Page 22 of Offside and Off-Limits (Love in Maple Falls #2)

CLARA

I’m preparing to knock on Cade’s polished wooden door when it swings open, revealing Cade in all his Cade-ness. Which is to say he’s wearing casual clothes that show off his wide shoulders and long legs, and his characteristically broad smile.

I’m hit with a sudden, unhelpful flutter at the sight of him, and I count my blessings he’s got a top on, covering his muscular frame.

“Hey, it’s my favorite little Maple Leafers,” he exclaims as he grins at my kids.

Benny giggles.

“We’re not maple leaves. We’re people,” Hannah insists.

He narrows his eyes as though to assess them both. “You are too. My bad. She’s a smart one,” he says to me.

“Oh, yes,” I reply.

“Come on in.” He stands back for the three of us to enter.

We hang our jackets on the hooks by the door, and make our way into the living room, Benny chatting incessantly about The Timekeeper Chronicles .

“Owen said it’s so cool! Max helps a Forgotten Girl do her dragon book report and he fixes time,” Benny says.

“And that’s in the new comic book you say?” Cade asks as we reach his open plan living-slash-kitchen. There’s a delicious aroma in the air, like we’ve walked into an Italian restaurant.

“Sure is. Mommy, can we go get it from Aunt Emmy’s store tomorrow? Please?” Benny pleads.

“I’ve got the Drench for Defense at the farmers’ market tomorrow, buddy. We can go one day after school next week,” I reply.

He tries again. “Please?”

“Next week, sweetheart. I promise,” I say.

Benny lowers his head and kicks the ground. “Okay.”

“How about I save you the trip?” Cade asks, and Benny’s head suddenly pings up as Cade pulls a comic book from behind his back.

Benny grabs for it, his eyes wide. “This is the latest comic book! Mommy, did you see this?”

“I see it, Benny, and it’s so nice of Cade to let you read his,” I reply.

“This one’s for him. I’ll get another copy from Falling for Books tomorrow after the Drench for Defense,” he replies.

“Oh, no,” I say in protest. “Benny can just read it here. At the table, Benny, and be super careful with it. Okay?”

“Okay, Mommy,” he says absentmindedly, his nose already deep in the comic book pages as he slips onto one of Cade’s dining room chairs.

“Benny’s so lucky,” Hannah says with a sigh. She’s clearly fishing, and I’m about to tell her off for doing so when Cade cuts in.

“Don’t worry, Hannah. I got something for everyone, plus I’ve got a lasagna in the oven for after.”

“Cade,” I warn, but it’s too late as he produces a sparkly blue figure skating dress for Hannah, whose eyes bulge at the sight of it.

“For me?” she asks eagerly.

“Well, I originally got it for me, but it was a size too small,” Cade says with a grin, and I can’t help but laugh, despite the fact he’s continuing to spoil my kids.

“Thank you! Can I go try it on, Mommy? Please?” she asks, tilting her excited little face my way.

“Of course you can,” I reply, but she’s already taking off through the living room.

“The bathroom is the second door on your right,” Cade calls after her, and next thing we hear is the thunk of a door closing.

“Cade, you shouldn’t have,” I say, but all he does is shrug.

“I wanted to. I got something for you, too.”

“Cade—”

“Let me do this, Triple, okay? Gift giving is my love language.”

Love language? At the mention of the “L” word, I clamp my mouth shut, my heart doing weird things in my chest.

Of course I don’t love Cade. I’ve only known him for a matter of weeks, and besides, he and I are so very different. He’s all flirty and charming and carefree, a guy at the top of his chosen career. Life might not be perfect for him, but he’s living it to its fullest, and making it look easy.

Me? I'm a single mom doing my best to raise two kids with only sporadic help from their father.

I'm working hard to establish myself in a new job while navigating the complexity of an online relationship with someone I’m no longer sure I have feelings for.

At the same time, I'm developing some serious feelings for someone much closer to home—the man whose kitchen I'm standing in right now.

I know I’m falling for him, but I also know he has the power to break my heart in two.

Then there’s the fact that he doesn’t have a non-fraternization clause in his contract, and if he did, he's probably not the kind of guy to give it a second thought.

But I do, and that clause is enough reason for me to at least try keep this thing between us platonic, even if he's worming his way into my affections more and more every day.

Before I got to see the real Cade, it was so much easier than this.

Before, all I had to contend with was my physical attraction for the guy, which I could put down to the fact that he’s classically handsome and has this boyish charm and confident swagger that’s really quite disarming.

That’s just surface level, aspects of a person that might attract you at the start but mean so much less as you get to know the real person.

Who they are and what makes them tick. Their values. Their priorities. Their soul.

Now? Way harder. He’s still got all the good looks and boyish charm, but he’s so much more than just that. He’s got heart. Depth.

And he’s made his intentions toward me crystal clear.

“Here.” He pushes a pale pink box twice the size of a shoebox toward me.

