Page 43 of Hat Trick (Titans Hockey #1)

Chapter thirty-seven

Emily

I sneak into my old room and grab Annie before she wakes Nancy up.

I can't imagine what Nancy is going through.

How heartbroken she must be. To think that the love of her life changed so much over so many years.

If he'd simply died one day, she'd be heartbroken, but she'd have the time and space to grieve and process everything.

Right now, she's grieving the death of a man whose body is still very much alive. And possibly looking for her.

I busy myself in the kitchen, brewing a pot of coffee and cutting up some bananas for Annie. This kid can eat her own body weight in bananas. I make a mental note to do some research on child nutrition for a one year old.

The boys will be home around 10, and I'm sure Carter is going to want to see his mom.

Just then, my bedroom door squeaks open and Nancy shuffles out barefoot.

She looks even smaller wearing Carter's large clothes.

We need to take her shopping for her own clothes, so she doesn't have to go back to her piece of shit husband.

I understand addiction isn't a choice, but domestic abuse absolutely is.

"Good morning, Nancy. Coffee?"

She gives me a shy smile and nods her head. She runs her hand along Annie's hair and gives her a kiss on the head. "Na-na." Annie coos and Nancy's once haunted face lights up brighter than the sun.

I smile at her as I put the milk back in the fridge. "We've been working on it for a while now, since that's what you decided you wanted to be called. I'll bring up a picture of you and repeat 'Nana' over and over again until she started saying it, too. I wanted it to be a surprise."

In a flash Nancy's pulled me into her arms and sobs quietly onto my shoulder. I'm taken aback for the briefest of seconds before I return her hug. She holds me, quietly sobbing until Annie coos, "Na-na. Em-ma."

Nancy releases me and I scoop Annie up into the air and spin her around. "Yes, smart girl! Nana and Emma!" She squeals in unadulterated joy and something settles in my chest. This is where I'm meant to be. This is what I'm meant to do. This is home. These people are my home.

I check the clock. It's 9:30. I stayed awake most of last night listening to the storm rage against the siding and windows and worrying about this next step with Nancy.

I want her to finally let Carter love her the way he needs to.

To set her up financially, to retire her, to set her up in a house nearby so she can see them as much as she likes.

But Nancy has been fiercely independent for most of her life, and I'm worried she's going to say 'no'.

I'm also worried, that if she does fully retire, will Carter need me anymore?

He could pay her to nanny Annie. It would make the most sense.

But it does make me feel like a bit of an outsider.

The bottom line is what's the best for Annie and Carter, and Nancy.

"Nancy, Carter will be here soon and there's something I want to talk to you about."

"You love him. "

I stutter in my step into the dining room and choke on nothing. That's not what I was expecting, but I guess we're having this conversation first.

I set Annie down by her toys and sit on the couch.

I look Nancy in the eye before responding. "I do. I do love him. And Luca and Gabe. We're all, kind of, together."

She watches me as she sips her coffee and I can't remember a time I've ever been this nervous.

Finally she responds with a nod. "Good. I like you for them."

"Good? That's it? No name calling or threats?"

"Name calling? Who do you think I am? I told Carter the first day I met you that I wanted you for him.

I wanted someone who would love him for who he is, not the money or the fame he has.

Someone who clearly loves his daughter as much as he does.

" She lets out a weary sigh. "I want butterflies for him.

I want romance and first date jitters. I want dancing in the kitchen at 3am for him. "

What she used to have.

I reach over and hold her hand in mine. I know she'll be hurting for a long time, but hopefully knowing Carter is happy will help ease some of her pain.

"I have a favor to ask of you." She looks up and sniffs away a tear.

"Please let him take care of you. He's a good man, with a huge heart, who wants nothing more than to take care of the people around him.

It would mean so much to him, and me, if you let him.

Let him love you the way he wants to. And, personally, I think you deserve all the love that man has to offer you. "

She sniffs again before nodding her head. She looks so defeated .

"Thank you. It'll be one less thing for him to worry about. You'll see." I pause a beat, wondering if I'm crossing a line, before I say, "I think he learned that from you. I think he learned how to love so fiercely because he watched you love him and his sister that way."

She gives me a watery smile in return.

Just then the front door swings open so hard it bounces back against the doorstop, making Nancy and I both jump.

A furious Carter stomps through the door, leaving it open, before falling to his knees in front of his mom and grabbing her by the shoulders.

He takes a beat to inspect her eye, which is now a sickening shade of purple.

He grinds his teeth before taking a deep breath in and out.

"You're. Done." He says with a growl that sends skitters down my spine. I've seen intense Carter on the ice, but never at home. Fuck, it's hot. No. Focus.

She simply nods, hanging her head in shame. Carter turns his attention to Annie and scoops her up off the floor, burying his face into her belly. Luca and Gabe follow in behind Carter, pulling their luggage behind them. They drop it by the front door before pulling Nancy into hugs.

