Page 25

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE: MORNINGS WITH THE FAMILY

STACEY

The sound of my alarm going off pulls me out of a deep sleep that I’m reluctant to leave. It takes me several moments to realize that I’m alone. Rolling over, I find his side of the bed empty and when I run my hand over the sheets, they’re cold. He’s been gone for a while. Disappointment settles inside me. After everything that happened yesterday and last night, I was kind of hoping to wake up next to him today.

That’s when I notice a yellow post-it on his pillow. I freeze, anxiety flooding through me in an instant. I have to swallow down my panic as I reach for it, remembering the last time Owen left me a handwritten message…

I let out a sigh of relief when I read it. Nothing to fear. The opposite, actually — he’s left me a sweet little note.

Good morning, beautiful,

I had to leave for early morning practice and didn’t want to wake you. The team is leaving tonight for our game in Nashville, otherwise I’d skip practice and keep you in bed all day ;) Text me when you get up.

Owen

I grin like an idiot as I clutch the note to my chest and roll back over to grab my phone off the bedside table. I nibble my bottom lip and send him a message.

Stacey: Good morning. I missed you when I woke up

To my surprise and delight, he responds within moments.

Owen: I know. I wish I was there with you right now, but Coach would’ve had my ass if I was late.

Laughing to myself, I sink back against the pillows. My smile widens as I type out a response. I decide to tease him a bit — drive him a little crazy.

Stacey: *Sigh* I see how it is. Here I am, all soft and sleepy and cuddly, and am still no competition for an old man with a whistle ;)

Owen: Baby, if you’d been awake when I had to leave, I’d still be there. That’s why I had to sneak away.

I burst into a giggle. This is fun… it kind of feels like we’re kids again, flirting and teasing each other because we simply can’t help ourselves.

Stacey: Well, when you put it that way, I suppose I can forgive you.

Owen: Thank God! I was afraid I’d have to grovel.

Stacey: I mean, a little groveling never hurt anyone.

Owen: I’ll keep that in mind, sweetcheeks. Are you coming to the Nashville game?

Stacey: Yeah, but I have an early morning flight tomorrow instead of leaving tonight. I don’t have anyone to watch Millie overnight tonight.

A part of me wishes I could go and be with the team overnight. Owen and I might be able to steal some time away, just the two of us. However, another part of me would also want Millie there. She needs more time with her dad now that she knows who he is.

Owen: We should start making a plan for how we’re going to make this work. I don’t want to miss another moment of Millie’s life.

My heart flutters. I love how he’s diving headfirst into being a father without hesitation. It makes me kind of wish I’d had the courage to tell him sooner, but I’m determined not to dwell on the what-ifs. We need to focus on the here and now and figuring out how to be together.

I type back quickly.

Stacey: I think that’s a good idea. We’ll figure out a plan when we’re both back home.

Just as I hit send, the door bursts open, and Millie charges in, her curls bouncing wildly around her face. She pauses, looks around, and then charges toward me with a look of determination.

“Mommy! Where’s Daddy?” she demands, climbing onto the bed and bouncing next to me. Hearing her say Daddy warms my heart and I swallow the lump that rises in my throat.

I hold up my phone. “I’m talking to him now.”

Her eyes light up with excitement. “I want to talk to him too!”

Laughing, I swipe to the call screen and hit the button to video call Owen. It rings only twice before he answers, his face appearing on the screen. He’s in full hockey gear already and I can hear the other guys talking in the background.

“Hey,” he greets, his smile spreading wide when he sees Millie. “There’s my girl!”

“Daddy!” Millie shouts, grabbing the phone from my hand and holding it far too close to her face. “Where are you? Why’d you leave without saying goodbye?”

He chuckles. “Sorry sweetheart, I had to get to practice. We have a big game tomorrow, so I’ll need some extra luck. Think you can cheer loud enough to send me some?”

“Uh-huh!” she says, nodding vigorously. Then her eyes narrow like she’s concocting a plan. “You gotta take me skating when you get back, though.”

“Deal,” Owen promises, holding up a gloved hand for a virtual high-five. “As soon as I’m back, it’s a date.”

