Page 40 of Cross Check Christmas
"Nonsense!" Maggie throws an arm around her shoulders. "Stay with me! We'll have a girls' night, face masks, wine?—"
"And Otto squawking 'Sweet Caroline' at 3 AM," Emily cuts in with a smirk.
"Otto only does that when he's feeling festive," Maggie protests.
"Which is always," Emily counters.
Colette's eyes widen. "You have a parrot?"
"The most opinionated parrot in Toronto," Emily says.
"Otto is a delight!" Maggie protests.
"Otto mimics police sirens," Emily deadpans. "And fire alarms. And that one time he learned how to perfectly recreate the sound of someone throwing up..."
Maggie giggles. “That was gross and brilliant.”
"Stay with me instead,” Emily says to Colette. “My guest room is bird-free, and I make killer breakfast waffles."
"I—" Colette glances my way, then quickly looks away. "That's really kind of you both, but?—"
"Perfect!" Emily claps her hands. "It's settled. You're staying with me."
I open my mouth to suggest my condo, but quickly snap it shut. That would probably come across as creepy, right? Besides, Colette would probably rather sleep in her car than accept my offer.
The box suite clears out as everyone heads down to meet the players.
Emily turns back at the door. "Meet me at the player's parking lot exit in about thirty minutes? I'll text you directions to my place."
"Perfect." Colette nods. "I'll drop off Hendrix first."
I'm trying not to feel hurt by how quickly Colette agreed to Emily's offer of a place to stay. Though I’m glad she isn’t insisting on going home tonight. Tomorrow we can take our time heading back to Brookking Sound. Maybe get some breakfast together...
Once the women file out, I turn to Colette. "Want to meet the team? Maybe catch up with Liam before he heads out?"
Her whole face lights up. "Really? That would be amazing!"
Of course. Amazing. Because it's Liam.
There's that twisting feeling in my gut again. "Though fair warning - my teammates are probably not in the best mood after that loss."
"Oh." She bites her lip. "Will they mind visitors?"
"Nah, they love meeting new people. Especially pretty teachers who laugh at all their dumb jokes."
We follow the others down to ice level, where families are already gathering. Leigh's son tears across the corridor straight into Kevin's arms, while Maggie's practically climbing her husband like a tree.
I trail behind as Colette practically floats toward Liam, who's shouldering his gear bag by the locker room exit.
"Great game!" She tucks her hair behind her ear.
Liam grunts, barely glancing up.
"Yeah, nice win, bro." I pull Liam into a quick hug, complete with the mandatory back-slap.
"Thanks." Classic Liam - two words max, then retreat into his brooding cave.
Colette stands there, hands clasped, waiting for him to notice her. The awkward silence stretches as Colette shifts from foot to foot. I clear my throat. "That last period was brutal."
