by Karin Baine
‘Ouch!’ He drew in a quick breath as if she’d poured salt into an open wound.
‘Seriously?’ She’d barely touched him and, with the stench of alcohol emanating through his very pores, she’d imagined he was probably numb from the scalp down.
‘It stings, man.’
‘Sorry. I’ll be as gentle as I can.’ Perhaps she’d been a tad more abrasive than she should have when she was angry at herself for the incident at the top of the stairs. She should know better than to let her personal feelings leak into her professional manner. Although Anderson was the reason she’d been thrown together with Hunter tonight, it wasn’t his fault she’d thrown herself at him.
‘What happened back there anyway?’ She tried to turn her thoughts back to her patient’s current predicament, not her own, but it was easier said than done when she could still imagine Hunter’s arms wrapped around her.
‘At a rough guess I’d say a disagreement with some Cobra fans. Am I right? That’s where the opposition hang out when they’re in town.’ Hunter handed him a mug of black coffee and offered her one without any indication this was in any way awkward for him after what had just occurred.
She declined. A nightcap of any description here wasn’t going to happen. Once she had her big, brave soldier patched up she was packing up and running back to the safety of her own house, where she could analyse the reasons behind that almost-kiss.
Her patient took a sip of the strong-smelling brew and winced. ‘Just some friendly rivalry.’
‘Hmm. Well, it looks like one of your new friends took serious offence to something you either said or did. That cut on your cheek is going to need stitching.’
He was fortunate it wasn’t closer to his eye but she’d lecture him tomorrow when he would remember it. It was too bad she wouldn’t forget the events of tonight as easily because she knew they were going to change everything between her and Hunter at work. If she wasn’t careful things were going to get even more complicated than they already were.
CHAPTER THREE
CHARLOTTE WENT TO wash up and proceeded to suture the deep cut. Hunter knew it was saving them all a hospital trip but the longer she spent in his house, the antsier he was becoming. They’d had one close call already. Only an irate Canadian water rat had pulled the brakes on that near-kiss that had come from nowhere and yet had seemed so natural. That was a direct contravention of his new dad regulations. He hadn’t figured romance into his future plans at all.
As Charlotte tended to her patient, whose massive frame was wedged into the floral old-lady furniture, it struck Hunter how odd the set-up here must’ve appeared to her. At the time of renting the place he’d thought only of being close to Alfie. The owner had been keen to sell if he decided to stay permanently since this had been his late mother’s house. One day Hunter imagined he and Alfie would put their own stamp on the décor. Until then he’d have to put up with the crocheted blankets and rocking chairs.
‘All finished.’ Charlotte had done a neat job, even in these unusual circumstances. Not that he was surprised when he’d seen and heard exactly how passionate she was about her work. The Demons were lucky to have her, yet Anderson hadn’t even bothered to thank her.
He had an inkling they were all in for a very long night.
In the old days Hunter’s first reaction to dealing with the stresses of the evening would’ve been to head straight to the bar. Whilst he was sorely tempted, it wouldn’t solve any of their problems, so he served himself a shot of caffeine and took his position in the therapist chair.
‘Do you want to talk about what happened tonight?’ It would be easier than having him tear up the house in another rage-filled rampage.
Anderson eyed Charlotte sideways through his mop of wet, straggly blond hair.
‘Surely you’re not suddenly shy now? Charlotte’s seen all of your antics tonight, don’t forget.’ Regardless of their personal faux pas, he didn’t think she’d walk out if they were about to make a breakthrough here. As far as he’d seen, she always put her job first and wouldn’t be sidelined when it came to the players’ treatment on anyone’s account.
‘Anything you say in front of us is strictly confidential. We just want to help, Gus.’ She took a seat next to Hunter on the couch, confirming that she wasn’t going anywhere.
Anderson sighed. ‘These Irish chicks...it’s like they bewitch you or something.’
He was shaking his head but there was a ghost of a smile in there somewhere behind all that hair. It was a start, an opening to what was going on beyond the Hulkish façade. Hunter would’ve agreed except he didn’t want his captivating companion beside him knowing that’s exactly what she was doing to him. That was the only explanation of why he was veering so dangerously off track from common sense.
If there was one thing guaranteed to make a man want to smash stuff in a testosterone-fuelled rage it was woman trouble. Make that two things. Parents who wished you’d never been born had the same effect.
The big guy was on his feet, pacing. Hunter scanned the room for valuable antiques he should probably remove before he was charged for breakages but he was sure he could afford to lose the ugly owl ornament on the mantelpiece made from seashells and the tears of frightened children.
‘This place was only supposed to be a stopgap, somewhere I could make a name for myself and move on.’
The opposite of Hunter’s career slide into oblivion here. It had been the beginning of the end for him when he’d been shipped out here but a young, up-and-coming star like Anderson had a future in the UK league, maybe even the NHL, if he didn’t screw it up too.
‘Unless there’s something you’re not telling us, the only one putting that in jeopardy is you. Trust me, that temper is gonna get you attention for all the wrong reasons. Whatever you’ve got going on, deal with it now before your name is one no team wants attached to them.’ It was true for him almost a decade later, even with a change of career. If it wasn’t for Gray throwing him a lifeline he’d be stacking shelves in the local supermarket.
