Crossing Center Ice

by Kimberly Rae Jordan

  Breathing a silent sigh of relief, Avery put him through the exercises that the trainers wanted him to do that would improve his agility and balance. Hunter would take care of the ones that he needed to do to regain his strength. They would be doing another test at the end of that week to measure his progress. Avery thought it would show improvement, but would it be enough to please Kenton?

  Kenton was glad when the workout with Hunter was over. Avery had left an hour earlier which meant it had just been him and Gabe with Hunter. He’d expected Gabe to pick up where he’d left off earlier, but for some reason, his brother had kept his yap shut. That had allowed Kenton to maintain the mindset Avery had pushed him into throughout the rest of his time with Hunter.

  He was glad his doctor had cleared him to drive so when Gabe had said he was hanging out longer at the gym and would get a ride home with Hunter, he’d been able to head for home without having to wait around. Once he was home, Kenton retreated to his room for a shower and then made a call to Vlad. He needed to have a conversation with someone who wasn’t going to harp on the situation with Avery. He’d told his brothers he was going to back off, but for some reason, that hadn’t been enough, and Gabe had started up the Avery conversation again on the way to the gym.

  Kenton couldn’t cut ties with her completely as long as he needed therapy. But what he would try to do was step back a bit from Benjie and Elliot. He didn’t really get the feeling that Avery was interested in him, but he didn’t want Benjie getting any thoughts that would make things hard on the boy when Kenton returned to LA.

  “Can’t wait til you’re back, man,” Vlad said. “And not just because O’Neal is faltering. I need a good wingman.”

  “Like you need a wingman.” Kenton laughed. “Have you hit your head on the ice again? You know that’s not a role I’ve ever had to play for you.”

  “Okay. So maybe I just miss hanging out with you. It’s not the same.”

  “Yeah. Miss you too, bro. Right now, I’d definitely take your company over my brothers’. They are driving me insane.”

  “That’s what brothers are supposed to do,” Vlad reminded him. “My two somehow manage to do it on a regular basis even though they don’t live anywhere near me.”

  “I know,” Kenton said as he rubbed his forehead, staring up at the ceiling above his bed where he’d settled after his shower. He debated sharing it all with Vlad, and in the end, he did, simply because he needed the perspective of someone who knew him in a different way than his brothers did. They knew him as their brother first and as a hockey player second. Vlad knew him as a hockey player first.

  As he expected, Vlad listened without comment and didn’t offer much in the way of advice. “You’ve always been very focused on your career, and you’ve always made it clear to me that a serious relationship would have to wait. Are you reconsidering that decision now?”

  He thought of Avery and realized that if anyone could make him reconsider, it would be her. Of course, he didn’t say that to Vlad, but apparently, his pause had said enough to the man.

  “Just make sure you are prepared to play out your contract. If something does change for you with this woman, you can then have it taken into consideration when you’re negotiating a new one. Or you could retire. You’re already past the average age of retirement for hockey players.”

  “But that’s the thing. Right now, she’s not acting like she’s even interested in me that way, so I’m not sure why the guys are making such a big deal out of it. Sure, she’s a great lady. She’s done a terrific job working with me on my knee, and she’s a great mom to a boy who’s an awesome hockey player.” Kenton paused. “My brothers are right about Benjie, though, and I can see how I need to be cautious there. But why should I make any life-changing decisions when I don’t think she’s interested in me?”

  “But you’re interested in her?”

  “She reminds me a lot of Misty.” The similarity between another player’s wife and Avery came to him in that moment.

  “You always said that of all the WAGs, you liked Misty the most,” Vlad reminded him.

  And it was true. Though there were a lot of nice wives and girlfriends of players, Misty had always stood out above the rest. She hadn’t been the youngest or the prettiest, but she was a stable influence in her husband’s life. They hadn’t had the smoothest life in the NHL with several trades in a short period of time, but Rod had often spoken about how Misty had stayed calm and supportive through it all. If Kenton had to pick a relationship that he admired within the league, it would be theirs.

