Page 84 of Back in the Game (Pride in the Game #1)

“I’m going to miss you boys, but thank you for coming over for Christmas to spend time with me,” Robert said as they stood waiting for Jett to return from upstairs. “I would ask you to stay longer, but with the storm coming…”

“You should give me a spare key,” said Robert. “I can take care of the place for you while you’re gone. Jett mentioned the cameras were all broken?”

He dropped the key into Robert’s open hand, smiling at the older man. “And if you don’t want to stay, then yes, I would be grateful for the check-ins.”

“You and Jetty are coming home during the off season, right?” Robert retrieved his keys from the hook by the door and added the new one. “I know Toronto is exciting…”

“We’ll be home,” said Harrison. “I’m not cut out for city life anymore. I’d rather have Jett to myself in the quiet woods where we have our own rink and no one can bother us.”

Robert’s grin was teasing. “You’re a possessive thing, aren’t ya?”

Harrison grimaced because he was guilty as charged. “Just a little. ”

Robert laughed and clapped him on the arm, his strength surprising him. “I see no problem with it. Jett needs someone like you, a man who’s completely devoted to him and his happiness.”

Harrison was that man. He would do anything to make Jett happy.

“I’ll stay at the house until April,” Robert continued, giving Harrison one last shake before letting him go.

“Jetty pays for me to fly to Toronto, so I’m there for his home games during the playoffs, and sometimes I follow him to away games too.

He’ll want me to stay with you guys, but try to convince him to rent me a place.

You fellas are in a new relationship and need your space. ”

“You’d always be welcome,” Harrison promised. Jett’s penthouse apartment was so massive that they wouldn’t have to see each other if they didn’t want to. “I don’t know what I’m in for if we make the playoffs. Care to enlighten me?”

When Robert sighed and folded his arms, that told Harrison all he needed to know.

“That bad?”

“No,” said Robert, chuffing. “He can be a very serious boy—even more so when he’s trying to make his teammates proud. He wants that damn cup, and they came so close last year…”

Harrison remembered. The Sunbursts had lost game seven in overtime after giving their all. It was devastating to watch, but working with the team after a season like that made it clear the guys weren’t upset—they were hungry.

“I can’t say anything without setting you superstitious puckheads off, but I hope you do well.” Robert loosened his posture when Jett started thumping his way down the stairs. “You’ll be fine. Just make sure he doesn’t get too stuck in his head, and you’ll survive.”

“Survive what?” Jett asked, joining their conversation. He went motionless as he looked between Harrison and his dad. “Are you guys talking about playoff shit? Please tell me you’re not jinxing us.”

Robert gestured to his kids as if to say, see ?

“Ready to go?” Harrison asked, trying to avoid the pending freak-out. “You grabbed the toothbrushes, right? ”

“Yes, dear,” Jett said mockingly. “I made sure to remember your expensive electric toothbrush that you never seem to use the way it was designed.”

Harrison looked to Robert for help, but the older man shook his head.

“That’s your problem now.”

“Whatever.” Jett dropped their bags and threw himself at his dad, hugging him and smacking his back hard enough to make Harrison wince.

“Do you need us to get anything for you before we leave? And make sure you call Tony to plow your driveway, because I swear if I hear you did it yourself, that boat you’ve been hinting at wanting will be off the table. ”

“I’ll call Tony,” Robert promised. “And I’m good here, so worry about yourselves. You’re about to get stranded.”

Jett gave an obnoxious scoff and let go of his dad to glare in Harrison’s direction. “We’re not going to get stuck anywhere with the way this idiot drives.”

Harrison had no idea what he was talking about. He was a safe driver—too much trauma there for him to unlock. “Going five over the speed limit is not dangerous.”

“At least you’re taking the late flight tomorrow,” Robert added, side-stepping their argument. “Plenty of time to put Jetty-boy’s ADHD to work and have him shovel a path to the road.”

Jett’s mouth went slack with shock. “The road is the same goddamn distance as Hobbiton is from Mordor. I can’t shovel that much!”

Harrison had no idea what the hell Jett was talking about, and judging by Robert’s expression, neither did he.

Robert pulled his son closer so he could ruffle his hair. “I’m glad you’re feeling better, kiddo. You’re already speaking in riddles again.”

Jett flushed, accepting his father’s affection and praise. “I’m okay now. I have Harrison to lean on, just like you said.”

