Page 16 of Rebel Secrets (Devils Hockey #3)

Chapter Eleven

R ebel

“So, um, hey, Rebel.”

“Ian?”

“Yeah. Hi. It’s me. How’s it going?”

I put down the rake I was using to weed the garden bed in front of my home.

Living in the woods was great, away from nosy neighbors in town who watched your every move from their windows.

Until you realized the woods didn’t give a fuck if you had a little stone wall around your beds to keep the forest out.

That meant yardwork, which I didn’t hate.

It got me out of the house doing something physical. I didn’t sit well.

I’d taken my phone outside with me, expecting a call from Brian about Rowdy’s bachelor party this weekend, so I’d answered without looking at the screen.

It took my brain a second to make the switch from the expected to the unexpected.

But when I did, I heard something in Ian’s voice that made my brain snap to attention.

“Ian, what’s wrong?”

I was pretty sure I heard him sigh.

“Um, so… Well, nothing’s wrong. It’s just…um…”

I waited, knowing him well enough to know he’d spit it out eventually. If you interrupted, it just took him that much longer to get out what he wanted to say.

“Well, my place for the summer fell through, and I need somewhere to stay for a while. Just a week or two, just until?—”

“Sure. When are you coming? Do you need a ride?”

Silence from the other end.

“Ian? You still there?”

“Yeah. I just… I didn’t… Really? You don’t mind?”

Okay, this didn’t sound like Ian.

“No, I don’t mind. I’ll text you my address unless you need a ride. I can come get you. I could be there in an hour or so.”

Another silence.

“Ian?”

“Yeah, no. I mean. Nah, I’m good. I’m all packed.”

Behind me, I heard wheels on gravel, which meant someone was pulling into my driveway. I turned to see who it was as I pulled the phone away from my ear and put it on speaker.

“I’m gonna text you my address and some directions. Let me know when you leave, and I’ll make sure I’m home when you get here.”

“I don’t wanna be any trouble.”

My dad stopped his golf cart a few feet away and shut it off. I lifted my chin in greeting.

“You’re not any trouble, Ian. Just leave already. I’ll see you when you get here.”

Another pause. “Thanks, Reb. I really… Yeah, I really appreciate this.”

“No problem. See you then.”

I hung up before the kid could start thanking me again.

Pop’s raised eyebrows asked the question.

“My roommate needs a place to stay for a while.”

My dad had been in the hockey business for more years than I’d been alive. And while he’d never played, he knew hockey players inside and out. They had their plans for the offseason set before the end of the season.

“How old?”

“Just turned twenty-two.”

“Can’t go home or doesn’t want to?”

I didn’t know much about Ian’s parents. He didn’t talk about them a lot, but I got the feeling there was some tension there. “Little of both, I think.”

Pop nodded, gaze sliding to the beds I’d been working on. His brain always had about five browser windows open at the same time.

“You better get that purslane outta there now or you’ll never get ahead of it.” He pointed at something in the garden bed before he paused for a second. “I don’t think this is the plus one your mom was hoping for.”

He said it so deadpan, it took a second for my brain to catch up. But when it did, I nearly choked on a laugh.

“Not sure he’s gonna be here that long, but, damn, Pop, you do have a sense of humor.”

“Only when it’s called for.”

We grinned at each other, knowing we were thinking the exact same thing.

Rowdy had inherited Pop’s ability to schmooze. Rain had inherited his business sense. Rocky… Well, Rocky seemed to have gotten more than his share of intelligence from both of our parents.

Pop and I were a lot alike when it came to what we considered funny. Most people thought we didn’t have a sense of humor. Totally untrue. Most people just never understood how dry it was.

“So, what’s up?”

Rowdy, Rain and I were used to Mom checking in randomly. We joked among ourselves that it was to make sure we hadn’t secretly moved away, but Pop had never made a habit of it. Which meant he had something on his mind now.

“You know your sister’s been on me about getting this youth program up and running, and with the wedding, we’re not going to be able to manage it this year.

But I just got a call from the high school team’s coach.

They always run a two-week camp in July at the arena, but he’s having surgery he didn’t expect, and the assistant coach’s wife is pregnant and due around that time.

“Coach asked if we had someone willing to the run the camp. A few of our guys usually volunteer for a day or two, but most of them have jobs over the summer and can’t take the time off.” Pop’s lips quirked. “And I wouldn’t trust most of them to run the camp by themselves.”

And since he was standing here, I knew who he was nominating to run the camp.