I glance at him as I pull at the ribbon, my heart going all kinds of crazy. As I lift the lid, I see a pair of thick, cozy socks, a tube of expensive organic hand cream, a packet of organic chamomile tea, some lip balm, and a bottle of lavender oil.

“It's a care package because you mentioned that sometimes you find it hard to unwind after your busy days, and I know how important it is for people with chronic conditions to look after themselves, as Dr. Bernice reminded us all at this week’s support group.”

If I thought my heart was going all kinds of crazy before, that's nothing compared with what it's doing now. Handsome, athletic, charming, and capable of giving thoughtful gifts?

You are not playing fair, Universe.

And this isn’t just some generic bunch of flowers like Dwayne used to give me in the early days of our relationship. This is thoughtful, a gift he put time into. One that means so much to me.

“Cade, I…I don't know what to say.”

“Reserve your judgment until you look at what’s underneath,” he instructs, and I do as he says, lifting the items to reveal a soft, folded blanket in a pretty lemon color.

I run my hand over it, feeling its plushness, Cade’s thoughtfulness hitting me hard in the solar plexus.

“It's a weighted blanket. I got one for my mom a while back, and she said it really helps her feel calm and secure at night, which means she sleeps better. I thought you might like one.”

Sudden warmth spreads through my chest like sunlight breaking through clouds, and to my mortification, my eyes pool with tears, and I can barely catch my breath.

“Hey. What’s wrong?” Cade asks softly, stepping closer to me and placing his hand over mine.

I try to swallow the lump in my throat, sniffing back the unexpected—and definitely uninvited—tears. “It’s…it’s just—” I begin, the rawness in my voice catching me unaware. “You’re so thoughtful.” I look up into his eyes and see compassion and understanding.

“Sometimes we all need to be looked after, Triple.”

“I have people who look after me. Keira and Dan are amazing, and they help me with the kids and everything, and the Chronic Warriors? They give me so much support and practical help. So, I’m lucky.

I’m really, really lucky. I don’t know why I’m feeling so emotional right now.

” I’m babbling as I wipe away an errant tear that has slid down my cheek.

Cade places his big hands on either side of my arms, now so close to me I can breathe in his masculine scent. “You’re an amazing mom, you’re holding down a new full-time job that you’re killing at, and you’ve got to work with arrogant jocks like me.”

“You’re not an arrogant jock,” I reply, my voice only just above a whisper.

“You thought I was when we first met. No, wait. You thought I was a pedophile.”

I snort laugh and quickly cover my mouth with my hand.

“You’re doing great. Let somebody take care of you.” He lifts his lips in a small smile that makes his eyes twinkle. “And by ‘somebody’ you know I mean me, right?”

I let out a watery laugh, moving my hand to my chest where my heart is beating fast. “I figured.” I suck in a ragged breath. “You’re so not who I thought you were, Cade Lennox.”

He smiles down, and I feel every one of the extra inches he has on me. “I think you’ve already told me that.”

“You keep showing me, and I’m so grateful. Thank you for this. It means a lot.”

“Look, Clara, I—” he begins, only for Hannah to choose that very moment to come dancing into the room in her new sparkly dress, looking every inch the figure skating princess.

“Mommy! Mommy! Look at me!” she calls as she twirls and pirouettes across the living room floor.

“Very pretty, sweetheart,” I say, pulling back from Cade and clasping my hands together as I watch her.

I blink back my tears, but something has shifted inside me. Those tears were real, honest, brought on by Cade’s genuine thoughtfulness. This moment between us feels like something I'll carry with me, something I’ll turn over in my mind again and again.

I watch him grin at Hannah as she prances around the room, and the truth hits me like a physical blow.

This isn't just about the gifts—though seeing him choose something perfect for both of my kids and for me does something dangerous to my heart. It’s watching him see us in a way Dwayne never bothered to .

There's the non-fraternization policy, sure. But that's not what has begun to terrify me. What terrifies me is remembering how Dwayne loved me and then walked away without a backward glance, leaving not just me but Hannah and Benny, too.

How he made both me and our kids feel disposable.

I can't do that to them again. I can't let them get attached to someone who might leave. And a rich, successful hockey player, a man adored by fans across the country, a man who has his pick of women, could so easily change his mind about us. Anyone with half a brain could tell me that.

But then I watch Cade crouch down to Hannah’s level, asking her to show him her best spin, and something inside me cracks open.

I'd convinced myself I was falling for Warrior, safe and distant, a man who could never really hurt us because he’d never really be here.

Only I was lying to myself.

Because standing here, watching Cade with my kids, feeling the echo of his hand on mine, I can't deny it anymore. The warmth spreading through my chest, the way my breath catches when he looks at me, the way everything in me reaches toward him despite every rational thought screaming at me to stop?

I'm falling for Cade Lennox, and I think I'm ready to stop fighting it.