Millie grins, but then her expression grows serious. “You gotta get me a jersey, Daddy. With your number on it! I want to wear it to school and tell everyone my dad’s a Night Hawk. They’ll be sooo jealous!”

Owen’s laugh echoes through the phone. “A jersey, huh? Alright, consider it done, but only if you promise to cheer extra loud.”

“Double promise,” Millie says solemnly, crossing her heart with one tiny hand.

I sit back, watching the two of them talk and laugh, feeling a sense of contentment and warmth. This is everything I never knew I needed. Millie has her dad, and Owen… he’s making her feel like the most important person in the world.

“Alright, kiddo,” Owen says after a few more minutes of Millie’s rambling stories about school and her plans to decorate her jersey with sparkles. “I gotta go. Gotta practice so I can impress you tomorrow.”

Millie pouts but relents. “Okay, Daddy. Love you!”

“Love you too,” he says.

I brush my hand over Millie’s hair. “Go on and get dressed for the day, sweetie. I’m going to say goodbye to Daddy.”

Wow, the word doesn’t even feel weird coming from my own mouth. It’s so natural to refer to Owen that way, it’s like we’ve been doing this for years. Like we’re a real family already.

Millie scrambles off the bed and hurries out of the room. I wait until she’s out of sight before looking back to Owen.

“I should go get her breakfast ready,” I tell him, giving him a small smile. “I’ll see you at the game.”

“All right,” he says softly. “I’ll, uh, talk to you later.”

“Okay.”

There’s a brief moment of silence where we just stare at each other. I want to say more to him… so, so much more, but the words are stuck in my throat. Before I can get them out, he speaks again.

“I love you, Stacey.”

My lips part and my heart stops. He said it before, but it kind of got lost in everything else that was happening. Now, I can take a beat to let the words sink in. It feels so amazing to hear them after all this time.

“I love you, too,” I murmur.

He grins and I can see his cheeks turning red. God, he’s adorable!

Someone suddenly yells his name and he stammers, “I… I gotta go, Stace.”

“Okay, I’ll see you soon.”

We hang up and I throw my covers off and hop out of bed, feeling light on my feet as I grab my robe and head downstairs.

Millie is still bubbling with excitement over her conversation with Owen, her chatter filling the kitchen as I prepare to make breakfast. I grab the eggs from the fridge and set them on the counter when there’s a sharp knock on the door. I frown. Who could that be so early in the morning?

Glancing at Millie, I murmur, “Stay here, sweetheart,” and head to the door, wiping my hands on the front of my robe.

When I open the door, I freeze. My mom is standing on the front porch. Her expression is tight, her lips pressed into a thin line. She looks upset, but not sad, so I don’t think she’s here about Gram. She hasn’t bothered stopping by the house all the time she’s been in Denver, so what the hell does she want now?

“Mom,” I say in a cool tone. “What are you doing here?”

“I need to talk to you,” she says, brushing past me without waiting for an invitation. Her designer handbag sways at her side, and her heels click sharply against the hardwood as she steps into the living room.

I close the door and follow her, trying to keep my tone even. “What’s going on? It’s early and I’ve got to get Millie ready for school. Can’t whatever … this is, wait?”

She spins to face me, her eyes sharp. “No, it can’t. I just stopped into the hospital to check on your grandmother, and do you know what she told me? That you’re back together with Owen Scott!”

“Would you keep your voice down?” I hiss. Looking toward the kitchen door, I make sure Millie has not popped out to see what’s going on. Facing Mom again, I grab her wrist and yank her back toward the door. “Outside. Now.”

I open it and drag her out onto the porch, shutting it firmly behind us.

When I’m more confident my daughter won’t overhear us, I snap, “Can’t you be more careful? Millie is in the kitchen and I don’t want her to hear you ranting about her father.”

Mom shakes her head with irritation, but seems to understand. “Stacey, what on earth are you thinking? Giving Owen another chance? Are you out of your mind?”

My jaw tightens. I cross my arms over my chest. “Mom, I don’t have time for this, and frankly, it’s none of your damn business.”

“None of my business?” she scoffs, throwing her hands up. “You have no idea what you’re doing! He ruined your life once, Stacey. I was there, remember? I watched as all your dreams were pissed away because of that boy, and now you’re going to take him back? Are you really going to let him do it again?”