I sometimes forget how long the boys have known each other. Of course they see Nancy as a surrogate mother themselves. And she looks up at them with such love in her eyes, it clears as day they're her boys, too.

I'm about to step outside to give them some privacy. I feel like an outsider to their little family unit. But Carter's arm slashes out and grabs me by my shoulder. He's sets Annie back down on the floor and gives the boys a look. I don't know what the look says, but they nod in return .

Carter practically drags me to his bedroom and kicks the door shut behind us.

He unceremoniously throws me on the bed and the look of absolute fury on his face is starting to scare me.

"I...I'm sorry..." I stammer, not really knowing what I'm apologizing for. He grabs me by the ankle and tugs me towards him. I fall onto my back before he wraps his arms around my lower back and presses his body onto mine, his head on my chest.

Oh. I chuckle, threading my fingers through his hair. He closes his eyes and simply breathes me in.

"I missed you too." I smile before kissing the top of his head. I run my hands up and down his back, hopefully comforting him.

"I've been crawling out of my skin since I left you." He mumbles against my chest.

"Since you left?" I thought he was going to say since I called him.

He lifts his head to stare into my eyes. There's such a look of adoration and longing it takes my breath away.

"I love you so much, Emily. I can't imagine my life without you. I won't. Please, let me love you the way I want to."

My cells stop vibrating, every atom of my being is stunned. My heart forgets how to beat. My lungs forget how to breathe.

I guess we're having this conversation now? He's admitted to me in a post-sex haze that he loves me, but I've never reciprocated. I've been holding back.

And then the words I spoke to his mother, not half an hour ago, echo in my mind. "Let him love you the way he wants to." "I think you deserve all the love that man has to offer you. "

How is it so easy to see when I'm talking about someone else? Can I let him love me out loud? Do I deserve this man's love? His love is not a quiet one. It's loud and it's proud. It's a fearsome thing.

"I love you, too. Carter Rhodes."

He crushes his lips to mine, feverish, demanding. I thread my fingers through his hair, dragging him closer to me. Until the door opens.

"Hey, you gonna hog our girl all to yourself?

We've missed her, too!" Luca pouts, plopping down onto the bed beside us.

I giggle. Carter releases my mouth, but doesn't get his big body off of mine.

Luca doesn't seem to care, though, and brings his hand to my cheek and pulls me into a deep, sultry kiss.

"Hey, sweetheart." He whispers as he smiles at me.

"Hey, handsome." I reply.

"Hey! I thought I was the handsome one?" Gabe complains, sitting on the other side of us.

"You're all the handsome one."

"That's a cop out, Princess." Gabe says, pulling me in for a kiss.

I press against Carter's hard chest to get him off of me but he doesn't budge. The scowl on his face says he's not ready to be apart from me just yet.

"We need a game plan for your mom. She has no clothes, no toiletries. I assume she'll be in my room for awhile? I told her this morning that I'm in love with you three, but I don't know how cool she's going to be watching us play musical beds."

"You love us?" Luca gasps, clutching his imaginary pearls.

I roll my eyes at his antics. "You know that I do. "

Gabe pushes Carter, trying to get him off me. "Dude, quit hogging my girl."

"She's my girl." Carter growls back.

"I'm all of your girls." I chide. "But I think we should do something really special for her. Like mani pedis? A massage? A fancy dinner? Something to celebrate the next phase of her life."

Carter kisses me then, holding the sides of my head delicately in his massive hands. "Fuck, you're perfect. You know that?"

I giggle, pushing back against him again. He finally relents and lets me sit up.

"Let's do it. Gabe, get us reservations at a nice restaraunt that allows kids. Luca, get us all reservations at a spa for mani pedis and a massage." Carter says.

"And what do I do?" I ask.

"I'm going to give you my credit card, and you're going to take my mom shopping. Lauren knows of a boutique where all the WAGs shop for fancy shit. I'll text her."

I give him a quick peck on his lips before getting up. I'm so excited to spoil Nancy the way she's meant to be spoiled. Finally!

"While you guys are shopping, I'll start looking for a place for her. Hopefully some place nearby. It'll be nice to get you some help with Annie."

I frown a little. Does he think I need help with Annie? She's literally the easiest child I've ever met. Being with her is a joy. He squeezes my wrist, pulling me out of my train of thought.

"It'll be nice for her to have sleepovers with her Nana, so that when we fuck you, you can finally scream the walls down.

" I blush hard. I'm sure my cheeks are an embarrassing shade of red.

My pulse quickens and I squeeze my thighs together.

Carter's dark laugh sends a full body shiver through me.

He tugs me back into his lap and kisses me dizzy. Before standing me back up.

"But first, we spoil my mom." He says before slapping my ass, causing me to squeak.