Page 31 of Body Check

thirteen

. . .

Amelia

I’m the last to sit down, so of course, the only empty seat is beside McKittrick.

Jason.

If he’s thrown by our coworkers being here, he doesn’t show it.

“Wow,” he mutters. “He really went all out.”

The table is filled with bagels and a relish tray, plus a platter of deviled eggs, a winter vegetable salad, tuna salad, and a frittata. And that doesn’t include the pitcher of Bloody Marys and another jug of orange juice for mimosas.

“We used to do this all the time in Austin,” Tyler says. “Brando’s teammates aren’t into brunch, they prefer steakhouses. And while I can cook a mean Tomahawk, it’s not my favorite.”

“Well, I’m glad you invited us,” Vanessa says. “I love those meals you drop off. You’re supremely talented.”

He grins. “I’ll get the entire roster soon enough.”

“If you need help with the logistics of it all, let me know. That’s my department.”

“You got it.”

I knew connecting Ty with the hockey team was a good move. He only works part-time right now, easing back into the swing of things after his paternity leave. But he could easily leave everything to his chefs and just handle the business side of things. Then again, he started the business because he missed cooking, so who’s to say he can’t find someone to run the numbers while he does the chef-y work?

I’ve only been with the team for two months, but already, Vanessa, Patrice, Joaquin, Robby, and I are forming a tight little group. We sit together on the plane, we go for meals together, and most of our free time is spent together. When you travel as much as we do, it’s nice to have a core group of friends amongst the coworkers. I didn’t really have that in Colorado.

To my surprise, it isn’t weird having two players with us. Maybe because one of them is Sven, who doesn’t talk much on a good day, and McKittrick is the middleman between the staff and players.

The man drinks his coffee in the hot pink mug, seemingly content to sit there amongst the hubbub of the group. Joaquin and Tyler get along fabulously, just like I hoped they would, and Patrice and Brandon are talking about the signings the Bulldogs made in the off-season.

Robby’s eyes are misty, and I give him a little kick under the table.

“You okay?” I mouth.

He nods, swallowing thickly. “I’m just so happy.”

“Why wouldn’t you be happy?” Patrice asks.

“When I came out… I knew it wouldn’t be great, but I wasn’t prepared for how rough it really got,” Robby says. “I’m not perfect, not in the slightest, and two of the people I hurt the most are sitting here at this table, like nothing is wrong, and I just—I’m so fucking happy.”

“Oh, Rob,” Tyler sighs. “That’s water under the bridge.”

“We’re good now,” Vanessa adds. “Really.”

Robby shakes his head. “I’m so fucking grateful we got to this point. And that we can hang out and it’s not weird.”

“It’s a little weird,” Joaquin cuts in.

Robby flips him off. “I’m finally living the life I wanted to live. My authentic truth. And as much as I regret that it took so long to get here, now that I’m here, I don’t want to give it up.”

“And you don’t have to,” Brandon says firmly. “We’re here to support you. All of us are.”

“Yeah, man,” McKittrick adds in. “This team is a family. We’ve got each other’s backs, no matter what.”

My eyes well up with tears at their unconditional acceptance. It’s what he should have gotten when he told his parents; it’s what Brandon should have had with his family; it’s what Ty should have received from our dad.