Gus flopped back into the chair and Hunter waited quietly so he didn’t spook his unpredictable companion. Charlotte seemed to be of the same thinking as she remained quiet too. Neither of them would benefit from him kicking off again. Instead of forcing the issue, they let silence dominate.
He’d learned a lot from his own counselling sessions where the onus had been on him to fill the gaps in conversation. In the end the uncomfortable lack of interaction had forced him to verbalise the feelings he’d been avoiding since seeking out his birth family, and confront the crushing damage their rejection had caused to his self-esteem and self-worth.
It had taken him years to tackle the subject and understand he wasn’t the one who’d done anything wrong. By which time it had been too late and he’d lost everything and everyone else. If he could prevent the same thing happening to his friend here, he would.
Whether there was a physical or emotional issue behind his behaviour, he needed to ask for help, instead of hiding behind the villain mask and pushing everyone away. He might’ve processed what had happened to him in his past, apportioned blame to the right people now and finally moved on, but that didn’t mean there wasn’t lingering frustration at having blown his hockey career along the way.
‘Maggie’s pregnant.’ Anderson finally punctuated the silence with his shoulder-slumping admission.
Charlotte let out a long breath beside him. So it wasn’t a serious injury he was battling but it was potentially a mess. At least he was opening up. It was progress; the first step towards salvaging the man and the player.
‘And Maggie is?’ Hunter wasn’t assuming anything. She could be a fan, a one-night stand or a married woman for all the anguish this situation was apparently causing.
‘We’ve been seeing each other for a few months. I mean, I like her. I rea
lly like her but I’m not ready for this.’
‘Okay. This isn’t the end of the world. I mean, I know it’s a big shock but it happens to people every day and they live through it.’ Charlotte attempted to reassure him and Hunter could almost see her mind ticking over, trying to figure out how they could help him come to terms with impending fatherhood.
He resisted a lecture on contraception when it wasn’t going to make any difference now but he might suggest to Charlotte that they provide some literature on the subject to try and prevent more unwanted pregnancies or STDs among the players in the future. Although it did make him a feel a bit of a hypocrite when he’d made the same mistake at this guy’s age. The only difference between him and Anderson was he hadn’t known about Sara’s pregnancy.
Perhaps that had been for the best. He hadn’t been in the right frame of mind to be a father to Alfie then, or a supportive partner to Sara. By all accounts, they’d had a happier life without him and it had taken reaching rock bottom alone for him to finally get the help he’d needed to be the best dad he could be for Alfie.
‘How does Maggie feel about it?’ Of course it was Charlotte who remembered there was someone else’s feelings in the equation here.
Gus looked at her as though it was the first time he’d even considered the effect it would have on his probably equally young girlfriend. The arrogance of youth.
‘She’s scared about how her parents are going to react to the news. I’m sure a hockey player wouldn’t be their first choice for their daughter’s baby daddy.’
‘I hear ya.’ Even without the drinking, fighting and generally acting like a jerk, he suspected Sara’s parents would always have disapproved of him. Everyone, including him, had known he wasn’t good enough. Sara and Alfie should have had a stable, reliable guy with a steady job to support them. He was doing his best to be that man for Alfie now. That’s why the idea of getting together with anyone, even Charlotte, was dangerous.
He didn’t miss Charlotte’s raised eyebrows as he sympathised but he wasn’t ready to share his own surprise baby story with anyone just yet. ‘Do you have any family of your own here, Gus?’
He shook his head. ‘We keep in touch from time to time but I haven’t seen them for a while.’
It was too easy to distance yourself from family when living abroad, even if they did care about you, and they were the very people who could save a person from total despair. Unfortunately his hadn’t.
‘I would really make the effort to talk to your parents about this. You and Maggie both need the support. As someone who was effectively stranded here without any sort of emotional backup I would advise making the most of it so you don’t end up making the catastrophic decisions I did.’ So he’d shared a little personal info but it would be worth it to stop someone else making those same mistakes and throwing away the chance of a happy family.
Charlotte shifted in the seat next to him but he couldn’t bear to look at her and see any hint of pity there. This wasn’t supposed to be a group therapy session, he genuinely just wanted to help and the best way to do that was by showing some solidarity.
Anderson frowned. ‘I really couldn’t deal with their disappointment on top of everything else.’
‘I know it’s going to be a difficult conversation to have but, trust me, you don’t want to go through this alone. Right now you’re reacting on an emotional level. You need that grounding. Someone to give you a kick up the backside to start thinking clearly. If I’d had parents who’d given a damn, who I could’ve turned to for help when I needed it, I might never have left here in the first place.’ Even now it was hard not to be bitter about the hand he’d been dealt: two sets of parents who’d happily sat back and watched him self-destruct. The only person who’d been there for him had been Sara but he’d been in too much pain to even let her get close emotionally.
