“Maybe,” Cole said.
We stared at one another before Zach huffed out a loud laugh. “If you could just take me to your parents so I could freshen up. Maybe change into something more suitable for North Carolina. Something very Ezra Bardot.”
“Right, of course.” I nodded, but I couldn’t get Cole’s words out of my head. Did he want to get back together? Could we? Did I want that?
The truth was, I did. And Cole knew it.
Chapter Twenty-Four
Cole
Bringing Reed into my house had been a mistake. This was the one place I had left that didn’t have memories of him, and now he had left a little of himself behind here, too. In the guestroom, all cute and sassy when I found him tangled in the blanket. Sad and teary-eyed in my kitchen. Fuck, I was never going to get over the man if I kept chasing him. It was obvious that Reed had no intention of fixing things between us. Although now I wasn’t sure they could be fixed.
I stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around my waist once I had finished drying off. I stared at myself for a second in the mirror and wondered if maybe I had made everything up in my mind. That maybe Reed had never been that into me. Had he even loved me, or had he said it back because I said it first? With a heavy sigh, I fixed my hair then moved back to my room to change into something comfortable.
Today was a rare day off between games. We would play against Colorado again tomorrow, and if we beat them again, we’d make it to the next round of the playoffs. This was my first chance at winning the Stanley Cup, and I didn’t want to let anyone down. Moping around about my ex-boyfriend wasn’t going to help anyone. I had to find a way to keep my mind off Reed, but I wasn’t sure how.
Once I was dressed in a light T-shirt and shorts, I headed downstairs to make something to eat. I dug around to find the ingredients for an omelet and quickly threw that together. Justas I sat down, there was a knock at the door. I checked the camera out front to find Dean standing there holding Trish in his arms. Fuck.
“Hey.” He smiled when I let him inside. He held my sister out, and I happily scooped her up. “Was I interrupting? I can come back.”
I tickled Trish, who giggled happily. “No, I was just going to eat. Are you hungry? I can make something for you.”
“I’m good, thanks. I ate when Beau was bathing her this morning.” He dragged a hand over Trish’s soft, white hair before he sat her in the highchair I kept in the kitchen just for this reason. He dumped some Cheerios out before he turned to me. “You want to talk about it?”
My stomach dropped. “Talk about what?”
“Reed.” Dean raised his brows, and his long green ponytail moved slightly when he tilted his head. “I know something happened that you didn’t tell us. And I respect that. But now that he’s back, I thought you might want to let it out.”
I kept my attention on my sister. “Thanks, but I’m good.”
I dropped onto the kitchen chair and shoved some of my omelet into my mouth. Dean continued to stare at me while I chewed, and I sighed heavily.
“What do you think I’m going to do here? Spill my deepest heartache to you? Tell you that I stopped talking about Reed because he broke my heart, and I was too embarrassed and hurt to tell anyone about it?”
“Is that what happened?”
“Maybe.”
Dean slid into the seat across from me. “You know I love you, right? The only thing your father and I want is for you to be happy. You’re living the life you always dreamed about.”
“But I’m not.” I pushed the plate away. My appetite had suddenly disappeared. “Not really. My dream was to play forBoston, but yet here I am. Don’t get me wrong, I love playing hockey and I love my teammates. Jax is a great coach, tough but good, and I’m grateful the team wanted to take a chance on me, but this wasn’t how I saw my life happening. Boston was where I thought I would end up. Like Dad.”
Dean placed more Cheerios on the tray for Trish, who clapped her hands happily. He gave me a soft smile before he spoke again. “Is that what’s really bothering you, or is it because of Reed? You said you loved him that summer. That you wanted to be together when you both went back to school. Only when we came back from our honeymoon, Reed was gone, and you never mentioned him again.”
“Don’t.” I tried to swallow, but the lump in my throat made it nearly impossible. The tears burned my eyes, and when I turned away, a couple slid down my cheeks. I angrily brushed them away.
The sound of a chair scraped across the floor, and then Dean was next to me. “Kiddo, I didn’t come here to upset you.”
“I know.” I sniffed. “I just...I don’t know what happened. He was there one night and gone the next morning. He didn’t say goodbye or answer my calls or messages. It felt like I had made him up in my mind. And...And...” I burst into tears.
Dean leaned down to hug me. “It’s okay, let it out, Cole.” He rubbed my back with the palms of his hands.
And I did. I sobbed angrily into his shoulder, the tears soaking the fabric of his shoulder. I cried for the heartbreak that I’d held inside, for the love I had lost, and for what it felt like when I woke up alone without Reed. I clung to my stepfather until there was nothing left inside me. No more tears, no more anger, just exhaustion. I pulled back and gave Dean a tight smile.
“Feel better?” He ruffled my hair.
I didn’t. “Not really,” I admitted with a sigh. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you.”