Page 79 of Hat Trick
"I'm here to pack up her stuff." He says, pushing past me in the doorway. I grab the back of his shirt and pull him harder than I should have back to the front porch.
"The fuck you are!" I growl at him.
Sammy squares off against me and I have to admire the guy. I have six inches and probably seventy-five pounds on him, but he isn't giving up without a fight. "She's moving out. She's done with you guys. I'm here to pack up her stuff."
I cross my arms and block the doorway, daring him.
"Fine!" He shouts, shaking down his hands.
I snort at him. "You're not wearing any gloves."
"Fucking habit." He says, before grabbing me around the collar and landing a few fast punches to my jaw. We wrestle and manage to fall into the front yard, Sammy on top, straddling me, landing punch after punch as I hold up my arms to shield my face.
"Fucking fight back!" He shouts between grunts. "Fucking fight for her!"
I shove him off of me and we sit there on our backs, in the grass, breathing heavy. "I don't know what to fucking do!"
I look up to see Gabe and Luca looking back down at us, watching. "You don't think I've been trying to figure out how to get her back?But words like 'I'm sorry' and 'I'm an asshole' and 'I love you' aren't enough." My chest pumps up and down as the throbbing pain from my jaw and eye make themselves known. I run my hand down my face, wincing as I hit my swollen cheekbone.
"You love her?" Sammy asks quietly from somewhere in the grass next to me.
"Yeah man. We all do. We have for a while now." I glance up at Gabe and Luca who nod at me in confirmation. I narrow my eyes at them and point, "And neither one of you stopped her either. I may have told her to take a walk, but neither one of you fought for her either."
At least they have the decency to look ashamed.
"I gotta think of something big. Something that says 'I'm an asshole, and I know it and I'm sorry and I love you and I promise never to show my ass like that again.' But man...I gutted her. I know that I did. I made her feel like she didn't belong, like she wasn't important, like she wasn't the entire thing our little family revolves around. Without her, I wouldn't have become the father I am now. Without her..." I pause, my voice close to cracking. I can't imagine a future without her. I can't imagine a family without her.
I sit up, finally and look to Sammy. "What do I do? How do I get her back? She won't answer my calls or texts. Won't answer the door when I go to your place."
He looks at me with sympathy. "I don't know man, you really fucked this up. Bad. She's devastated, heartbroken. She hasn't left her room in a week." My heart aches more. I never wanted to cause her pain. I should have sent everyone else away that day and held on to her. She's the only one that matters.
"Come on," Gabe says, offering me a hand while Luca offers Sammy one. "Let's get inside, crack open a few cold ones, and figure out how to get our girl back."
I nod and swallow past the lump in my throat. I'm grateful. I was the one who fucked up, but I have three guys willing to help me make it right. We'll figure this the fuck out or I'll break down her door and drag her home kicking and screaming.
Because there's no future without Emily in it.
Chapter forty-six
Emily
All week I've let myself wallow in self-pity. I get up to make myself a peanut butter and jelly in the mornings, shower, and then spend the rest of the day in bed. I know I need to process my feelings, my emotions, and come up with a game plan for my life.
Maybe I go back to therapy. Maybe I move to a new town, a new hockey team, where people don't know me. Maybe I drop out of school and change my career path altogether. I could work an office job, as a secretary or something.
I'm sure my dad could get me a job as a secretary at the factory. But then I'd have to crawl back to my dad, admitting defeat. Fuck, I'd rather move to another country.
But first, wallowing. My brain still feels fuzzy and my chest still aches, so I don't know if I'm in the right mindset to make any big decisions. I need to give myself time to grieve before I do anything.
Except grief is a funny thing, and it never seems to stay in self-pity. It oscillates between sorrow at everything I've lost, self-pity for ruining my career, and anger at the boys for casting me aside.
Those three men taught me what it's like to be treated right. And being sent away isn't it. Being rejected the minute things get hard or complicated, isn't it.
One thing I do know, though, is that I'm not going to stand for less. I may never find a love like I had with the boys again, but I'm not going to allow myself to be 'less than' in anyone's eyes. Even if that means I'm alone the rest of my life. I may not be perfect, or sexy, orfamous. But fuck it I'm a human being and I deserve to be treated right. They taught me that.
I had put the boys, Chad and my dad on do not disturb on my phone, so when it dings with a text message, I glance over at it. It's a number I don't recognize.
I open my phone.
