Page 35 of Second Chance with the Single Dad Goalie
We sit on the rocks, the silence stretching in a way that isn’t uncomfortable. The ocean roars below, the salty breeze cool against my skin.
I chuckle softly.
Blake glances at me. “What’s funny?”
“Just a memory.”
“Of?”
I grin. “Sarah and I used to sneak up here all the time. I remember the trouble we caused Mr. Edinburgh, the coast guard.”
“You guys together were trouble all right. Sarah being the ringleader,” he says, making me chuckle.
“One time, we set up a fake distress signal just to see how fast they’d respond.”
Blake’s mouth drops open. “You little menace.”
“It was Sarah’s idea. And oh, they showed up in full gear.” I shake my head. “We, uh…, may have gotten a very aggressive lecture and a permanent warning.”
Blake barks out a laugh. “And here I thought you were the responsible one.”
I gasp, placing a hand on my chest. “I am responsible! We just also happen to be creative in our methods of entertainment.”
He snickers. “Yeah, that’s what criminals say.”
I shove his shoulder playfully, the touch too familiar, too easy.I shouldn’t be this comfortable around him anymore. Not after everything.“Please, if I was a criminal, I’d be one of those charming ones who gets away with everything.”
“Oh, no doubt. You’d bat those big eyes and walk out scot-free.”
I smirk. “Exactly.”
The laughter dies between us, and what’s left is silence as memories fill my head.
“I miss her…” The words slip out before I can stop them, barely a whisper, but loud enough to feel like they’ve cracked something open. My voice wavers, thin and fragile. “I miss her so much. I miss her with a depth I can’t even put into words. I miss everything about her—her laugh, her voice, the way she could make anything feel like an adventure.”
My throat tightens, and I swallow, but the lump only grows. “I wish every day that she didn’t go…, that she didn’t decide to go be with God up there and become a singer for him. She should have waited a few more years so she could be with me here.”
Blake doesn’t say anything right away. He never rushes to fill the silence, never tries to patch over the raw parts. He just lets me talk.
“She’s with you, Princess.” His voice is steady, like it’s always been - calm, unwavering. he taps his chest, “Right here. All the time. Every time. Watching and cheering you on. And probably waiting for you to do something reckless and get her double thumbs up.”
I stare at him, my throat tightening. The way he says it - so certain, soBlake -makes something deep in my chest ache. A lone tear slips free before I can stop it, and I quickly wipe it away, turning back to the water.
Silence stretches between us, not awkward but full. Like he knows I need this moment, just as much as I know he won’t push. The waves crash against the rocks below, and the cool wind brushes against my skin.
Then…
“You know,” Blake starts casually, “if she is watching, she’s probably yelling at you right now for not pushing me into the water.”
A laugh bursts out of me before I can stop it. “You idiot.”
Blake grins, that same mischievous smile I’ve known since we were kids. “What? I’m serious. If I were a ghost, I’d demand entertainment. You’re really slacking here.”
I turn to him, shaking my head. “Oh, she absolutely would be. And she’d be screaming, ‘Whitney, you coward!’” I drop my voice, mimicking Sarah’s dramatic tone.
Blake grins. “Exactly. And then she'd probably add a ‘get off your ass and do something stupid.’"
I can almost hear Sarah’s laugh in the background, like she’s right there with us. And just like that, the conversation flows. The easy banter makes me forget—just for a moment—about everything weighing me down.
