Page 37

THANKSGIVING

In the morning, Jesse looked like death warmed over and Connor felt even worse. The drinks had flowed and they had gotten to bed very, very late.

It didn’t help when Viv stopped by to drop off the girls.

They were practically bouncing off the walls with excitement about going to the Thanksgiving open house at his parents’ house soon and Connor bit back a groan at their noisy chatter. He loved them, but wow did they make a lot of noise. And right in his ear . He would swear he could feel Maura’s high little voice rattling around in his poor battered skull.

To Connor’s surprise, Viv lingered inside the front door, looking a little hesitant. “Could I talk to Jesse for a moment?”

Connor lifted an eyebrow but nodded, setting Maura down. “Uhh yeah, let me find him.”

Jesse was standing in the kitchen, holding a mug of coffee and staring at a wall.

“I’ve heard it helps if you actually get the coffee inside you,” Connor suggested.

“I’ll get something inside you,” Jesse muttered back.

Connor snorted, then regretted it immediately. Fuck , his head was pounding. He really should have had a lot less alcohol or a lot more sports drinks before he fell asleep.

And probably not fucked Jesse into the mattress in celebration. But where was the fun in that?

“You got a minute?” Connor asked. “Viv wants a word.”

Jesse straightened, looking mildly alarmed but a lot more awake. He set his mug down and walked to the front door.

“Hey, Viv,” he said.

“Hi, Jesse.” She gave him a tentative smile. “I just wanted to say I’m sorry about the other day. I—I didn’t react well at the riding stable and I’d like to apologize.”

“Oh.” Jesse’s worried frown turned into an easy grin. “Thanks. No hard feelings though.”

“I want to try to work with you in the future,” she said earnestly. “For the kids.”

“Sure, I’d like that,” Jesse said. He reached out to hug her and she tensed.

Connor opened his mouth—to say what, he had no idea—but she reached out, hesitantly patting Jesse’s back.

“Well, Happy Thanksgiving,” she said when she pulled back, smoothing down her hair. “Have fun with the kids today.”

“Thanks. Have a good day,” Jesse said. He glanced back at Connor, then looked at Viv again. “Look, I dunno if you want to join us but I’m sure you’d be welcome. I’d like it if you came, anyway.”

Surprised, but pleased, Connor nodded. “Yeah, that’s a great suggestion. If you don’t have any other plans today, Viv, I’m sure my parents would be happy if you stopped by.”

“Ahh, that’s so nice of you to offer,” Viv said. “I don’t have plans, actually, but, uhm, maybe not today. We could talk about it for Christmas though?”

“I’d love that,” Jesse said.

“Sure. Whatever works for you,” Connor assured her.

“Well, we can figure out details later then,” she offered.

“Sounds great.”

They said goodbye and after she was gone, Connor pulled Jesse into a one-armed hug and Jesse snuggled close. “That was really sweet of you to offer.”

Jesse shrugged. “I mean, she’s gonna be alone today and she made the first gesture. It felt like the least I could do. Although I probably should have talked to you about it first.”

“Ehh,” Connor said. He trusted Jesse’s judgment.

“Daddy,” Evie said. “You and Jesse hug a lot. How come?”

“Because I’m the Hug Monster,” Jesse shouted, diving for Evie. He picked her up, tossing both of their bodies onto the sofa. She landed between him and the cushions, squealing, and Connor held his head.

How in the fuck was Jesse doing that with a hangover? Oh right, he was twenty-four.

Cushions went flying off the sofa and Maura threw herself into the pile of bodies. For a moment, Connor stared down at three of them, smiling softly.

When Jesse finally emerged, red-faced but grinning up at Connor, Connor decided although he appreciated Jesse’s excellent distraction, there was no need for it. With Viv’s approval, they’d agreed to tell the girls about them dating whenever it felt right.

“Girls,” Connor said quietly. He took a seat beside Jesse’s hip. “How would you feel about Jesse staying with us? For good.”

“What?” Evie popped her head up, her glasses askew. “What do you mean?”

Connor settled a hand on Jesse’s chest. “You know how Momma and I dated and were in love? And how that wasn’t the best for us, so we split up?”

Maura nodded.

“Well, now I’m dating Jesse.”

“And you love him?” Evie asked.

“I love him very much,” Connor said.

Jesse reached up, threading their fingers together and pressing them against his chest. “And I love your dad too.”

Both girls cheered.

“Does this mean Jesse is gonna stay forever and ever?” Evie asked.

“That’s the plan,” Connor said, then winced, because he hadn’t forgotten about the whole ‘the devil smiles when we make plans,’ thing. “We’re gonna work hard at it, anyway.”

Jesse smiled up at him, squeezing his hand.

Connor glanced between Maura and Evie. “What do you think, girls? Should we keep him?”

