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Chapter thirty-three

Luca

Saturday, July 25, 2026

W hen I’m stressed, I bake. And today? I’m really fucking stressed.

My offseason workouts with Ale have been kicking my ass because I can’t seem to get enough sleep with Gia waking up at all hours of the night.

Plus, there’s the constant thought that I’m not only letting my team down but my family too. The season hasn’t even started back up yet, and I’m already not balancing both aspects of my life well. What if I’m not meant to do both? What if I end up compromising on one to make up for the other and just wind up sucking at everything?

These are the thoughts spiraling through my head as I stand in the kitchen surrounded. There are loaf pans with chocolate chip banana bread, a seemingly endless number of cookies, and this terribly ugly Bundt cake from hell that has arguably caused me even more stress than it’s relieved.

One massive blessing is that Gia’s been napping long enough for me to have this fun little carby spiral, and thank fuck, I have the perfect place to unload it all.

***

“Alright, ladies, next we’re going to practice with the dummies. I want you to put all of your energy into this drill because it’ll be our last one for the week, okay?” I ask the group of women standing in the open rec room with the games and tables pushed up against the walls.

They all agree, looking even more excited to keep going now that they’ve started getting the hang of things.

I show them a combination of punches and kicks I want them to repeat, and when they’ve all confirmed that they’ve got it, they let loose and show those dummies who’s boss.

I watch as they take turns pummeling the humanoid silicone blobs, some of them knocking them over entirely. My heart fills with pride each and every time a group of these incredible women makes it to this stage. When they’ve learned to trust their bodies and can feel confident in their ability to protect themselves, it lights them up, and I can see it practically illuminating them on the outside too.

I clap my hands when they’ve all completed the exercise. “Fuck yeah, you guys! You’re all incredible!” I shout. “Now, make sure to grab yourself some cookies from the table before you head out.” I go in for a high five from each of the women as they thank me and make their way back to their rooms.

Brandi enters the rec hall, smiling as she heads toward me and gets started wiping down the dummies. I do the same before dragging them into the storage closet for next week. “Thanks for letting me swap to weekends. I know you guys have a lot scheduled for these days, but now that I’ve got Gia, it’s just so much easier to have one of my family members watch her on the weekend, at least until hockey starts up again.”

She waves me off. “No need to apologize, Luca. You’ve been teaching these classes religiously during the week for years; it was time for a change. And frankly, these ladies enjoy your classes more than any of the other shit we’ve got planned for them on Saturdays. It’s really not a problem, and it’s nice having you back here in person.” She takes one end of a table, helping me maneuver it into its place in the center of the room. “I’d missed you while you were playing for the Monsters in New York. These classes just aren’t the same over video call,” she tells me.

I give her a small smile. “Thanks, Brandi. It’s good to be back.” And I mean it. I’ve missed this place more than I’d thought possible, and of course, my dream was always to play for the Scarlets and live close to my family. Now, I get to do that. I’m overwhelmed, but so damn grateful.

We finish getting the room back together before heading back out, but a familiar head of dark curls passing into a room at the end of the hall has me stopping in my tracks. Brandi skitters to a stop behind me, almost knocking into me at the suddenness of my movements.

“Woah there, what’s going on?” she asks, moving to stand beside me as her gaze follows mine to where Samara disappeared behind the door.

“What is Samara doing here?” I ask, mostly to myself, and I’m surprised when Brandi answers, making me realize I’d spoken the words aloud.

“She does her pro bono cases for the women trying to gain custody of their children, but with her work schedule, she can only get here on weekends most of the time.”

I’m stunned.

This woman, who seems like a hard-ass all the time, is really just a big softy. Something about that has my lips pulling up into a grin. I know something about Samara that I’m sure very few people do, and that feels like a damn honor.