“Yeah, it’s really early, and she doesn’t want to say anything.” He looks at the kids. “But fuck, I’m just so happy.”
“I’m happy for you,” I say, and then Matthew comes out of the back. “Stop stealing my people,” I say, and he laughs now.
“I have to go. I just wanted to tell you,” Ralph says. “See you later.”
He shakes Matthew’s hand and walks away.
“That was a good pick,” I say to Matthew who stands there in his track pants. He’s been at my side since this whole thing started. Actually, everyone has. All the men are hanging at the rink today. My father is teaching on the other ice with Max, and Evan is in the gym with mini Cooper.
“Where is Viktor?” I ask Matthew, and he looks down.
“He wanted to hit up a meeting,” he says, and I look at him. “At the church where Caroline works.” And just like that, I see that he went to make sure she is okay. “With Mom.”
My eyes open huge. “What?” I almost scream. “Why would he take her there?”
“Would you say no to her?” Matthew laughs. “The best part is that she didn’t tell Dad.”
“Oh my God,” I say, and then blow the whistle for the kids to get off the ice. “He’s going to lose his shit.”
“Yeah,” Matthew says, and we both know how protective my father is about my mother. He doesn’t let anything touch her that is bad. He shields her with everything he has. “Dinner will be interesting.”
I look toward the clock and see it’s lunchtime. “I’m dragging my ass today,” I say, getting off the ice. I walk through the hallway and peek into some of the rooms to make sure no kids are lingering.
“Oh, shit,” Matthew says, and I look at what he’s looking at, and I see that Caroline is charging into the arena with my mother following her. “This doesn’t look good,” he says. “I know that walk,” he continues. “It’s not a good walk.”
“I think she’s charging,” I say under my breath, and I see Caroline look around. When she finally spots me, I smile at her, but all she does is glare.
“Oh, I definitely know that look,” Matthew says. “Just say you're sorry.”
He tries to talk fast. “Doesn’t matter if you don’t know what it’s about, just say sorry.”
I look back, and she is in front of me now, and I see that she is even more beautiful. “Hey there, sweetheart,” I start softly, and she just crosses her arms over her chest.
“Don’t ‘hey there, sweetheart’ me.”
Matthew mumbles under his breath, “Say sorry.”
“Don’t you start.” My mother looks at Matthew, and he just holds up his hands.
“Why didn’t you tell me you got suspended?” she asks. “I can’t be in this if you aren’t going to be honest with me.”
“Okay, for one, being suspended isn’t that big of a deal,” I say. Sure, it pissed me off that my team didn’t have my back, and I have a call with the general manager set for next week where I plan to tell him exactly how I feel about this. “I honestly didn’t even think of it.”
“If you want me to work for you, there has to be a contract of sorts,” she starts saying, and I look at her. “When we are at work, I’m your employee and not your girlfriend.”
I am about to say something, and Matthew is the one who puffs out. “You’re his woman,” he says. “He’s not hiding that fact.” Caroline looks at him, and he puts his hands up. “Just stating the facts.”
“I’m not hiding that we are together, and if I want to come and say hello and give you a kiss, I’m going to come and give you a kiss.”
“You come and say hello during lunch, and if I’m on break, you can kiss me,” she negotiates.
“Fine,” I say, accepting it. I’m not about to tell her that I’m going to do what I want. I’ll ease her into it.
“Next, I gave up my apartment today,” she says, and I look at my mother, who just smiles. “So I’m basically homeless.”
“You aren’t homeless; you live with me,” I say.
“I told her that,” my mother chimes in. “It was silly for her to pay rent if she is never going back there.”
“Wait, you went to her place?” Matthew asks, and my mother nods her head. “Viktor is fired.”
“Oh, you stop that,” my mother says.
“I’m telling Dad,” Matthew says, and my mother laughs. “Not kidding.”
“Can we for a second get back to me?” Caroline says. “I want to pay rent.”
“Fuck no,” Matthew and I both say at the same time.
“Then I’ll buy food,” she counters.
“Sweetheart,” I start to say, and she glares at me.
“Then you cancel the cleaning lady.” She raises her eyebrows.
“Only if you quit your job at the motel.” It’s now my time to counter.
“Wait, you work two jobs?” Matthew says to her and shakes his head. “He lets you work two jobs.”
“I do,” she says, and Matthew just looks at me like how could you?
“Fine, I’ll quit the job at the motel, and in return, I’ll clean the apartment,” she says, and I nod.
“Sure,” I say, knowing full well that’s never going to happen. “What else?”
“Well,” she says and looks at my mother. “I bought you a gift.”
“Wait, what?” I say, and she hands me a white square box.
“Oh my God,” Matthew says. “If she proposes to you, I’m going to die, and you’ll never live it down.”
“Caroline,” I say, using her name.
“It’s not a ring,” she says. “And if it was, would you say no?”
“Say no,” Matthew says.
“Matthew Grant,” my mother says in warning.
“Mom,” he says, “don’t even.”
“It’s not a ring,” Caroline says. “God, it’s not a ring.”
“Then I’ll take it,” I say, taking the box from her and opening it. It’s a silver chain with a medallion on it.
“It’s Saint Christopher,” she says softly and steps closer to me, and I pick up the silver medallion with the saint on it and the words protect us on the bottom. “It’s not new,” she says, and she turns it over, and I read it.
Caroline & Dylan
“I love it,” I say. Taking it from me, she pulls it out of the box, and I bend for her to put it on me. I stand, and she puts her hand on it.
“Does this mean you are officially living with me?” I ask, taking her in my arms. “And you are going to work with me?”
“For you.” She raises her eyebrows.
“Same thing,” I say and kiss her, and Matthew just laughs.
“It’s not the same thing,” she says against my lips but wraps her arms around my neck while I pick her up.
That night, everything is back to normal, and the next day when we walk in together, it’s done with me not worrying about Andrew just popping up.