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I nod quickly, sitting up so that my elbows hit my knees. I hold her hand, swirling my index finger along the palm of her hand. “I know I said you should stay here, but really, I only have to go for a little bit. A week at most. I gotta go sign papers and shit. Meet my coach, some of the players. I can even look at some houses while I’m there. The second she goes into labor, I’ll come back home—”
She gives me a look. “This isn’t our home.”
I lean my head into hers. “Claire, my home is where you are.”
Her lips tip up again as she kisses my top lip. “Same here.”
I don’t move away from her as I say, “Jace, Avery, and the kids will be close.”
She shoots me a blank look. “They’re in Fort Lauderdale. We’ll be in Tampa.”
“Close. Kinda. It will be good for the baby. You wanted him to grow up with family,” I remind her, and I’m rewarded with another small smile. She’s not happy, but at least she’s not upset anymore. “We’ll be sorta close to Nashville where the rest of the family is.”
“Sorta.”
I squeeze her hand in mine. “It’s going to be okay. We’ll win this like we do everything else.”
She nods. “I’m scared what Tristan will say.”
I can’t let her know that I am too. I lean back, pull out my phone, and dial Tristan’s number on speaker. When her raspy voice fills the line, Claire looks down at our hands.
“Hey!”
“Hey there. What are you up to?”
She scoffs. “Currently doing squats to evict your kid. He’s stubborn, FYI.”
“Great. He’ll take after his mom.” I tease, and Claire grins. “Listen, I’ve got some news.”
“Good or bad?”
I shrug with a small grimace. “In between?”
“Oh, well, let me sit down, then,” she says, and since she is about to pop, I can literally hear her lowering herself onto the couch. “Tell Claire she isn’t missing anything with this crap. Being pregnant is for the birds.”
The look on my wife’s face says otherwise. “You’re on speaker. She’s here.”
“Oh,” Tristan says slowly. “So, this isn’t good.”
“I don’t know. It’s a hit, I think.”
“A hit?”
“Yeah, like when a defensemen knocks you into the boards—”
“Jude, you told me you were gonna send me Hockey for Dummies. I’m still waiting for my copy.”
I grin as Claire laughs softly. “I’ll get it for you.”
“Good, but get on with it. Rip it off like a Band-Aid.”
Our gazes lock, and tears well up in Claire’s eyes once more. “I got traded to Tampa Bay. With their embarrassing loss to a wild card team after winning sixty-two regular season games, they need yours truly to switch things up.” I’m rambling. I know I am, but I’m terrified.
“Traded? So, what? Like, you guys will move away?”
“Yeah,” I answer, closing my eyes and pinching the bridge of my nose. “I’m not sure when, but before the start of the season.”
She pauses. “Oh.”
