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Adalyn comes bouncing into the living room, a flurry of pastel purple hair and a peachy smile. Her husband is hot on her heels, eyes on her and only her.
“You should have because you lost four hundred bucks,” she says.
The rest of the family follows behind her, and Noah grows tense beside me at the onslaught of people. It’s the first time he’s seen everyone for months now, but even though his injury has healed well, I know it’s making him even more tense. He doesn’t want sympathy from anyone. I don’t think he’ll find it here. They know him well enough not to put him in an even more uncomfortable position in this environment.
I’ve always known that the Hutton family had money, considering Oakley’s career in the NHL, but the size of their home has always seemed . . . too much to me. However, now that all of us kids have grown up and started families of our own, their house truly is the perfect size. Anything smaller and we wouldn’t fit as comfortably.
The first of the Hutton third generation comes barrelling between Adalyn’s legs, his tiny legs carrying him into the living room. Liam grins brightly when everyone’s attention falls on him. A yearning grows in my chest when he takes one look at Noah and squeals, changing direction.
“Nah! Nah!”
Noah removes his hand from my waist and drops to a crouch as Liam reaches him, his arms outstretched. The grumpiest, stone-walled man I’ve ever known envelopes his nephew into his arms and holds him close. The toddler tries to get his arms around Noah’s shoulders but hardly reaches the tips of them. I swallow a ball of emotion in my throat and look away from them, my eyes snagging on Maddox.
With his hands in his pockets, his shoulder pressed to the wall, he meets my stare, a sheen over his eyes. A feeling of acceptance travels between us. I’ll forgive him for hurting Noah on one condition: he never does it again. Not to this extent.
Seeing Noah in the hospital changed a lot of things for a lot of people. I don’t believe that it should have taken something like that to shake some sense into them, but I’m just relieved something did. That’s the only thing that matters.
Over the past two weeks, Oakley and Noah have made leaps and strides in their relationship. Things are still stinted, but every day, the two of them grow closer. Healing one another. The future is bright for them, and I feel blessed that I get to have a front-row seat to their growth.
Braxton sidles up to her husband and, like every single person in the house, watches the scene unfold with soft features. It doesn’t last long, not with Liam being a toddler and, in turn, having the temperament of one, but I’ll never forget it.
Ava is rushing toward the two of us when Noah stands, and Liam runs off. She pulls us both into a hug, her arms hardly long enough to wrap around one person, let alone two. “How was your flight?”
“Short. No turbulence either,” I answer. My parents aren’t here, but I know they wish they could have been. Dad’s set to open the gym in two days, though, and I am so proud of him for that.
When we break apart, Noah’s placing his hand back on my waist and holding me close to him, as if just by being here, I’m bringing him the comfort he needs to get through today. I love being that person for him.
“It feels like forever since we’ve had everyone here at once. My heart is so full today,” she admits.
Looking around, I note the missing faces. “Where are Adam, Scarlett, and Amelia?” My brows furrow when I don’t see Oakley either.
Cooper’s family is usually always here first because his father is Ava’s best friend, and those two can’t go long without being at each other’s sides. It’s always been adorable. Oakley’s absence is odd but not worrying.
“They’re on the way. There was a problem at WIT,” she answers.
White Ice Training, Adam’s hockey training facility.
“Dad was there too?” Noah asks, attempting to play off his curiosity.
Ava notices what I do and glances at me knowingly before focusing on her son. “He wouldn’t miss seeing you, honey. He’ll be here any minute.”
He nods. I lean over to brush a kiss to his cheek and whisper, “You should talk to Maddox.”
His hold on me tightens. Sparks erupt beneath his fingertips, a reminder that my love grows for him every single day.
“Don’t let them eat you alive,” he replies, voice quiet, the words just for me.
I speak in the same tone. “I’m proud of you for being here.”
His stare grows warm, turning my insides to goo. When he looks at me like this, I don’t need words. They’re worthless in comparison.
After a few beats, I force myself to look away and flush when I catch the way Ava’s watching us. Like she couldn’t possibly be happier. Finally at peace.
“I’m going to talk to Maddox,” Noah tells her.
“I think that’s a great idea, sweetheart.”
With a lingering look, Noah moves from my side, invoking a dull ache behind my rib cage that always swells when we’re apart. I ignore it because as much as even a breath of distance between us hurts my soul, I know this might be one of the most important conversations of his life.
