Page 7 of Offside and Off-Limits
“You get what I mean. There are way fewer women in a small town than in a big place like the City.”
I shrug. “Sure there are. It’s basic math, Hayes.”
He slaps me on the back once more. “Good luck with that.”
“Thanks?”
He laughs. “I’m serious. If you want to change your life, Lennox, knock yourself out. Most of us want to leave bits of our past behind. I know I do, and turning over a new leaf in a place named after maple trees?”
“It’s kinda poetic.”
“As poetic as we hockey players get.”
Later that evening, with the boxes now mostly unpacked, I sit at Bess, my fingers resting on her keys. I look over at the view through the living room windows. The sun is beginning to set, casting a warm glow over the trees, the sky streaked with clouds dipped in vibrant colors. I play a few notes and smile to myself.
This is where it's going to happen. This is my fresh start. This place is where I become the man I always knew I could be.
CHAPTER 3
CLARA
“Bring it in,Ms. Amazing Social Media Expert.” My childhood friend, who has recently returned to Maple Falls, has her arms held out wide as she beams at me while standing outside Falling for Books on Main Street. The store is run by my sister’s sister-in-law, Emmy, because this is Maple Falls, where everyone has fewer than two degrees of separation in our limited gene pool.
I step into Bailey’s arms, and she squeezes me tight. “Thanks. But I’m just the social media manager, not exactly an expert.”
She pulls back and smiles at me, her hands onmy shoulders. “You’ll be an expert in no time, and you’ll get promoted to Goddess of All Things before the year is out. I just know it.”
I let out a laugh. “I’m not sure Goddess of All Things is an actual job title, at least not at the Ice Breakers.”
She gives me another squeeze. “Isn’t it just so great that we’re both working for the League these days?”
“You’re seasoned at this, having been bounced around the country on different teams. Me? Total novice.”
As usual, my friend looks totally polished in a pair of jeans and a pale blue jacket, her blonde hair falling in soft waves around her shoulders, the smattering of freckles across her nose just the same as they were back in high school.
“Hey there,” Bailey says, leaning down to my son’s height. “You’re Benny, right?” she asks and he nods. “I haven’t see you since last Christmas. I think you’ve grown three feet since then.”
Benny beams with pride, despite the fact he’s probably grown only three inches in the past nine months.
I gesture at the entrance. “Shall we head in? Benny wants a comic book to celebrate me getting my new job.”
“What a wonderful mom you have,” Bailey says.
“She’s okay,” Benny replies before bounding into the store.
Bailey quirks an eyebrow. “High praise indeed.”
“That’s mom life for you,” I reply on a sigh.
We step inside the store and immediately, I'm hit by the smell of coffee and sweet baked goods wafting in the air from the coffee shop at the back of the store.
“Coffee? My treat to celebrate your new job,” Bailey offers as we follow Benny through the books to the comic section. “Or would you prefer a comic book?”
I laugh. “Coffee would be great. Thanks, Bailey.”
We reach the counter where we’re greeted by Maple Falls’ queen of cupcakes, Neesha, along with Emmy, aka Keira’s sister-in-law and the owner of Falling for Books.
Limited gene pool, remember?