  “Avery has a core of strength that reminds me of Misty. And she’s such a great mom to her boy—who, by the way, is a great little hockey player.” Kenton let out a sigh. Was there any sense in denying it? “She is someone special, Vlad. I never imagined having someone like her in my life, especially not at this point in time. I didn’t plan to have any sort of serious relationship right now.”

  “All well and good, my friend, but sometimes love has a plan of its own.”

  And so does God… That reminder came in his dad’s voice and gave him pause more than Vlad’s comment had.

  “Well, I’d avoid her if I could, but that’s not possible right now.”

  “Then better bring on the iceman. You know…the one all the puck bunnies complain about. The one no one has managed to get to melt.”

  Kenton grinned. “Yeah. He’s been missing since I got home.”

  They continued to talk about the team and the games they’d played lately. Though Kenton wished he was with them, he had to admit, the idea of being able to spend the Christmas season with his family made him happy. He hadn’t done anything in the way of shopping yet though, so he should probably at least pick up some gift cards.

  Once the conversation was over, Kenton tucked his hands under his head and stared out the window, noticing that it had started to snow as forecasted. A white Christmas was rarely in question in Winnipeg, but it was something that Kenton had missed while living in LA. It seemed he was setting himself up to miss even more about Winnipeg when he returned to the team.

  The fact that he had never reacted to a woman the way he was reacting to Avery really gave Kenton pause. He’d been around a lot of women. Some beautiful, some plain. Some nice, some…not so nice. Some outgoing, others more reserved. But there hadn’t been anyone that drew him in like Avery had.

  Being honest with himself meant admitting that for the first time ever, a woman was making him reconsider the future of his career. That right there was alarming enough without adding in how he felt about her son.

  Somehow, they made it through the week without things being too awkward between them. It made Kenton think that whatever fascination Avery held for him was not returned by her. She spoke to him and touched him as she had from the start, focusing on his knee and the work they had to do.

  But where things seemed okay between him and Avery, they were still decidedly tense between him and his brothers. That bothered him because while there had been strain between him and Bennett for years, there hadn’t been tension with any of his other brothers. To have that develop now was hard for him. Especially with Tristan. He hadn’t seen much of him throughout the week, but he knew he needed to track him down and sort things out. There was no way he could allow things to continue on as they were.

  “So I guess we’ll see you on Sunday,” Avery said as they finished up his session with her on Friday.

  Kenton frowned. “Sunday?”

  This time Avery frowned as well as she crossed her arms. “Uh yeah. Dalton called Elliot to invite him to the Christmas program he’s in on Sunday night. I just assumed you’d be there.”

  “Oh. Right. I forgot that was this weekend.” He recalled Dalton mentioning it, and the teen had been gone almost every evening that week for rehearsals. “Yeah. I’ll probably be there.”

  “Is it okay if we come?” Avery asked, her shoulders straightening. “If you’d rather we weren’t there—”


  “It’s fine,” Kenton cut her off. “If Dalton invited you guys then that means he wants you there. You won’t be disappointed. Dalton is super talented.”

  “We went to the concert at our church last week,” Avery said, the tension easing from her shoulders. “I enjoy going to programs this time of year.”

  “I’m usually too busy, to be honest, so it will be nice to see Dalton perform.”

  As he continued to work with Hunter after Avery had gone, Kenton found he was more excited than he should have been at the prospect of seeing Avery and Benjie again.

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  As she looked in the mirror, Avery told herself that she hadn’t taken special care with her appearance because she might be seeing Kenton that night. But when had she started lying to herself? Even though she knew that she would never compete with the beauties she saw on his arm on a regular basis when he lived in LA, she still wanted to look nice.

