Page 35 of Offside and Off-Limits (Love in Maple Falls #2)

“It’s my high school team,” Dan explains. “I’m coaching them, and I tell you, there’s some serious talent on that team, hence the perfect season so far. I’m seeing big things for this team. ”

“Don’t get ahead of yourself yet, honey. There’s still plenty of games to come,” Keira says.

“And the best news? The town has been saved, too,” Clara adds. “I got a message from Ashlyn earlier today.”

“That’s amazing news!” Dan says.

“You should definitely have led with that,” I add.

“It seems like we’ve got a lot to be thankful for this year,” Mom says, and I smile at her when she captures my gaze.

I know how much it means for Mom to see me settled and happy.

Although she didn't voice her concerns at the time, she said she was always worried about me and my lifestyle, secretly hoping I would meet a woman who would make such an impression on me I would change my ways.

But it was me who changed before I met the woman, and that's why I was ready for her. Ready and open to love.

A short while later, with the food piping hot on the table, we all sit, with Clara and me serving up as everyone continues to chatter amongst themselves.

With fifteen of us, I had to borrow some of Clara’s utensils and plates, so the table is a bit of a hodgepodge.

But no one cares. We’ve come together to celebrate as one big, blended family, not impress Martha Stewart.

After we’ve eaten enough to keep us full for hours to come, the kids disappear down the hall, and Clara clinks a spoon against her glass, rising to her feet. “I wanted to say a few words, if that's okay with you all?”

“Of course, honey. Go ahead,” Mom says, and she throws me a smile that tells me how much she likes Clara.

“Thanks, Judy. First, thank you to Cade for hosting us all here today. It's been incredible to bring both your family”—she gestures at my mom, my sister, and her husband—“and my family together. I think we make a beautifully overcomplicated family tree. Families are both blood and chosen, and today, I think we’ve got the perfect mix of both, don’t you? ”

People laugh and several people voice their agreement.

“This has been quite a year for all of us. For me, being a chronic illness warrior has meant embracing all of life’s possibilities, not just surviving them. Part of embracing those possibilities brought me to my job in social media at the Ice Breakers, and brought me to this guy.” She grins at me.

I raise my hand. “That’s me, in case you were wondering,” I say, and win a laugh.

“I know I’ve only just met you today, and it’s been wonderful to get to spend this time with you,” she says to my family.

“I want you to know that Cade has been the second chance I wasn't even looking for, coming into my life like a ray of flirty sunshine, never taking no for an answer, and showing me what a real man is. He might be a tough guy out there on the ice. He might be built like a small giant with more muscles than a Mr. Universe contestant. But this guy gets it. He gets me . And this Thanksgiving I am so very grateful for him.” She swallows and her eyes sparkle with unshed tears, tears of joy and of love, tears that make me love her all the more.

Not that I thought that was possible.

She raises her glass. “So, before I get totally soppy?—”

“Too late, sis,” Keira says.

“Give me a break. I’m newly in love,” Clara replies, and I reach out and take her hand in mine, giving it a squeeze. Clara smiles down at me with love in her eyes, and I feel it, right in my heart.

“Here's to you, all of you. Some of you have come from the other side of the country, some from just up the road. But it's wonderful to have you all here and I am so grateful for each and every one of you. To family.”

“To family,” everyone around the table echoes, holding their glasses aloft, and as we all take a sip and Clara sits back down, I sling my arm around the back of her chair and plant a kiss against her soft cheek.

“Nicely said, Triple,” I say.

“Thanks, honey. ”

I take her free hand in mine, and together we sit, united as one.

Before I arrived in this small town, I had been living a deliberately shallow existence, keeping relationships short and meaningless, terrified of repeating my dad’s destructive pattern.

My womanizer-slash-party-boy lifestyle was my armor, allowing me to offer low expectations to any woman I became involved with, knowing that then I could never disappoint.

Meeting Clara, getting to know her and Benny and Hannah, showed me what real family looks like. Instead of the broken promises I grew up with from my dad, I’ve discovered the beauty of showing up consistently, of being there for the ones I love.

And I intend to keep on showing up, to keep on loving.

Because here I’ve found my purpose, my heart.

Moving to Maple Falls has given me the world.

I’m part of something bigger than me and my hockey career.

I’m part of something more meaningful and lasting.

And I know, deep in my heart, this is precisely where I’m meant to be.

I’ve not just found love here in Maple Falls, population ten thousand.

I’ve found my home.