“Okay.”
“I want to take the Bears offer.”
My lips tremble and I gaze into his eyes. “Are you sure? I don’t want you to do it for me.”
He shakes his head. “No, it’s not for you. It’s for me. Because you were right.”
I turn toward Easton and Josh. “I didn’t expect them to bring you back.”
“They didn’t.” His smile lights up my insides like Times Square on New Year’s Eve. “I was coming back before they got there. I figured things out and I knew what I had to do. But…one of the things I had to do was talk to them.”
I nod mutely.
“So we talked. It was good.”
Typical male understatement. I’ll get more out of him later.
“Okay, I gotta get out of this thing.”
I grin.
Easton, Josh, Sara and Lilly surround us. Otis barks with excitement.
“Get me out of here,” Hunter says to his friends. And possibly new teammates.
“We got you,” Easton says. “This way.”
On Fifth Avenue, they hail a cab. When the driver sees headless Orson, he gives us a sour look. Easton tucks a thick wad of bills into the driver’s hand as Hunter and I try to climb in the back seat. I give his big butt a shove to get him in.
“Oooph. Thanks.”
“This costume doesn’t even fit you.”
“I know.” He grimaces and adjusts the fur garment.
“Where to?” the driver asks.
We look at each other.
“My place,” I say, then give the driver my address.
I wave to the others as we pull out from the curb, catching the huge smiles on their faces. Lilly is holding Otis, Easton’s arm around her shoulders.
I study Hunter as we drive, my gaze moving over his face and taking in every detail, including his tousled damp waves and ruddy cheeks. He’s still so handsome and dear and brave.
“Are you really okay?” I ask softly.
“Better than I even knew,” he says, the corners of his mouth lifting. “Don’t worry, Kate. I did a lot of thinking. I’m good.”
I nod and swallow past the knot in my throat. “Good.”
“You?” He lifts a big bear paw as if to touch my face, then drops it. “Are you okay?”
“I am now.”
Our smiles shine across the car and join in a sunbeam of joy and delight. For wordless moments we just look at each other as our driver blares his horn, weaves in and out of traffic, narrowly misses a pedicab, and eventually arrives in front of my building.
He waves off payment when I pull out my credit card. “Your buddy paid me.”
I slide out and wrestle Hunter out of the back seat, catching the attention of a few passers-by. He carries the big bear head and follows me inside and upstairs.
“Déjà vu,” he murmurs as we tussle with the costume to get him out. It’s too small and that makes it even harder, but finally he’s standing in front of me in a pair of athletic shorts and T-shirt. He shoves a hand into his hair, pushing it off his face. “Whew. That was…interesting.”
I bite my lip. “I’ll say.”
He casts a baleful look at the head sitting on my island. “The guys who wear these things and jump around in them for hours are heroes.”
I laugh softly. “Yep.”
He turns to me. “Okay. I probably smell bad and look even worse, but I want to repeat everything I wrote on those cards.” He sets his hands on my hips.
I move closer and curve my hands over his shoulders. His skin is warm and damp through the cotton of his shirt, but I don’t care. “Do it.”
His lips twitch. “I’m sorry. I was an idiot. I love you.”
My heart swells up huge in my chest. “I love you, too.”
He hauls me up against him and our mouths crash together in a long, hot, heartfelt kiss. I press myself to him and twine my arms around his neck while he wraps his arms around me and squeezes me. Relief and joy pour through me, like sunshine and starlight and moonbeams, heating me from the inside out, warming my heart.
Finally we both pull back, panting. His eyes shine, his mouth curved into a smile. We stare into each other’s eyes for a moment, my fingertips playing with the curls at the nape of his neck.
“You’re so beautiful,” he says in a husky voice. “I was so afraid I fucked everything up—my career, you…”
I grimace. “It’s good that you’re back.”
“I’m sorry. Christ, I’m sorry for taking off like that.”
I suck my bottom lip between my teeth. “I get it, but…yeah. It caused some problems.”
“Shit.” He gazes at me with his eyebrows sloping down. “Did the Bears withdraw the offer?”
24
Kate
“Let’s sit down.” I lead Hunter to my couch.
“Fuck,” he mutters.
“It’s okay. I think I’ve saved your career.”
He closes his eyes. “I don’t deserve it.”
“Hunter. Stop that.”
His eyes pop open. “Right.” He swallows. “What’s happening?”
“I told all three teams you had a family emergency in Calgary and you’d be back to meet with them as soon as possible.”
He nods slowly and exhales. “Okay. Good. So the offer’s still on the table?”
“As far as I know. I’d suggest we call the Bears in the morning and set up a meeting right away.”
“Okay.”
“You’re going to be alright with playing for them? With Josh and Easton?”
“I think so. I can’t guarantee what strange things my mind will do, but…I’m going to do it. I never realized that they had issues too, playing with each other.”
“Oh?”
“Not to share all their personal deets, but I think we all learned things about each other. We all went through the same accident, but each of us experienced it differently. It impacted all of us, but in different ways. It actually felt good to tell them about my PTSD…they got it.”
I nod, emotions swirling in my chest, rising into my throat and clogging it so I can’t speak.
He tells me about talking to his counselor and the things she made him think about. About rediscovering the unbroken parts of him to be able to heal.
“I like thinking of it that way,” I say slowly. “And its true…there are so many parts of you that aren’t broken, Hunter.”
“Hockey,” he says. “My passion for the game. Determination.”
It feels so good to hear him talk positively about himself. “Yes.” I touch his cheek. “You feel things so deeply, and yet you try to hide it. I think that must make it even harder for you.”
“That’s what I need to work on. When Millsy and Hellsy and I talked, it was…okay. To be able to share things with friends who’ve been through the same things…who understand. And…I’ve always felt that way with you.” He gazes earnestly into my eyes. “I felt safe telling you. You never judged me or laughed at me or thought I was weak because of it.”