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I kissed Jolie on the forehead, part of me wishing we could have finished our conversation and part of me glad we were leaving some things unsaid. It wouldn’t make things any easier if I told her I was crazy about her. That I thought about what an amazing mother she’d be one day when I saw her with Joey. That I hated when she had to leave, and I’d never felt that for any other woman before.
“Can I get some pizza first?” Jolie asked Joey.
“If you go fast.”
I playfully scoffed at him. “How nice of you to let us eat, kid.”
“You didn’t get the cinnamon bread,” he countered.
This kid. He never let anything get by him.
“I forgot about it, dude.”
He was standing in front of the fridge, filling the water bottle I’d bought him. That was the only battle I’d won—he mostly drank water now. I’d convinced him that if he kept drinking orange soda, it would turn his teeth orange.
“Okay, I’m ready to watch the greatest hockey movie ever made,” Jolie said, her plate piled high with pizza.
I grabbed the box with the supreme in it and carried it to the coffee table, and when I went to sit down, I saw that Jolie was on one end of the couch and Joey was snuggled up to her.
The Mighty Duckswasn’t even a contender for greatest hockey movie ever made, but seeing my nephew so content was worth watching it again. I’d gotten close to him, and it reinforced how little I really knew about Andy’s kids.
I wished I could have it all—hockey, my family, and Jolie. But it just wasn’t meant to be.
* * *
Clankingdishes and the smell of freshly brewing coffee woke me up the next morning. I’d fallen asleep on the couch, my neck sore from the awkward position.
“Like that?” Joey asked from the kitchen.
“Perfect,” Jolie said. “How did you become such a perfect pancake flipper?”
“Uncle Boone taught me.”
I slipped into the bathroom to take a leak and brush my teeth, and when I walked into the kitchen, Joey was tearing into a big stack of pancakes.
“You want some pancakes?” he asked through a mouthful of food.
“I’ll make eggs, dude. You eat the pancakes.” I approached Jolie and kissed her softly. “Morning. Nice to see you still here.”
“Morning. I think we all fell asleep duringMighty Ducks Two.” She poured a mug full of coffee and passed it to me. “I have to go. I’m going to swing by my place and shower real quick before heading to the lab.”
“Can I go with you?” Joey begged.
“Not this time. But I promise I’ll take you again soon, okay?”
“Okay.”
She gave me a quick kiss and then went over to Joey and kissed the top of his head. “Be good, you two. I’ll see you later.”
“Bye, babe,” I said, walking her to the door.
“Do you love her?” Joey asked when I walked back into the kitchen.
“Whoa, where did that come from?”
He shrugged. “You guys kiss all the time.”
“Did she say anything about love?”