  She’d chosen a deep red, long-sleeved, fitted sweater with a V-neck and a wrap style front that came just to the top of the high waistband of the black, wide-leg trousers she wore. With it being winter, her choice of footwear was somewhat limited, so the boots she’d chosen to wear weren’t the most practical. They gave her a bit of height, but the heels also made walking on snowy walkways a bit treacherous. She’d be relying on Elliot to get her safely from the car to the building.

  Turning away from her appearance, she lifted the multi-strand silver necklace from her jewelry box and fastened it around her neck. Her fingers drifted over the chain, straightening it so that it fell exactly into the V-neck of the sweater. The long dangly earrings were the last things she put on before grabbing her purse from the bed.

  She’d taken longer to get ready for this evening than she had for anything else in a long time. Though she usually just pulled her hair back and did minimal makeup for work, earlier she’d taken the time to curl her hair, leaving it down for a change, and her makeup was a little more pronounced. Would Kenton notice the difference? Would he notice that she was wearing her favorite perfume?

  You need to be hoping he doesn’t notice.

  The voice in her head—the one that had come to life when she’d woken up in that hospital bed ten years ago—was loud. But just for that night, she didn’t want to listen to it. Didn’t want to heed the warning it held.

  “You look lovely,” her mom said when she walked into the living room a few minutes later. Unfortunately, it didn’t sound like a compliment.

  She had asked earlier if Kenton was going to be there. Thankfully, Avery could say she didn’t know for sure because Kenton had said he’d probably be there, but that wasn’t a definite thing. Semantics, Avery knew, which again made her realize that she was treading on dangerous ground.

  “Ready to go, Mom?” Benjie asked as he bounded into the living room, Elliot following him at a more sedate pace.

  “Yep.” She bent and pressed a kiss to her mom’s cheek, wishing she would have wanted to come with them. They got their coats on then went to the garage to get into the car.

  It didn’t take too long to get to the church. They had attended this church a couple of times when Avery had begun to search for a new church when it became clear that the one they were attending wasn’t the right one for them. Instead of understanding that her mom’s inability to leave the house was more than just stubbornness, the friends she’d had at church had slowly faded away. As if staying away would draw her out. Instead, all their actions had done was to wound an already wounded person, and worsen the problem of her isolation.

  This church had been a little larger than Avery had wanted, which had prodded them on to the next one. It had been stressful going to a new church every few weeks, but in the end, the one they’d settled on had been a good fit for each of them, and since they livestreamed their weekly service, her mom was able to watch from home.

  Once inside the church, they were greeted by the soft strains of Christmas music over the sound system. There were a bunch of decorated trees in the foyer that they passed as they wove their way through the crowd to the cloakroom where they hung up their coats. Elliot had mentioned that the program was running for three nights with Sunday being the last night. Dalton had said that was the night his family planned to attend, so he’d thought they might like to come then as well since they’d know people.

  As they walked into the sanctuary, Avery’s gaze moved over the pews, looking for a familiar face.

  “Hello, Avery.”

  She turned to see Tristan standing just behind Benjie. That wasn’t the familiar face she had been looking for, but she’d still take it. “Good evening, Tristan.”

  “Hey!” Benjie smiled up at the man. “Is Kenton here?”

  Tristan stared down at Benjie for a moment before nodding. He gestured to a pew not too far away from where they stood. “He’s already sitting down.”

  “Nice!” Without waiting for the rest of them, Benjie headed off down the aisle. Avery watched as he came to a stop and then sidestepped into the pew.

  Nerves fluttered in Avery’s stomach as she spotted Kenton, a smile on his face for Benjie. She glanced at Tristan and saw him watching them as well, only he was frowning.

  “Should we go?” Elliot said, his hand gripping Avery’s forearm.

  She gave a quick nod then headed down to where Benjie had found Kenton. When he spotted them, he stood up. This was the first time she was seeing him out of casual clothes. He wore a dark blue, button-down shirt with long sleeves. It was fitted enough to show that the guy didn’t have an ounce of fat on him. He had paired his shirt with black trousers, and he wore a watch that Avery suspected cost more than a few months of her salary. She knew he was a spokesperson for a luxury brand watch, so no doubt that was a perk.