They both cheered, loudly, and Connor wondered if that was his punishment for over-indulging so much last night.

Ahh well. It was worth it.

An hour later, Connor herded his family down the sidewalk toward his parents’ house. His little family seemed to be growing, with Kyler and Nolan in the lead, the girls behind them, and Jesse by his side at the rear of the group.

Earlier, Connor and Nolan had discussed how the boys wanted to tell the extended family and Nolan had decided he was gonna walk in and introduce Kyler as his boyfriend. That was fine with Connor, though he did have a feeling there would be a little bit of confusion since they’d already met Kyler plenty of times before as his friend and teammate.

But if that was what felt natural to Nolan? Connor was on board.

When they reached Connor’s parents’ house, Nolan marched up the sidewalk, hand-in-hand with Kyler and through the front door without a second of hesitation.

Maura glanced at Evie and took her hand, clearly assuming it was a safety thing, like when they crossed the street, and the girls followed them inside the house.

Jesse laughed, glancing over at him. “Cute.”

“Yeah, my kids are pretty great,” Connor agreed with a smile. “And what do you say? Should we give that a try too?”

“Why not?”

Why not indeed . With a shrug, Connor reached for Jesse’s hand. He certainly hadn’t thought of any better ways to tell his family about his new relationship. Maybe Nolan and Kyler were onto something.

By the time Connor and Jesse stepped into the house, Aubrey was already cooing over Nolan and Kyler. They were both red-faced but smiling, so Connor figured that was probably going as well as he could’ve expected.

His family being embarrassing but supportive was on-brand for them.

Pat’s gaze immediately went to Jesse and Connor’s joined hands. He lifted an eyebrow as he leaned in to hug Connor. “So, two-for-one coming out deal today, huh?”

Connor shrugged, letting go of Jesse long enough to hug his brother back. He was an asshole, but he was a pretty great asshole, Connor supposed. “Seemed easiest.”

“Since when have you ever done things the easy way?” Pat asked with a scoff, stepping back.

That was fair, Connor admitted in his head, though he’d never say it aloud. He took Jesse’s hand again.

“Oh!” Aubrey let out a happy little gasp when she spotted them. “You two as well?”

“Yeah,” Jesse said. “Us too.”

“Oh, I love that for you both!” she said, grabbing Jesse in a hug.

Everything quickly descended into chaos, and Connor got hugged by everyone at least twice.

He kept catching glimpses of Nolan’s grin and Kyler’s more bashful but pleased smile, which was reassuring. The family was fussing over the boys but only to talk about school dances and how they started dating and exactly what they would have fussed about if Nolan had brought home a girlfriend instead of a boyfriend.

They weren’t much better with him and Jesse, to be honest.

At one point, Aubrey let out a loud laugh, gently thwacking Jesse on the shoulder. “I can’t believe you let me go on and on about Connor not letting me set him up with anyone and asking if you were seeing anyone and you didn’t let a single thing slip.”

“What was this?” Connor asked his sister-in-law.

“Oh, the last time Jesse was over, I asked how he was liking Boston and he admitted he hadn’t gotten out much. I told him we’d make a night out of it. I was joking about you refusing to let me set you up with anyone and now I know why .”

“To be fair, I refused before Jesse and I ever—” Connor’s face went a little warm.

“Oh!” She let out a gasp. “Kelly’s wedding. Is that when you two …”

Connor rubbed the back of his neck. “It might have been.”

“Oh, that’s hilarious.”

“What’s hilarious?” Pat asked, a gleam appearing in his eye when he spotted an opportunity to chirp Connor.

“Nothing!” Connor said loudly, getting in between Pat and Aubrey and urgently adding, “Aubrey, if you love me, you won’t tell him.”

She laughed. “I’m open to bribery.”

Pat sputtered, shoving at Connor’s back. “She’s my wife, Con! She’s supposed to tell me everything.”

“How do you feel about diamonds?” Connor asked. “I know a great jeweler.”

The conversation devolved from there, and Connor was still laughing, hair a little mussed, as he finally escaped into the kitchen. He felt mildly guilty for leaving Jesse to the wolves, but whatever. He was tough. He could handle it.

He wouldn’t be right for Connor if he couldn’t go toe-to-toe with the entire O’Shea family.

In the kitchen, Connor found his mother frowning at platters on the counter.

“Everything okay, Ma?” he asked.

She smiled. “Just contemplating if we have enough starters out.”

“I mean, probably not,” Connor said with a shrug. “The team will be dropping in later so …”

“Good thing I tripled the clam dip recipe,” she said. “And asked the caterer for extra appetizers.”

Connor cleared his throat. “Sooo …”

“So, you look happy,” she said, smiling warmly.

“I am.”

“Good. I like Jesse for you.”

“Yeah?”

“Yes. Very much.” She turned to face him. “How are you handling it?”

