Page 86 of The Rebound Plan

Shannon: You can text me. I have it on good authority that friends do that sort of thing.

Russ: Good. Because I like texting my friends.

The first pre-season game of the year is my first chance to catch up with the WAGs who don’t live in Hamilton year round. Magnus Gustafsson’s Swedish girlfriend, for example, whose English is broken but enthusiastic.

Some of them, like Andrew Mitchell’s girlfriend, Emma Point, don’t even live in Hamilton during the year. The lawyer met the west coast D-man back home in Vancouver two summers ago, and given that the team is away half the time during the season, and a decent number of those games are up and down the west coast, she’s stayed with her firm there.

“Until he puts a ring on it,” she jokes to Kiley.

Kiley glances my way, clearly remembering my warning. “That’s smart,” she says. “Save your money, too. Make him pay for the flights.”

Emma winks in agreement. “My sister is a lawyer, too—family law—and her mantra is,don’t do anything you wouldn’t advise a client to do. So you bet, I’m putting the onus of financial responsibility on the higher earning partner.” She pauses for effect. “With appreciation shown on my knees, of course.”

Kiley hoots and claps her hands. “That’s it. That’s the right answer.”

I grin and go take my seat as the game starts. Because it’s a home game, they’re playing their top lines, even though this is mostly a chance for the coaches to see some of the players who are on the line to get cut out of training camp. And because it’s an away game for Montreal, the other team sent their B-squad.

It doesn’t look that way off the first face-off, though.

Hamilton isrough, and it hurts to watch.

We’re in a suite today, which comes with food. The temptation to slide out of my seat and go peruse the buffet is high, but I stay parked on my butt until the buzzer goes at the end of the first period.

Then I hightail it to the back of the suite.

Emma is already tucking into the salsa. She gives me a sympathetic look at the state of the game.

“Maybe the second period will be better.” I reach past her and grab a plate, and then load up on veggies and dip. And cheese. Tonight calls for cheese.

I was really hoping the tension at home wouldn’t be reflected on the ice, but Max isn’t playing well at all. And Russ has barely had any ice time, too. Right now, I imagine the two of them circling each other in the dressing room like cage fighters, blaming the other for their bad first period showing.

When the truth is probably that it’s my fault. Not for anything I’ve done, maybe, but for what I haven’t done.

I clear my throat. “Emma, can I ask you a legal hypothetical? Well, it’s not really hypothetical, but I don’t know all the details. It’s for a friend.”

“Umm…” She shrugs. “I mean, with the caveat that this is not legal advice because you haven’t hired me…yes.”

“I get that.” I take a deep breath. “I know this woman who is in a difficult position because she's here in Canada and her marriage has broken down, but she can’t move back to the States, for financial reasons. No job prospects, no family or friend supports there. And she can’t afford to wait out a year-long separation here in Canada, either.”

“She’s American?”

“Yeah.”

“Does her spouse have financial resources?”

“Yes.”

“Is there a prenup?”

“Yeah.”

“Is the spouse opposing the divorce?”

That gives me pause. “I think so. I’m not sure.”

She takes a deep breath. “Well, as an American, the easiest divorce would be found by going to Guam, which only has a residency requirement of something like a week, last I checked. But it takes money to get done that quickly and if it’s not agreed upon by all parties, then it can be challenged in court. I wouldn’t want to be on the receiving end of that lawsuit. Otherwise, any competent attorney should be able to advise on the states that have the shortest residency requirements, or refer to an American lawyer.”

I don’t think that was mentioned in my first appointment, but I wonder how many cross-border divorces the small town family law firm I randomly walked into has ever handled.

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