Page 19 of Much Ado About Hockey

Her jaw tightened as she swallowed the bitterness welling up. He was right—but was she the only one compromising?

“And what are you compromising on?” she asked, the question slipping out sharper than she intended.

“I gave up the home gym so you could have the really big office with a terrace. I know it overlooks the city, but…”

Her heart stuttered.

That didn’t make sense.

“Wait, wait, wait… Jett,none of themhad a terrace.” She pressed her fingers to her forehead, trying to steady the swirl of memories, the countless listings they’d gone through last night on the iPad, comparing, debating, dreaming. “What do you mean you gave up the home gym? That was the only thing you asked for, remember?”

There was a long pause. She could almost hear the shift in his tone, feel the way he was backing away emotionally.

“Can we talk later? Privately?”

The sudden retreat hit her like a slap. Later? He was retreating, and she knew deep down that the conversation would not come up againlater.

“I was going to run a few errands and start finalizing things here. I mean, we are talking about two strangers living together in another country this coming weekend.”

She hated the sharpness in her voice, but she couldn’t help it. This wasn’t just about square footage or terraces or family rooms. It was about the fact that she was crossing the miles for a man who was making decisions without her, expecting her to follow.

“I know – and I promise you’ll love it. Let me send you the link one more time… and trust me, Karen. I promise that I won’t ever do anything to make you regret this.”

Her heart twisted.Regret.That word was already slinking around in the shadows of her mind. How could he make a promise like that?

“You can’t know that, Jett. We’re strangers.”

“You’re my wife.”

“On paper.”

“Works for me… and I need to go. Biggie-E is stealing my fries, and I’m gonna have to whup-up on the little man and show him who’s the boss.”

Who?

His voice shifted, playful now, colored with affection—and somewhere in the background, she heard a laugh. High-pitched. Young. A child?

“Do you have a kid with you?”

“It’s my brother.”

“Wait – your brother is a child?”

She blinked. Confused.

Her heart beat faster, a dull thud echoing in her chest as she stared, unblinking, at nothing in particular. WhowasJett? This man she thought she’d started to understand, piece by piece, like a puzzle slowly coming together—had she missed something crucial?

“I can’t wait for you to meet him – hey! Gimme back my fries, you twerp!” Jett’s voice snapped her back to the moment. Laughter echoed in his tone—real, carefree, utterly unfazed bythe confusion he’d just dropped in her lap. “I gotta go, Karen. I’ll talk to you later when I’m alone.”

And just like that, the call ended.

The line went dead.

Karen blinked, pulled the phone away from her ear, and stared at it in disbelief. Frustration bubbled up quickly, hot and sharp. Her lips pressed into a tight line as she rolled her eyes, feeling the familiar wave of exasperation rise. Jett could be so infuriating sometimes—so darn casual about everything. He dropped cryptic comments like breadcrumbs and expected her to follow, and then just disappeared before she could even ask the obvious questions. It felt like every time she tried to hold onto something solid with him, making plans, he just… let go.

People, conversations, plans—her. She was learning really quickly that once he’d decided he was finished with something, it was filed away mentally in his brain. Well, her mind didn’t work like that!

Her phone chimed.

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