“Uhh, which part? Dating my teammate or the family knowing about it?”

“Either? Both?”

“I feel great about Jesse,” he said, lips curling up in a smile he really couldn’t fight, no matter how hard he tried. “And the family is annoying but fine. So, you know, the usual.”

“They love you,” she said. “They just show their love in loud and annoying ways.”

“Mmm,” Connor said, because that was putting it mildly.

“Imagine what it was like for Kelly,” she said.

Connor winced. “Yeah, must have been rough.” He probably could have gone easier on his brother when he came out.

“At least he warmed up the room for you.”

“He did,” Connor admitted. He should probably send Kelly something nice as a thank-you.

“Does the team know? Or do I need to remind the family not to let the news slip today?”

“Nah, they know. Told ’em last night. Apparently, they figured it out before we did though.”

“They’re not the only ones,” she murmured.

Connor turned to look at her. “What does that mean?”

“It means , I could see there was something there. On your end, anyway. I don’t know Jesse well enough to know his tells yet.”

“What?” Connor sputtered. “But, Ma …”

“ Sweetheart ,” she said. “You might not have known it yourself at the time, but I knew you had a crush on your college captain way back when.”

“I liked his hockey!” Connor argued.

“Among other things, I suspect.” Her tone was dry. “Honestly, at the time, it didn’t really matter to me if you had a crush on a teammate. You met Viv shortly after, and seemed extremely happy with her, so I figured either it was simply a hockey crush or you had found your partner and it was no longer relevant—and let’s be honest, you were never gonna risk your career for a guy.”

Connor winced. That much was true. Though he did wonder, if he’d met Jesse ten years ago—well, no, Jesse would have been fourteen then, so not that —but if he and Jesse were their current ages and single before Noah Boucher and everyone else came out, would he have risked it?

Connor grimaced, feeling like a coward because no, he probably wouldn’t have.

“I’m sorry,” she said. “I probably shouldn’t have?—”

“No. You have a point,” he admitted. “And it’s a good thing someone knows what I’m feeling because, honestly, I’m not very good at that. And, I hate to break it to you, but Jesse is worse .”

His mother laughed. “Oh dear. We’ll have to make him sit down and watch that movie. The one the girls like so much with the characters who represent emotions.”

“Truthfully, it should probably be league-mandated for all NHLers,” Connor said drily.

Her grin widened. “Probably.”

“Did you know about Kelly?” he asked, curious.

She hesitated. “I suspected there was something he was hiding from us. The thought that he was gay did cross my mind, although I wasn’t sure if that was what it was or not.”

“Hmm.”

She patted his hand. “Look, I love talking to you and you’re welcome to come over any time to discuss this, but we need to get some food out there before hordes of ravenous people invade the kitchen.”

She had a point, so Connor reached for the nearest tray. Before he picked it up, he hesitated, turning to look at her again. “Before we go, there’s one thing I wanna ask you.”

“Sure. What is it?”

“Were you happy as a hockey wife and mom? Are you happy still doing that for me and Pat and Finn and our families?”

She smiled softly. “I am. It can be hard. I’d never deny that, but yes, this is the life I want.”

“Okay. Just checking. Because if you need a break, if you wanna go … I dunno, go do something else, tell me, okay?”

She patted his shoulder. “You’re sweet to worry. I assume you talked to Viv about some of this recently?”

He nodded, not really surprised she’d put the pieces together. “Yeah. I didn’t know she was so unhappy.”

“It wasn’t the right life for her.”

“I guess not. Anyway, I just wanted to check with you. I know you do a lot for us and I want you to know I appreciate it.”

“And I appreciate you checking and telling me,” she said, smiling. “Now, food?”

“Food!” Connor agreed.

Because that was quite enough talking about feelings for him.

Later, when Connor was stuffed full of Thanksgiving deliciousness and he’d watched the Lions win—a shocking twist on their usual tradition of losing—he struggled up from his place on the couch in his parents’ basement.

Maura was a dead weight in his arms and Jesse grumbled sleepily next to him. Connor dropped a kiss to his hair before he transferred her to Jesse’s lap. She snuggled into him and Jesse cracked one eye open to smile at Connor before he closed it again.

Connor caught soft smiles from his sisters-in-law, who were working on a craft project with his mother when he walked past. Evie was occupied playing with her cousins and Nolan was loudly playing bubble hockey with his cousins and Kyler, so Connor walked up the steps.

Guys from the team and a handful of people from the head office and around the organization had popped in for a bit earlier, but for the most part, they’d headed out already.

Connor gave a vague wave to Crawford, who stood by the door, shrugging on his leather jacket, motorcycle helmet on the bench nearby.

Though the window, Connor could see Gavin and Dakota standing on the sidewalk, deep in conversation. Gavin’s head was bent, listening intently to something Dakota had to say, a hint of a frown on his face.