Warmth flooded Harrison’s soul. This trip home had been good for them and their relationship. He was sad that it wasn’t longer, but they would have the summer together alone—unless Bracken and Cote started building summer homes on the land Harrison still had to gift them.

“Get out of here before the snow starts,” Robert told them. “I’ll see you boys soon—”

“Don’t say it,” Jett hissed. “Do not say the ‘P’ word around me right now. We still have points to catch up on.”

Robert chuckled, shaking his head. “I’ll be seeing you for a visit no matter what.” His gaze met Harrison’s, and he nodded. “Leave the house to me. I’ll make sure the brats stay away.”

“Thank you,” said Harrison, ignoring Jett’s questioning look. “Christmas was great, Robert. I had fun.”

When Robert glowered at him, Harrison quickly corrected himself.

“Dad.”

“That’s what I thought.”

Jett laughed, and Harrison smiled at the sound. The Frasers were a strange family, but he loved them anyway.

Robert waved at them from the door, and Jett copied him, neither of them stopping until the Jeep pulled out of the driveway, and they lost sight of each other.

“You guys are cute,” Harrison said, glancing at Jett. “Robert is a great guy. My parents could learn a lot from him.”

A hand settled on his thigh, squeezing tenderly.

“He’s your dad too,” said Jett.

Harrison smirked. “I’d have to sign a marriage contract first before it’s official.”

Jett’s scoff made him smile harder. “Oh yeah. I heard you got plans. Can’t wait to see them.”

Jett’s tone was bratty in the way that always made Harrison want to kiss him, but he could see how red his cheeks were.

“Just you wait, Fraser.” Harrison removed one hand from the steering wheel so he could take Jett’s, dragging his thumb along his bare ring finger. “Soon there will be two Killingers in the NHL.”

Jett didn’t talk to him for the rest of the ride home.

The snow wasn’t supposed to start until early afternoon, but it was already covering tracks by the time they returned to the lake house .

Harrison considered leaving early just in case thirty centimetres changed to fifty, but he decided against it. They had a Jeep, and Harrison had a four-wheeler with a plow, so he was confident he could get them back to the city in time for their flight the following night.

He was hesitant to give up this time because he wanted to keep Jett distracted for as long as he could. He had improved so much, and coming back fresh after a long and relaxing break was something he deserved.

Harrison spent an hour outside gassing up the four-wheeler and making sure he was prepared if he had to dig them out tomorrow, but Jett called him in for lunch before he had a chance to stock up on firewood.

“It’s coming down hard,” Jett said when he greeted Harrison at the door. “What are you doing out here? Doesn’t your leg hurt?”

It did hurt. Cold and damp weather always made it worse, but his limp must have been showing for Jett to comment on it.

“When you live in the woods, you learn to set things up for emergencies,” said Harrison, gesturing to the four-wheeler. “Need to be ready for any situation.”

“Is that why there’s a fabled shotgun under the floorboards?”

“I told you it’s under the guest bed, not the floorboards,” Harrison grumbled.

He checked the fire once he was inside to make sure they would stay nice and warm for the rest of the evening. Jett picked a movie for them to watch, an old fantasy movie called Lord of the Rings that he’d watched when he was younger, and they reheated pizza and leftover lasagna.

“Mordor,” said Harrison. “I get it now.”

Jett snorted and shuffled closer. They were sitting on the couch so they could share a blanket and snuggle, which Jett was taking advantage of by clinging to him.

Harrison never thought he would be a snuggly type of guy, but there was something satisfying about how well the two of them fit together when they were like this.

“Max is going to make your life hell if you don’t open your life to Nerddom. What were you even doing for five years on your own if you weren’t watching classics like Star Wars and building Lego sets?”

Harrison wasn’t a nerdy guy either, but he knew Jett would change that.

“I watched TV and worked on my car. I spent a lot of time chasing Arlo around because his car was a piece of shit, and it broke down at the most random times. I do maintenance here, so there was plenty of upkeep to do. I read books too, but I get distracted easily. Arlo took up most of my free time though—him and his video games.”

“Yikes.” Jett stole a piece of onion off the top of his pizza.

“Well, in the off season, I go on fishing trips with my dad, so you’ll be coming too.

I also take Max to anime conventions because he gets too nervous to go on his own, and Ryan gets busy with Jason and his projects.

Sometimes I travel, and I really want to go to Japan because I want to buy shit for my collections that I can’t get here. ”

Right, Jett was big into anime like Arlo. That was something to keep in mind for future gift-giving.

“Oh shit!”