Page 62 of No Contest
"You're spiraling," Rhett observed.
"I'm thinking."
"That's the same thing with you." He set his mug down and moved closer, hands finding my hips. "What's going on in there?"
I stared at the hole in his pajama pants. "They're my family—the Storm. You saw some of them at Jake and Evan's. They do see me as one complicated person. They let me be loud, weird, and too much without asking me to tone it down, and then they smile at my knitted emotional support animals."
"Okay."
"And you're—" I gestured vaguely between us. "You're this. Which is also important. Really fucking important. And I don't know how to make those things fit together without one of them breaking."
"Why would either of them break?"
"What if the version of me that exists with them is too much for the version of me you like?"
Rhett was quiet for a moment. Outside, someone's snow blower started, the engine sputtering before catching.
"Here's what I think," he said finally. "I think you're scared that if I see all the pieces in the same room, I'll realize they don't fit together. That you're performing different versions instead of being one whole person."
My throat was tight. "Maybe."
"But I've already seen all of it. I watched you fight Kellner on TV, then make hot chocolate for eight kids. I saw you drop gloves in the locker room video Pickle posted, then crouch down with atiny whale. You think team breakfast will show me something I haven't already figured out?"
"They're going to interrogate you," I warned. "Jake will make inappropriate jokes. Pickle will ask if you've ever committed a crime. Evan will probably pull out a literal spreadsheet ranking your compatibility with me. They were on good behavior when the kids were around."
"Sounds fun."
"I'm serious."
"So am I." Rhett's smile faded, replaced by something more intense. "Hog. I chose you at midnight in front of half of Thunder Bay. You think a diner full of hockey players scares me more than that did?"
The comments were like an uppercut, throwing me off balance.
"You sure? Once we do this, there's no going back. They'll adopt you immediately, and you'll never have a moment's peace again."
"Sounds like a nightmare." He kissed me, quick and firm. "When do we leave?"
I checked my phone. We were already about twenty minutes late, but I knew if I texted Jake, they would wait for us.
My actual clothes were in a pile by Rhett's bed. I was wearing his shirt and my boxer briefs. My hair looked like a family of birds had nested in it overnight.
"We should probably get dressed," I said.
"Probably."
Neither of us moved.
"Hog?"
"Yeah?"
"You're allowed to want both. The team and this. Me and them. You don't have to choose."
I kissed him again, deeper this time.
My phone buzzed again.
Jake:If you're not here in 30, I'm sending a search party
