“That’s my dad,” I say, pointing at my dad, who comes over and puts his hand out to shake Maddox’s hand, but Maddox just holds his stick in his hand. My father looks at me and then holds his fist out for a bump, but all Maddox does is look at it.
“Tough crowd,” he says, smiling and squatting down in front of Maddox. “So do you like hockey?” Maddox nods his head. “Okay, I’m going to be watching you out there.”
“Okay,” Maddox says and turns around, walking back to the room he probably changed in.
“I’m going to go and make sure he’s okay,” Alex says, and I nod at her.
“What was that all about?” Matthew asks when I turn to walk back and put on my skates.
“He was abandoned here by his mother,” I say, and I look at both of them, who just look at me with their mouths hanging open. “We took him home, and all there was in the apartment was a ratted stained mattress in the middle of the room. He’s been in foster care ever since.”
“The fuck?” Matthew says, and I don’t even have the energy to answer him. Instead, I grab my helmet and head out toward the ice where the kids are all skating and falling down. Maddox is the only kid skating by himself. He is teaching himself at this point. Where all the other kids just fall down, he gets up and continues. He keeps to himself, and when Matthew blows the whistle, all the kids go over to him, including Maddox.
I watch the kids while Matthew explains what is going to happen, the only one focusing is Maddox, who chews on his mouth guard. He skates over to me on the side when Matthew blows the whistle. “You know what to do?” I ask, and he nods his head as I pass him the puck. He takes the puck on his blade and skates around the circle, never once letting it leave the blue line. His eyes follow the puck the whole time, and his concentration is clear on his face. He moves the puck with ease, unlike the two other boys who follow him.
He doesn’t fuck around like the rest of the boys while he’s on the ice. Instead, all he wants to do is skate and puck handle. When the buzzer sounds, he’s one of the last boys off the ice. “You did good,” I praise, tapping his helmet.
“It was fun,” he says. “Are we doing it again?”
“If you want to stay on the ice with me, you can,” I say, and for the first time since I’ve met him, he smiles at me. The simple notion puts another puzzle piece into place inside me, and I can’t say anything to him because the lump in my throat is the size of a golf ball.
Chapter 29
Alex
“Hey.” Dylan sticks his head into my office, and I can’t help but smile when I look up at him. “I’m going to take Maddox over to the park to do some off-ice training.” He walks into my office, and I see him wearing gym shorts and a T-shirt. A baseball hat is on his head backward, and his blue eyes shine so bright.
I push off from my desk and stand. “Hello,” I greet, trying not to smile, but I can’t help it. I smile so much my cheeks hurt. “It’s almost lunchtime.”
Walking around my desk toward him, I stop in front of him. “Hi,” he says, leaning his head in and kissing my lips softly. “I’ll have him back before lunch is over.”
“Or.” I wrap my hands around his neck and get up on my tippy-toes. “I can pack a lunch, and we can have a picnic in the park.” He puts his hands on my hips and pulls me toward him.
“I like that idea so much better than mine.” He rubs his nose against mine. “I’m going to go and get Maddox, and you can meet us there.”
“Fine,” I agree. “If you twist my arm.” I kiss him one more time before he turns and walks out of my office. I watch him walk toward Maddox, who stands there waiting for him. He’s dressed almost the same as Dylan, except his hat is forward and not backward. Dylan bends down in front of him and says something to him, and he looks up, and I wave at him. Dylan puts his hand on his head as they walk out of the arena.
I watch them for as long as I can, and when the phone rings I see it’s the groomers.
“Hello,” I say, answering right away.
“Hi there, just letting you know that Mac is ready to be picked up,” she says, and I look down at my clock and see that if I go and pick up Mac, I’ll still be able to meet them at the park for lunch.