Gavin and Dakota had spent a fair amount of time together this afternoon. Connor assumed they were talking about something training-related now, but a moment later, Dakota laughed, placing his hand on Gavin’s arm and letting it linger.

Huh. Interesting .

But Crawford’s big body blocked Connor’s view a moment later and the front door closed behind him.

With a shrug, Connor turned toward the half bath off the hallway. It was occupied and so was the other one on the ground floor. He had no better luck on the second floor, so Connor went up to his parents’ room on the third.

When he was done using the toilet and washing his hands, he walked down the hall, pausing in the doorway of his dad’s office. He wasn’t in there—and come to think of it, Connor had hardly talked to him all day, which was a little weird.

Connor hesitated. It had been busy and chaotic as usual. Surely his father didn’t have a problem with him being with Jesse. He’d been supportive of Kelly …

Connor stepped into the room, staring at the walls and shelves filled with Harriers memorabilia and personal awards. There were photos of Cup wins and a safe to hold Declan’s championship rings.

Connor had liked coming in here as a kid—though it had looked different then—and staring at the history. Much like O’Neill’s Pub, it held so much of the family and team’s legacy and Connor once again wondered if he had the strength to do what his father and two brothers had done before him.

His team was better than it had been at the end of last season.

They’d picked up a few good pieces—Jesse being the notable one, of course—who were helping the team claw their way to more frequent wins. There had been no shortage of losses so far this season either, but he was hopeful they were finally starting to see the right side of the .500 mark and winning slightly more than half of their games.

They seemed closer too.

Connor wouldn’t have expected the announcement about his and Jesse’s relationship to help with team unity but he couldn’t deny it seemed to have done so.

Or, at least it had last night.

And maybe that had as much to do with Jesse as anything else but Connor would take the wins where he could get them.

He’d been prepared to set aside his own personal life and happiness for the sake of the team. But Jesse had shown him maybe that wasn’t the way to success. It was still early, only time would tell if this roster—and whatever tweaks Gavin made to it going forward—had what it took.

It might take a few years, even.

But maybe his future legacy wasn’t being the guy who sacrificed everything to find success. Maybe it was finding success without giving up what made him happy.

Connor nodded, turning to face the door, and jerked in surprise at the sight of Pat, Finn, and Declan standing there, silent and intimidating. He’d never admit it aloud, but they were a scary bunch.

“Fuck! What the hell is this?” Connor grumbled. “Why does it look like you’re about to stage an intervention?”

“Nah,” Finn said. “We just wanted to talk about your earlier announcement.”

“You didn’t think you were gonna get away with it that easy, did you?” Pat asked with a smirk.

Connor grunted. He had hoped. But no, he’d known they’d get to him eventually.

He glanced over his shoulder at the door on the back wall leading to the balcony. Hmm , maybe he could make a break for it. If he ran, could he get the door open and flee down the fire escape before they tackled him?

Probably not. And he was likely to get injured in the process. Pat had only bulked up since his retirement.

Damn it.

“So, Jesse Webber, huh?” Pat said. He set a tablet on the nearby shelf, revealing their brother Kelly’s face on a video call.

Connor crossed his arms and resisted the urge to flip off Kelly and his smug little look. “Yep.”

“Interesting choice. Goalies are a little weird so that explains why he’s dating you, but … what’s your excuse?” Pat asked.

“I love him,” he admitted.

Pat’s expression softened. “He seems like a good guy.”

“He is.”

“Do I have to have a talk with him like I did with Anders when he and Kelly started dating?” Pat asked.

Connor groaned. “No! Absolutely not!”

“If I remember right, you had that talk with Anders too,” Finn pointed out. “Seems fair.”

“Damn, I was hoping you’d forget,” Connor grumbled.

“Speaking of Kelly,” Finn said, pointing at the screen with narrowed eyes. “Why doesn’t he look surprised?”

“Because I already knew,” Kelly said smugly.

That prompted outraged squawks from Connor’s brothers and Connor laughed aloud. God, they hated being the last to know anything.

It wasn’t until the furor died down that Connor glanced at his father. “Do you have anything to say about this, Dad?”

Declan chuckled. “Just congratulations.”

Connor’s nerves ebbed a little. Few things meant more to him than his father’s praise and approval.

“Yeah?” he asked, hopeful.

“Yeah.” Declan clapped him on the shoulder. “I know the past few seasons have been a disappointment for you and the divorce was hard, so it’s great to see you bouncing back. You’ve got a good team this year and I’m optimistic about what you and Jesse can do together.”

“Me too,” Connor admitted. “On and off the ice.”

His father drew him in for a hug and then his brothers piled on. In the background, Kelly called out, “I’m hugging you virtually!”

And if there were some wet eyes when they all drew back, no one but the O’Shea men had to know.