Aubrey smiles now—a weight being taken off her shoulders at her parents’ acceptance. This is what she needed, to know that people would be happy for us. “Thank you, Mom.”
Nancy then comes to me, hugging me as well. “Thank you for making my daughter happy,” she whispers in my ear.
“It’s the only thing I plan to do for the rest of my life, Mrs. Ford,” I answer truthfully.
She giggles as she takes a step back. “Oh please, you can call me Nancy. And don’t you dare call that one ‘Mr. Ford’, it’ll go straight to his head.” She points to her husband. “You’re part of our family now, Shane. There’s no need for formalities.”
Andrew comes over as well, congratulating us both and taking an extra moment to hug his daughter. Then Cecilia comes next, taking Aubrey in her arms. “And here we were, joking about me being pregnant next. I’m happy it’s you, you deserve this so much, Brey.”
She then steps over to me, and this hug is much more awkward given our height difference. I’m at least a whole foot and a few inches taller than her. “And I guess in a way this is all thanks to me.” She giggles. “You know, since I did introduce you two and kept pushing you together.”
I can’t help but laugh. “Yes, we do owe you a thank you. Although I think I still would have found my way to her.” I watch Aubrey from the side as Silas wraps his arms around her in a brotherly way.
“You’re perfect for her, Shane. I knew it from the start.” She pats my chest and goes back to her seat, just as her husband steps up to me.
Silas and I have always had a strange relationship. He’s my main player, and we’ve also played each other on the ice in his rookie years. But I also consider him a friend. “Congrats, Coach. I’m happy for you guys,” he says as he shakes my hand andtakes me into a manly hug. “But I feel like I need to say this on Greyson’s behalf. Hurt her, and I’ll break your legs.”
“Understood.” I laugh. “Although I have no intentions of ever hurting her.”
“Good.” He nods, taking a step back. “And also, don’t worry about Ford. I’ll deal with him on the ice as much as I can.”
“I appreciate that, Hayes. I’ll most likely get Randy to take over practices for the next few days, at least until he cools down a bit.”
Randy’s one of the two assistant coaches for the team. He’s usually in charge of the defensemen, but I’m sure he won’t mind stepping up a bit more. He’s basically my right-hand man behind the bench, and I know I can trust him with this.
“That might be wise.” Silas gives me a tight smile filled with sympathy as his eyes roam over my face and the damage done to it.
An hour later, I’m finally getting checked by a nurse, and as I thought, she informs me as she cleans up my wounds that I won’t be needing any stitches. She then instructs me to apply some cold compresses to my bruises, which I already knew, but the look of relief on Aubrey’s face makes the long wait and wasted time worth it.
As we head back to the waiting room, I can hear her mind working as she looks down at her feet. I pull on our intertwined hands, forcing her to stop walking and turn toward me. “What is it, Angel?”
She takes a deep breath as she convinces herself to speak her mind. “Is Grey going to get in trouble for hitting you?”
I shake my head. “No, I have no intention of telling anyone what happened, and I don’t think the boys will either. What happened tonight has nothing to do with the team; it’s a personal matter and will be settled that way. I won’t penalize your brother for expressing his feelings.”
She steps into me, wrapping her arms around my waist and resting her head against my chest. “I just don’t want it to cause you both problems. I couldn’t live with myself if one of you lost your job because of me.”
“That won’t happen, sweetheart. We’re both grown men, and I think your brother is smart enough to separate his personal feelings from the game.”
“I hope you’re right,” she whispers.
When we finally make it back to the waiting room, Greyson is standing by his parents, and my back straightens instantly. I’m not sure how he’ll react to seeing me still here, but I don’t care. If my girl wants me here, then that’s where I’ll be.
When Aubrey spots him, she rushes over to his side, placing her hand on his bicep. “How’s Emma? Is she okay? And the babies?”
Greyson’s eyes connect with mine, and I can practically feel the daggers he’s throwing at me. He then turns his glare to his sister, brushing her hand off him and taking a step to the side. “They’re all fine. You and yourboyfriendcan leave now,” he says with venom in his voice.
I can see the pain in Aubrey’s eyes, the way her hands hold a slight tremble, the way her throat keeps bobbing like she’s swallowing down her tears. “I’m not going anywhere. My family is here; this is where I should be.” She stands her ground despite the wobbliness of her voice.
Greyson scoffs. “Oh, now family’s important to you? I could have sworn differently.”
Her face scrunches up as she loses the fight against her emotions, her neck turning red.
I step up quickly, wrapping my arm around her waist and pulling her into my chest. “That’s enough!” I bark out at him with the authority I use on the ice. I’ll tolerate a lot from him, but hurting my Angel won’t be one of them.
His jaw ticks and I can tell he wants to say something back, but he thinks better of it and turns his back to us, addressing his parents. “They’re keeping Em for the night for observation in case she goes into early labor from the fall. But if all is well, we’ll be heading home in the morning.”
“Let’s hope for the best,” his father says, placing a hand on his shoulder and giving a light squeeze.
