Kane (Arizona Vengeance 8)

We manage to pull together two small round tables to stand at, and a waitress serves us fairly quickly.

Mollie and Blue, the only women in our group, not surprisingly stand near each other. I flank Mollie’s left with Erik on Blue’s right. Jett, Jim, and Bain crowd in around the tables.

“Here’s to a great win,” Erik says as he holds his beer up in the middle of our group. We all tap our bottles to his—except Blue, who is drinking water but holds hers up all the same—and exclaim our agreement.

“How much longer are you going to fly with the team?” Mollie asks Blue.

A hand rubbing at her tummy, she says, “Not much. Like, this is probably my last trip.”

“No probably. It is her last trip.” Erik’s tone says he’s in charge of this issue, and he will not debate on the matter. It’s clear they’ve already had an in-depth discussion about it. “She’s not schlepping drinks and food anymore.”

“How does it work when the delivery date gets close?” Mollie inquires to Erik. “Will you take time off before and after?”

Erik’s lips quirk up, and he and Blue exchange a long look. It’s Blue who answers. “Obviously, Erik will try to be here for the birth, but let’s say he’s on an away trip and I go into labor early… In that case, Brooke will be my backup person in the delivery room.”

Mollie’s gaze bounces from Blue to Erik to Blue and then back to Erik. “So, there’s a chance you could miss it?”

“Hopefully not,” he replies, but then somberly admits. “But it’s always a chance when your job is fifty percent travel and babies are unpredictable.”

“And after… you’ll take paternity leave?” Mollie pushes.

“Not really,” Blue replies with a laugh. “I mean… we’re in the running for the Cup again. He’s crucial to every game.”

“But… but… that doesn’t seem fair,” Mollie exclaims.

I put my arm around her shoulder. “Lots of players have families. They work out among themselves what is comfortable for them. But most players keep on playing. It’s part of our devotion to the job.”

“And when the team is home,” Erik adds. “There’s plenty of time between games for me to catch up on baby time.”

Blue nods enthusiastically, not seeming to be disturbed by the fact she’ll be a single mom for a good chunk of the time. She has to be at least a bit scared and overwhelmed.

“What can I do to help?” Mollie asks, and her words warm me. I love that she considers herself a part of this hockey family.

“I will let you know when I figure it out,” Blue answers, laughing. “All you ladies have volunteered to help. It’s going to be a group effort while Erik’s traveling for sure.”

Erik leans over, then kisses the top of Blue’s head. “You know I’d rather be with you, though, right?”

“Right,” she replies with a firm nod. “But I have our hockey family ready to step in when needed.”

The conversation shifts to other things, but I can tell Mollie hasn’t let go of the concept of having a child with a professional hockey player who might sometimes have to put his career over his woman’s needs.

Over his child.

It’s a hard concept to explain. Personally, I hadn’t ever given it a lot of thought because kids didn’t seem to be on my horizon anytime soon. But I’d never thought anything was amiss when my teammates’ wives had kids while their husband’s work-life went on as usual for the most part.

I mean… I’ve played on teams where some of the players took a bit of time off, but… it’s just sort of understood that each player is needed for every game. On top of that, most hockey wives would agree. They’re sort of the core of the team’s spirit and motivation. The wives are as invested in winning as their men, and I’ve never heard any complain—at least not outright—over not having their husband present all the time.

A thought occurs to me. I study Jim from across the table. He’s currently laughing at something Jett is saying to Mollie.

Jim admittedly neglected his wife and marriage, which led to their separation. It makes me wonder… did it start right from the beginning?

When Lucy was born?

Was Jim not there enough to meet Ella’s needs? Does Lucy feel neglected, too?

I shake my head, dispelling the thoughts. But my gaze goes to Mollie, and I wonder what I’d do if she were pregnant.

Or rather… what would she want? I realize that has a lot to do with it.

Christ… for as much as we know each other and can practically finish each other’s sentences, I’m in the dark here. Of course, the subject matter is a bit premature, but, hell, we were casually discussing marriage not long ago.

A flood of affection for Mollie and all we’ve been through, and all we’ve become to each other recently, overwhelms my senses. I can’t help but slip my arm around her to pull her close.