“Pop—”

“I think it’ll be good for you.”

I didn’t say anything else. I knew it wouldn’t do any good. Pop had made up his mind. It wasn’t open for debate.

“Camp doesn’t start ’til the week after the wedding. You can run drills with the kids with your eyes closed.”

Yeah, I could. And it would get my mind off?—

“You wanna tell me what you’ve got on your mind, son?”

Damn, maybe my mom wasn’t the only one who read minds. “Nothing, Pop.”

“Bullshit. I know my kids. Something’s up with you. I know you haven’t signed your contract yet. Got something to do with that?”

Jesus. “How do you know that?”

His brows arched for a split second. “You just told me. What I don’t know is why.”

Shaking my head, I turned back to the garden bed.

“Damn it, Pop. I hate when you do that.”

“If you weren’t so much like me and opened your mouth more, I wouldn’t have to.”

We shared a grin that probably would’ve looked identical to anyone watching us.

“So.” He crossed his arms over his chest. “You wanna tell me why?”

I shrugged. “Just haven’t.”

“You plan to?”

I huffed out a sigh. “Honestly, I don’t know yet.”

Pop nodded, his expression way more low-key than I expected. “Okay. I just want you to know I’m here if you need to talk it out. And you know Rowdy?—”

“Has enough on his plate right now. The guy’s getting married in a few weeks. I’m not putting anything more on his shoulders right now.”

“Fair enough,” Pop said. “Well, I’ll let you get back to your weeding.”

He headed back to the golf cart but stopped a few feet away and pointed at something in the grass.

“Better get that ground ivy outta there before it takes over the whole yard.” He settled himself into the seat, a little slower than normal. The thought made my gut knot.

“And Reb? The kids’ll think you’re a god. An actual AHL hockey player teaching them hockey. Let me know if you’re up for it.”

“So basically, he guilted you into it?”

Sitting at my dining room table about an hour later, I scratched my neck, which I’m pretty sure was sunburned, and sighed. Brian was on the other end of the line. He’d called to finalize plans for Rowdy’s bachelor party and, when we had, I told him about my dad’s scheme.

“Not quite. I think I can still say no. But…they’re gonna have to cancel if no one steps up. I remember going to hockey camp when I was their age. I looked forward to it all fucking year.”

“Guess I should call you coach now?”

An undercurrent of amusement ran through Brian’s tone, and I gave him the finger even though I knew he couldn’t see it.

“It’s not like I had anything else to do this summer.”

“I figured you’d be flying off to spend a few weeks with your teammates somewhere warm.”

“Pretty sure St. David is hot enough for me.”

“Okay, then somewhere beachier.”

“Nah. You know me. I’d be bored as fuck laying around all day. Besides, I needed to be here for the wedding.”

And I’d rather be here.

Brian’s huff of amusement came through loud and clear. “Guess you can be grumpy here just as well as anywhere else.”

“You’ve been talking to my sister too much.”

“Rain says you spend too much time alone.”

“Well, that’s the one thing I won’t be doing for the time being. My roommate needs a place to stay for a while. He’ll be here in a few.”

“Oh yeah? That planned?”

“No. He’s younger. Only twenty-two. Said his plans fell through.”

“He have family?”

“Yeah, but he doesn’t talk about them much. Never met them, either. Guess he wasn’t planning to go home and whatever else he had lined up isn’t gonna happen.”

“Guess you will have a date to the wedding.”

“Jesus, everyone’s a comedian today. Dad said practically the same thing.”

Brian’s bark of laughter made me grin. “Don’t tell your sister that.

She and Erin were doing some stupid online quiz about your perfect partner the other night, and one of the questions was something about your mate reminding you of your father.

Man, I am not like your dad. I mean the Colonel’s a great guy, but… I ain’t him.”

“What’d Erin say about hers?”

Why the hell had I asked that question? It’s like my brain momentarily disconnected from sanity. I didn’t want to know what Erin said about her dad. None of my business.

“Not much. She never talks about anyone but her granddad. Never really thought about it before, but now I wonder if she even has parents.”

“She does. I don’t think they’re too happy she moved here.”

From outside, I heard tires on gravel and a mistuned engine.

“Hey, I gotta go.” I looked out the window. “Got company.”

“You wanna talk about it?”

Ian sat across from me at the Tea Room, pushing around the remains of his meal. The place wasn’t busy. Yet. But it was only six-thirty. The Wednesday night crowd would be here after eight.