‘Hunter’s right. This is too big to keep to yourself. If you’re still on good terms with your mum and dad, swallow your pride and at least pick up the phone to talk to them if you can’t visit in person. Make the most of having them in your life because you’ll miss them when they’re gone.’ Charlotte was leaning forward in her seat, her arms wrapped around her waist, and he recognised that self-protecting gesture of someone who’d experienced that same isolation and loneliness, even if her experience of family sounded vastly different from his.
‘You’ve both lost your parents?’ The roles were reversed as Anderson took over the role of therapist.
‘Mine aren’t dead. They just wish I was. Neither my adoptive nor birth parents are in my life. Their choice, not mine.’ There was no point dancing around the facts but it did make for an awkward silence as the blunt statement made an impact and he wondered if he had overshared after all.
‘I...er...did lose my mum a few years ago. My dad, much like Hunter’s family, has decided he’d rather not be part of my life.’
Hunter wanted to lean over and give her a hug but she probably wouldn’t appreciate the public display of solidarity. Feckless parents were the worst. Which was why he worried so much about getting it right himself. His actions now would affect Alfie for the rest of his life and that was a huge responsibility, one not to be taken lightly or disregarded without a second thought.
‘Listen, this isn’t about us or our absent parents but you can see for yourself that the decisions you make as a parent from here on in will have long, far-reaching consequences.’
‘No pressure, then,’ Anderson grumbled, his immaturity stubbornly shining through despite the pep talk.
‘Which is why you don’t want to be hasty, acting out without giving thought to the consequences of your actions.’
Where had Charlotte been when he’d needed to hear that straight talking? If he’d had someone like her on his team during those dark times, things could’ve been so very different. Maybe, just maybe he wouldn’t have treated Sara and everyone else here with such reckless abandon.
‘I don’t want to spend the rest of my days here changing diapers. I want to go places.’
‘The two aren’t mutually exclusive, you know. There are plenty of dads on the team whose families are quite happy to move wherever the opportunities arise. Have you had a talk about the future, or what either of you want?’ It seemed hypocritical to be dishing out advice on relationships when he’d never had a successful one of any kind himself but Hunter believed his failure made him the best person for the job. He’d been that idiot incapable of dealing with his emotions and was still dealing with the repercussions. A living example of what not to do.
At least Anderson had the grace to look ashamed. ‘No. I guess I didn’t take the news very well when she first told me and she isn’t replying to any of my messages.’
Hunter groaned at the idiocy as history repeated itself. He might not have known Sara was pregnant but it was that same lack of communication that had killed their chances of being a family. That and his descent into the red mist that had consumed him and was now beckoning Anderson to the dark side.
Had he really been this self-absorbed when Sara had been making decisions about her future and that of their baby? Probably, and it was too late to apologise. He knew now the reason behind his own meltdown but it didn’t excuse his behaviour and he took full responsibility for those he’d hurt. He bore many regrets but that one hurt the most.
Thankfully it wasn’t too late for Gus and Maggie.
‘Here’s an idea, why don’t you go and see her in person, prove you’re taking this seriously and stop acting like a spoilt brat?’ Insulting him was a risky move but there was no time for tiptoeing around him any more.
The slight nod in agreement enabled Hunter to speak freely without worrying he might lose a couple of teeth for his trouble.
‘Do you love her?’
‘Yes.’ There was no hesitation, which gave some hope for the parents-to
-be.
‘Good. That’s the foundation you need to start from. Concentrate on that for now. Find out if she feels the same and work together on taking that next step. A little word from the wise, you might want to quit the temper tantrums on ice too. You don’t want her to think she has two babies to deal with and getting fired isn’t going to help you, Maggie or the baby. Been there, lost my shirt and the girl. Don’t recommend it.’
‘You’re right. I need to step up and be there for her.’ He made to get out of the chair and it dawned on Hunter he meant now, wearing only a towel and still slightly slurring his words. Not the best impression to give if he wanted Maggie to forgive him and understand he was taking the matter seriously.
Hunter was quicker getting to his feet. He put a hand on Anderson’s shoulder and firmly guided him back into his seat.
‘It’s late. She’s probably asleep. I have a spare room you can stay the night in. Go see her tomorrow after you’ve sobered up.’
‘I can probably give you some coaching in effective grovelling techniques before you see her, if it’ll help?’ Charlotte added her weight behind the campaign to get him back into Maggie’s good books. They were turning out to be quite a team after all.
‘It can’t hurt. Thanks for all your help, guys.’ Anderson threw his arms around Hunter, catching him around the waist in an awkward man hug.
‘No problem. Just remember, we’re your family too.’ He took the hit so Charlotte wouldn’t have to, hoping Gus would go to bed before he entered the ‘I love you’ stage of drunkenness.
Hunter knew he was in for a long sleepless night himself. Not only was he going to have to make frequent checks on his intoxicated patient but he had a lot of thinking to do about his own life. He couldn’t very well preach the importance of communication one minute and pretend there hadn’t been a shift between him and Charlotte the next.
If he followed his own advice and admitted he liked her, that there was a powerful attraction pulling them towards each other, then they’d have to discuss their next step too. The problem was if he let her into his life he was going to have to be honest about Alfie. Her reaction to that bombshell would determine what happened next.
