Page 174 of Three Pucks and a Baby

She gave me a shy smile. “Thank you.”

After kissing her over the glass, I pulled away and winked at her. “The things I plan to do to you tonight.”

A flush entered her cheeks. “Bennett and I came up with a plan.”

“Please tell me it’s a sex-themed plan.”

“It is.”

“Thank, fuck.”

She giggled. “Tonight it’s just you and me to make up for all the time you’ve missed.”

“Seriously?”

At her nod, Bennett said, “And tomorrow, you’re all mine before we have to go back.”

I groaned with pleasure. “Now that’s the way to get a guy revved up to play his first NHL game,” I replied with a smile.

“Speaking of, you better get your sexy ass out there and start warming up,” Bennett said, with a grin.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m going.”

“Good luck, bro,” Grayson said with a smile.

“Thanks, man.” I put my mitt up to the glass. “I couldn’t do this without you, buddy. Thanks for keeping the home fires burning for me and taking care of Viv and Bennie. You’re the greatest friend a guy could ever ask for.”

Grayson’s lip trembled slightly. “All right. That’s enough of that emotional bullshit.”

Flashing him a smile, I replied, “Dr. Zeller would be so disappointed.”

After swiping his eyes, Grayson countered, “Yeah, well, there’s no crying in hockey.”

“That’s baseball, jackass,” I replied.

Grayson laughed. “Calling me names is so much better than the emotional stuff.”

“Whatever.”

I gave the gang a final smile. And as I skated off to warm up, I realized I although I was the least deserving, I was the luckiest fucking guy on the planet.

EPILOGUE: VIVIAN

Fourteen Months Later

With an ear-piercing squeal,Griffin bolted away from me and then made a beeline for the ice. Thankfully, I didn’t have to break into a run to catch him. Bennett and Grayson rushed forward. “Whoa, Little Man, not yet,” Grayson chided.

When he scooped him up, Griffin kicked his feet in protest. “It’s not time yet,” Grayson reasoned.

“Dada!” he protested before pointing his tiny finger at the ice.

“He’ll be there in just a minute,” Bennett replied.

Griffin’s mouth turned into a pout. The expression was pure Grayson. Everything else from his auburn hair to his green eyes was all me. It was a good thing we hadn’t been waiting to see his features to determine his paternity because we would’ve been out of luck.

It seemed like just yesterday we were bringing Griffin home, and now a year and a half of his life had gone by. In that time, he’d taken his first steps, cut his first teeth, and said his first word, which was Dada. I reasoned that since he had three men constantly saying the word to him, it made sense he said it first.

Today we were in Charleston for a family skate day. During Theo’s first season, we’d gotten lots of looks and whispers from the WAGS. But after a few months, they’d grown to embrace our unique situation. I considered some of them dear friends who had helped to ease Carlee’s loss in my day-to-day life.

---