Page 50 of Flashback for the Forward

Cole grunted from where he leaned against the countertop, both hands shoved into the pockets of his joggers.

“Trust me. He’s not worth it.”

“Agree to disagree,” Crew muttered.

Refusing to allow Aiden to ruin this reunion, I changed the subject. “So, how’s defense treating you these days?”

Without asking for permission, Crew grabbed one of the many baked goods littering the island and took a huge bite. Around the food in his mouth, he replied, “It’s not the most glamorous job, but I make it look good.”

“You teaching that partner of yours how to get dirty in the blue paint?”

Swallowing, he nodded. “Kid’s young, but he’s figuring it out. Doesn’t hurt that our new coach is eager to put a foot up his ass anytime he makes a mistake.”

I hummed. “Sounds like my kind of bench boss.”

“Dude, he’s unhinged.” Crew widened his eyes for emphasis. “I swear, the arena started selling out because fans want to be there to witness one of his crazy stunts in person.”

Head cocked to the side, I asked, “What kind of crazy stunts?”

Crew’s gaze bounced around the room, as if he believed that the man himself might appear. Voice hushed, he said, “One time, he pulled the goalie in the middle of the game and made us play without him for, like, five whole minutes to teach us to keep the puck far away from the net.”

A loud snort sounded, my hand rising too slow to contain it. “Oh my God, that’s actually kinda hilarious.”

The more jovial of the Astor twins didn’t look amused. “Wasn’t funny when he put shock bracelets on the entire team during practice.”

Jaw hitting the floor, I asked, “Why?”

“According to him, our positioning sucked. The bracelets only activated when we got too close to two or more of the others, so it was supposed to train us not to get bunched up.”

While his methods were certainly unorthodox, I found myself curious. “Did it work?”

“Yeah,” Crew grudgingly admitted. “It did.”

The whole Kennedy thing kinda killed my interest in the game last night, but now that I thought about it, before that, the commentators made a point to remark upon the Surf’s improvement from seasons past. Maybe a tough-love kinda coach was exactly what they needed to turn things around.

“So it sounds like hockey’s going good. What else is new with you?” There was no question I’d missed a lot in the last eight years. “Got a special lady in your life?”

Crew flashed me a cheeky grin. “Aw, come on, Bridge, you know me. I’m not one to kiss and tell.”

“No, but you love to bang and brag,” Cole huffed.

I failed to bite back a snicker. “Active love life. Noted.”

“It’s not my fault I’ve got ladies falling at my feet everywhere I go,” Crew said in defense. “I mean, have you seen this face?” He circled a hand in front of it.

“I have.” It was a face I myself had been helpless to resist once upon a time, though it belonged to a man who shared identical DNA to the one I spoke to now.

“What do you say we pretend like it’s old times and have a movie marathon?”

The suggestion caught me off guard, but it wasn’t unwelcome.

Getting lost in the drama of fictional characters instead of fixating on my own sounded like heaven right about now.

“Let’s do it.”

“Goaltender interference!” I screamed at the TV. “Challenge it!”

Maisie and Arizona stared at me as if I’d lost my damn mind, but Austin’s focus remained fixed on the TV, where they showed a slow-motion replay of the goal scored by the Philadelphia Rebels.