I roll my eyes, already regretting answering the door. “He didn’t ruin my life, Mom, and I didn’t piss away my dreams. I just had to adjust them, and I don’t regret having Millie. It sounds more like you’re talking about yourself, not me, and frankly it’s a bit dramatic.”

“Dramatic?” she snaps. “You were pregnant and alone, Stacey! You worked your butt off to raise Millie without any help, while he went off living his cushy life playing hockey and partying.”

“That’s not fair,” I retort, my voice rising as my temper spikes. “You don’t know the whole story. He didn’t know about Millie, and his life wasn’t ‘cushy.’ He was miserable, Mom. His stepdad took his phone away back then and cut him off from everything. He didn’t even get my message telling him I was pregnant. And I was young, pregnant, and jumped to conclusions. Changing my phone number before he could get back his phone and try to reach me.”

Her eyes narrow. “And you believe that?”

“Yes,” I snap. “I do.”

She shakes her head, her tone icy. “You’re too trusting. You have no idea how those rich pricks work, Stacey. People like Owen’s stepfather don’t care about love or family. They care about control, appearances, and legacy. If you think they’ll approve of you and Owen being together, you’re naive.”

I bristle at her words but can’t ignore the small seed of doubt they plant.

“Owen doesn’t care about any of that,” I say firmly. “He left that life behind.”

“Did he?” she counters, arching a brow. “You think it’s that simple? People like Owen don’t just let go of their wealth and privilege. He’ll change his mind and decide to go back home, and when he does, it’s not just you who’ll get hurt — it’s Millie.”

Her words hit harder than I want to admit. I exhale sharply, trying to push the fear she’s provoking aside.

“I’m not going to let anything happen to Millie. Owen wouldn’t either. He’s already proven how much he cares about her.”

Mom steps closer. “You need to think this through, Stacey. Don’t let your feelings for Owen blind you to the reality of the situation. Don’t let this boy make you stupid again.”

I look away, my mind racing. I don’t want to acknowledge that what she’s saying is feeding into a fissure of doubt that continues to linger in the back of my mind. Shaking my head, I shove the thoughts away. No! No, I’m not going to let Mom get in my head. Not again. I’m not a girl anymore and she can’t make me feel bad about loving Owen.

“Mom,” I finally say, my voice low but steady. “This is my life. My choice. Owen is Millie’s father, and he deserves a chance to be in her life — and mine.”

She stares at me for several moments and I know she wants to continue arguing, but I hold her gaze and refuse to back down.

“Fine. I won’t argue,” she says at length, though her tight-lipped expression screams she does, in fact, want to. “I came to tell you something else.”

I furrow my brow. “What is it?”

“They’re discharging your grandmother today,” she says. “They want to move her to a rehab center for a bit, but she’s being.. .fussy about it.”

“Fussy?” I echo, my eyes going wide.

Mom nods. “She needs this, Stacey, no matter how much she protests and insists on going straight back to the assisted living place instead. Maybe if Millie visits her, it’ll help lift her spirits.”

“Of course,” I agree without hesitation. “Millie will love that. She’s been missing Gram.”

I haven’t had the heart to take her to the hospital. I don’t want her to see Gram hooked up to all those machines and looking so sickly.

Mom exhales sharply and looks down, fiddling with the strap of her bag. She looks nervous all of the sudden.

“Stacey… listen, I know I’m difficult. I know we don’t always see eye-to-eye.”

“That’s an understatement,” I mutter under my breath. What’s her point? I can’t help but be suspicious. She’s not one to admit to ever being in the wrong.

She ignores the comment and looks back at me, her gaze serious. “I want you to know, I do care. I hope you’re right about Owen. I really do. Because if you’re not...”

Her voice trails off, but I know what she’s about to say.

“I know,” I say quietly. “Millie could get hurt.”

Mom nods. “When you were with Owen in high school, I had a bad feeling about it. About him. I couldn’t explain it then, and I can’t explain it now, but that feeling hasn’t gone away.”

I press my lips together, a mix of frustration and unease bubbling inside me. “He’s not the same person, Mom. Neither am I.”

She shakes her head, looking disappointed. “I hope that’s enough.”