  “Hey. Nice to see you,” Kenton said with a smile, first for her and then for Elliot. His smile faded slightly as his gaze went past her.

  Avery glanced back to see Tristan standing behind her. She knew that there had been something going on between Kenton and Gabe, but was it more than that? As she slid into the pew, Elliot followed behind her while Tristan sat down at the end. With the three of them sandwiched between the two Callaghan men, Avery found herself thinking more seriously about what might be bothering the brothers.

  Though she didn’t really know much about sibling conflict firsthand since there were so many years between her and Elliot, she’d been a witness to many a squabble between Caroline and her siblings. Still, at this age, she hadn’t thought it would be as common for siblings to fight like it appeared Kenton had with Gabe and Tristan. Things had seemed fine when they’d all hung out at Dairy Queen.

  Sitting between Elliot and Benjie, she listened to each of them as they talked to the Callaghan brother they were seated next to. She hadn’t necessarily thought they’d sit with Kenton or any members of his family, and yet, here they were, sitting there like they were part of the family. For a moment—just a moment—she allowed herself to think how lovely that would be. It wasn’t that she didn’t appreciate what she had with her mom and the boys, but sometimes she really missed a male presence in their lives. Ever since her dad had died, certain aspects of their life had gotten infinitely more challenging. Not that she wanted a man just for what he could do for her, but she longed for the type of relationship she’d seen her parents have over the years.

  Foolishly, she’d thought she could have it with Julian, and for a short time, she’d had a version of it, but it hadn’t been strong enough. And while there was a part of her heart that, for the first time in a long time, strongly yearned to try for it once again, fear was there too. Fear of making another mistake. Of thinking she knew someone, only to find out there was a side of them she hadn’t known.

  “How has your weekend been, Avery?”

  She focused her gaze on Kenton, pushing down her thoughts. “Pretty much the same as usual. Practice on Saturday. No errands though. I’m trying my best to avoid the stores on the weekends until after Christ
mas. Then church this morning.”

  “Do you have any special traditions for Christmas?” Kenton asked, his arm resting on the pew behind Benjie as he angled his body toward them.

  “Not really. We’re still trying to get used to Christmas without my dad, to be honest.”

  Kenton’s brows drew together. “I’m sure that must be difficult. Thinking about that makes me feel bad for all the Christmases I’ve missed with my family.”

  “You aren’t usually home for Christmas?”

  “No. The schedule is generally pretty tight which makes it difficult to make the flights home and then back. Even on years where things weren’t as tight, I tended to just stay in LA and celebrate with other guys like Vlad who couldn’t go home because his family lives in Russia.”

  “So this is special for you to be here this year,” Avery observed.

  Kenton nodded, glancing briefly over his shoulder. She saw then that Emily was there with the family. Steve was seated beside Kenton while Sammi sat with her fiance on the other side of Emily, a hand resting on her swollen belly. Other members of the family sat in the pews in front of and behind them. It was great to see them all out to support Dalton. The only one missing, as far as Avery could tell, was Kenton’s sister, Makayla, who had only had her baby a few days earlier.

  Before they could continue talking, the lights dimmed in the sanctuary, casting them into darkness. Over the next hour and a half, Avery found herself caught up in the emotion of the Christmas play the church was presenting. She wasn’t sure what she’d expected, but it hadn’t been a drama about people finding their way back to each other and the real meaning of Christmas.

  Dalton hadn’t had a large role, but he’d played his part well, and when it had come time for him to sing a solo, she’d been surprised at the beauty of his voice. No doubt the kid was going to go far with his talent. It had been a surprise when Dalton had contacted Elliot to invite them for the evening, but she was happy he had. Elliot didn’t have a lot of friends, so having someone new reach out to him was encouraging.