Page 49 of Delay of Game

“Never. This is not your fault and you’re doing amazing. We’ll get it all sorted out,” I say, tucking her head under my chin.

“Promise?”

“Yeah, baby, I promise,” I say, kissing the top of her head. Alice stiffens in my arms, and I mentally kick myself for letting the pet name slip. What is wrong with me?

I expect her to shove me off, tell me to leave, but she’s quiet. I hold my breath, hoping she lets me stay. Eventually she relaxesagain, and I move my arm to her lap to clasp her hand. “Let’s go. I brought reinforcements,” I say, squeezing once before helping her up.

“You did?” she asks, looking up at me with hope. I reach out and brush her tears away with both my hands, letting my thumbs linger on the apples of her cheeks just a moment longer.

Of course, that’s the precise moment that Ash’s voice comes through the walkie-talkie in my pocket. “Love Guru here, we got all the decorations out of the boxes but need assistance with visuals. Over. Out.”

I bite my lip, suppressing my smile and watch as Alice’s face lights up. “Did he just call himself the Love Guru?”

With a vigorous nod, I say, “Absolutely, he did. He’s taking this job very seriously.”

A laugh breaks out of her, and I want to bottle it up and keep it for myself. It’s light and bubbly and everything I remember her to be. I can’t help the grin that takes over my face as she laughs again and again.

“Oh, Ash,” she says, wiping another tear—this one of joy.

“Would you like the walkie-talkie?” I ask, holding it out.

She gasps, and I raise an eyebrow at her. “I would be honored,” she says, her fingers brushing over my palm and sending a jolt of electricity through me.

“Love Guru, this is Hitchin’ Crew Leader. Rendezvous at the patio door in T minus one minute. Over. Out.”

“Fuck yeah, let’s gooo!” Ash says, followed by his signature call out.

“Let’s get this wedding back on track,” I say, leading the way to the rendezvous point. As soon as Alice sees Ash and Eli, she immediately goes into planning mode, giving us all tasks. Alex and Malia continue to work on the balloon arch, and it looks way better than what any of us could have conjured up.

By the time we need to go back and get dressed for pictures, the whole place is ready and we all have code names. Ash is the Love Guru, Alice is the Hitchin’ Crew Leader,Eli got nicknamed Checklist Crusader by Ash, and Malia came up with Glam Squad for her and Alex. As for me, I chose Fellowship of the Ring.

“Thank you for this. I couldn’t have pulled it off without help,” Alice says, stopping me with a hand on my forearm.

I swallow down more pet names and sweet nothings, refraining from telling her I’ll always answer when she calls. I know that’s not what she wants to hear. She’s made it clear she wants to put our past behind us. I smile instead and say, “Of course.”

Her blue eyes trace my face, and she takes a step towards me. I inhale a mix of her coconut shampoo and sweat and somehow manage not to grab her and kiss her.Fuck, I miss her so much.

She takes another step, then another, until her eyes are level with my collarbone, and she wraps her arms around my waist, resting her cheek on my heart.

I’m sure it’s beating wildly for her, and after a moment of shock at her embrace, I bring my own arms around her and pull her even closer. I should keep this a friendly hug, but my fingers find the back of her head and tangle in her hair there, massaging her scalp. Alice’s breath is hot against my thin T-shirt, and I think it’s time to put some distance between us, before I completely lose it and do something stupid, like kiss her.

My control slips anyway, and I kiss the top of her head instead, reluctantly letting her go. “C’mon, we don’t want to be late,” I say, leading us to the car.

Alice

The restof the day went off without a hitch. I managed to only cry three times during Robbie and Olivia’s vows. And if I happened to look over and see Jordan crying too, well—that was just a bonus. I wanted to keep on hating him, but the truth is, I can’t. Not after being there when I needed him most today.

Ash and Malia stood to my right as Olivia’s other bridal party members, while Jordan, Eli, and Alex stood by Robbie. The pictures will no doubt look incredible, especially as half the guests are hockey players and coaches. I’ve never seen a room so full of beautiful people.

Michael, Robbie’s old Manticores coach, brought his son Josh, who is working over the summer at Blue Line Brigade, and his wife, Jen, who volunteered to take the pictures today. She worked for the Manticores for the longest time as their team photographer.

I tear up just thinking about what an incredible family Robbie has had in this team, in thesepeople, over the years.

After Jordan and I give our speeches, along with Grams and my mom, the party begins and people are mingling both indoors, grabbing food, and outdoors, watching the sunset and enjoying a glass of wine. My job is done, and I can finally, blessedly, enjoy the night too.

I grab an entire tray of shots from the bar and make my way to our bridal party table. I wave Robbie and Olivia over, and they join us. The eight of us gather around the table and I hand out the shots, giving Ash a water cup, since he’s been sober for a year.

When I get to Olivia, she says, “None for me.” I do a double take and look between her and Robbie, seeing matching smiles on their faces.

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