Page 24 of Much Ado About Hockey

Her heart dropped into her stomach.

“Oh my gosh,” she gasped, recoiling, her eyes wide with horror. Her voice was barely a whisper, the words escaping like steam from a pressure cooker. “My morning breath smells likethat? Do I have diabetes?”

The question hung in the air, sharp and absurd, but also a little terrifying.

“Nooooo. It can’t be. I’m not thirsty, and it doesn’t run in my family but… but why would he say something about Nutella? I can’t take any chances,” she whispered, scheduling an appointment at the nearest clinic.

Sucking in her breath, Karen knocked on the front door – and winced as she heard Jett’s bellow in the distance.

“I GOT IT, MA…”

“Sheesh,” she muttered, realizing once again that she’d tied herself to this person with zero knowledge, zero planning, and utterly no forethought of what her life would be like with him after all those sweet words had hit her straight between the eyes, driving directly into her brain – and hesitated once more as the door opened.

Her bloodwork showed that she did not have diabetes but perhaps she had some brain-eating disease accounting for all of this craziness she was in the middle of… and meeting Jett’s eyes, that seemed to cement the thought.

“Great! You’re here – and early. Cool.”

“Hello,” Karen replied pointedly, expecting him to hold open the door and escort her inside – but once again – Jett threw her for a loop.

He pushed her back bodily, stepping outside the front door and pulling it shut behind him. She had no choice but to move or he would have been smashed up against her.

“What are you doing?”

“Look,” Jett began, leaning forward and whispering. “My brother is in there and picks up on everything – and my mom,” he paused, swallowing, and she couldn’t help but stare at the rare show of emotion in his dark eyes. He looked… afraid. “They mean the world to me, and I don’t want them to worry. I told my mother that we were deeply in love, so she didn’t flip her lid after her past. My dad was awful and…” The door opened behind him, and his voice died immediately, yanking her into a hug, whispering ‘please’ in her ear.

“Ewww,” a boy exclaimed nearly as a woman chuckled softly just as Jett released her, backing away and looking at her silently – his eyes pleading.

“Jett,” Karen said nervously, her face flushing at the feeling of his arms having been around her in a hug – and how much she liked it. “Can you introduce me,sweetheart?” And Jett’s shoulders seemed to relax visibly as he took her hand, nodding.

“Karen, this is my mother, Joy, and my brother, Elton – who I usually call ‘Biggie E’ or ‘E.J.’ because he’s too little to be an Elton to me…”

“Oh, let’s not get into this again,” Joy interrupted, chuckling as she moved forward to take Karen’s hand. “Come on in, sweetie. I’m so happy to meet you. Do you want something to drink? Some coffee, maybe?”

“They were kissing,” Elton volunteered, grimacing. “She needs a washcloth and some Listerine…”

“Hey you,” Jett laughed, drawing the boy under his arm and rubbing his hair enthusiastically, mussing it up as the kid shrieked in delight. “Knock it off, and if we are talking about cleanliness, you need a shower, Twerp.”

“I took one this morning!”

“Did you? Did you really? Did you use soap or just stand under the water?” Jett pressed, picking up the boy and throwing him over his shoulder before walking inside. Karen couldn’t help but stare in amazement at this side of her new husband. He was gentle, teasing, and almost… parental.

He’s so handsome,she marveled in surprise. That smile, the easy expression on his face, and how comfortable Jett seemed right now was almost like glancing at a flame before turning your entire head to stare into the sun - overpowering and something she would never forget. His eyes met hers, raw and unfiltered… and she saw something that made a part of her deep down inside suddenly sit up and take notice.

“Karen, do you want some coffee? Lunch won’t be ready for an hour or so, but we have time to chat,” Joy said from nearby,disrupting the moment and breaking the spell as she dragged her eyes away from Jett to look at her new mother-in-law.

“I’d love some coffee – thank you,” Karen murmured before looking back over her shoulder at Jett, who was now wrestling with his younger brother, Elton. Jett was right; the boy did not fit the old-fashioned name in the slightest, and it would be easier for her to call him ‘E.J.’ or something of the sort.

“Elton John was the first concert I saw,” Joy volunteered, whispering beside her as Karen jumped slightly before accepting the cup of coffee. “I was pregnant with Jett, and his father was working as a cook in a diner during the day while trying to learn how to play guitar at night. He always wanted to be a musician and dreamed of greater things…”

Karen listened, fascinated, taking in and appreciating this openness that Joy seemed to offer with little hesitance. She just spoke like they were a couple of old friends becoming reacquainted. “But I’m sure you’ve heard all of this from my son…” Joy chuckled softly, putting a hand on Karen’s arm, rolling her eyes with an embarrassed look on her face. “I love my boys, and it’s easy to…”

“Please continue,” Karen interrupted softly, needing this information almost as much as the woman needed to share it. “I love hearing about Jett...” – And realized it was true. She knew nothing about this man she’d married, and perhaps she could learn something from the person who raised him from a child.

“There’s not a lot to tell,” Joy flushed nervously. “I worked so much when he was growing up that I missed a lot of Jett’s childhood – except his hockey games. The boy was a child prodigy on the ice, and I was so glad that he had those moments to keep him happy, keep him grounded while at the same time giving him a direction to grow.”

Karen looked at Joy, waiting patiently as the woman stared at the two males still wrestling and playing in the middle of the living room like they were both children – not just E.J….

“His father left when Jett was six or seven,” Joy whispered, her face pained at the memories locked away in her mind. “Things hadn’t been good. We never got married and constantly argued about money when one day Rodney never returned. He never came home the next day or the following week. He’d quit his job with no notice and left with some red-headed woman in a van, according to his boss, and I had to explain it to Jett.”

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