll be fine. Don’t worry.”
“Okay,” she says softly before turning back to me. She stands on the tip of her toes as I lean down and kiss her. “If something happens, save my sundaes,” she whispers against my lips, and I laugh.
My girl and her cravings.
Chapter twenty-four
Shane
A slap on the butt means good luck.
We walk out of the house in silence and head to my car. He climbs into the passenger seat as I hop into the driver’s side, revving up the engine and pulling away from the curb. Not even one minute into the drive, a text message shows up on my navigator screen that reads,
Jessie Storm
Should I be worried? Need a cover-up?
I drag my hand down my face, letting out a groan that turns into a chuckle, because I know Ford saw the message. “I knew setting that up would come and bite me in the ass at some point.”
He shakes his head laughing. “It’s fine, Coach.”
I scrunch up my nose. “Maybe you should call me by my first name from now on, at least when it’s outside of hockey.”
“Yeah, right. It does sound weird calling you Coach when you’re… you know, dating my sister.” He makes a face as well as we fall back into silence. It isn’t until three minutes have passed that he speaks up again. “You’re good to her.”
I look over at him quickly, studying his face before refocusing on the road. “I try to be.”
“You are,” he says. “I watched you outside with her. You managed to calm her down easily, and I see the way she softens around you.”
I simply nod, not sure what to say.
“I also noticed how much more confident she is now. She’s changing, and I know that’s because of you.”
“Well, I’m sure the pregnancy is helping with that too.” I smile.
“Yes, kids do change you. I would know.” He laughs, referring to the time he found out he had a six-month-old daughter, and his life changed drastically from one day to the next. “But I know you’re a big part of all these changes happening to Aubrey.”
I pull up to the ice cream parlor as he continues, “She’s braver, stronger, she speaks her mind and is finally becoming her own person instead of living in the shadows. She goes after what she wants, which is not something she would normally do.”
I kill the engine, but don’t make an attempt to get out, and neither does he. I’m still unsure what to say. I appreciate what he’s saying, but I won’t take credit for the way Aubrey is. Because I saw all these beautiful traits in her from the very start.
“Aubrey was always a follower, she did whatever anyone told her to do. A people-pleaser who only wanted other people’s happiness, before her own. She never put herself first, never put her happiness first. Not until you.”
“Look, Greyson.” I stop him there. “I appreciate you saying all of that, but Aubrey was already all those things to me. Maybeyou’re just seeing it now, but I always saw that in her. And maybe I am partly responsible for the way you see her today, but if I did anything, it was only helping her bloom into the woman she truly is. Because to me, Aubrey was always the amazing person you claim she became.”
He watches me for a moment, not saying anything until finally he nods. “I’m sorry I didn’t see how much she truly meant to you from the start. But I see it now.”
Suddenly, I feel like a weight of tension is lifted off my shoulder, like we’re finally really moving forward. “It’s in the past. All that matters now is that we can get along for Aubrey’s sake. Her happiness is all I care about.”
