Page 117 of My Brother's Enemy
I squeezed her hand.
She squeezed it back. “Uh, we still need to haveourtalk.”
“We will. We could leave Ski’s a little early. Make time for us tonight.”
“I like that idea. Us time. Tonight.”
So that was the plan.
68
TYLER
Thanksgiving at Coach’s was fun. Interesting.
Coach’s wife went nuts over Rain, which I wasn’t surprised about. And I met his daughters, who looked like Amazonian women. I knew they’d played ice hockey in college, but they hadn’t gone pro. Instead one was a teacher, and one was a head of physical therapy at some elite program. They were impressive, as were their husbands. Their kids were excited and hyper, running everywhere. A few got big eyes when they saw me, but they didn’t come over.
And lots of guys from the team showed up. We had our own table in the kids’ room.
Meester seemed right at home, sitting on the floor, eating a big slab of turkey with one hand and putting together a LEGO hockey rink with Coach Hine’s four-year-old grandson with the other. One of the little girls sat on his other side, putting a dress on a stuffed dog. Every now and then, Meester would reach over and give the dog a pet, making the little girl dissolve in giggles.
More than once, Coach’s wife came over to pull Rain off somewhere, and I lost track of her for twenty minutes or so. Checking my phone, I saw it’d been at least an hour this time, soI made my excuses to the guys at the table and began my search to find her.
I moved past the back room in the basement and drew up short, hearing Rain’s voice.
“—need, really. Everything turned out fine.”
“But it wasn’t, was it?” That was Coach’s wife, and her voice was sharp. “I’ve been trying to work up my nerve all day to apologize. When Bruce told me about seeing a girl playing with the Connors boys, I had a feeling. It didn’t sit right. I couldn’t let it go. I should have stepped in. Reached out. Introduced myself to your father. Met you. I…”
She got quiet. “When Bruce said you were working with their team, I took this as my second chance. I know you’re older. You’re an adult, and you probably don’t need a mother-like figure nosing around in your life, but if you’d like one, I’m here. This family is here. Bruce too. He told me how nervous he got when you first showed up, said he stumbled something fierce, but you righted him just fine. I was proud when he told me that. Proud of you. And so was he, even though he was embarrassed.” She sniffled. “I wanted you to know that.”
There was a beat of silence. I wondered if I should make an appearance, maybe pull Rain out of the situation, but then she said, “There was nothing you could’ve done.”
I stayed where I was.
“I should’ve tried.”
“No. I’m—he never would’ve let me go, because it could’ve come back as an embarrassment on him. He didn’t want to deal with me, but he also didn’t want to look bad. Does that make sense?”
“That doesn’t matter. I should’ve?—”
“I wouldn’t have trusted you,” Rain said.
It got quiet again.
“I was conditioned to be a certain way, think a certain way,” Rain explained. “I’m an adult, and I’m just now starting to change those thought processes. Back then? Around the time you would’ve stepped up for me? Even if he had let me go to live with you or something, it wouldn’t have mattered. I would’ve slept in your house. I would’ve played my part, not drawn any attention to myself. I would have sat at every meal uncomfortable and sweating, worried my answers to your questions could be turned against me somehow. If my family talked to me, that’s what they did. I was too far gone. I think I’m too far gone now.”
“Rain. No. Don’teverthink that. Please.”
There was another moment of quiet, and when I heard Rain draw in a quiet breath, I knew she was struggling.
I stepped around the corner to find her fighting tears.
Both women looked up.
“Tyler.” Mrs. Hines patted under her eyes with her fingertips, giving me a slightly uneasy smile. “I must say, you’ve been a welcome addition to the team. Bruce told me you brought a no-nonsense, why-the-fuck-aren’t-we-winning attitude. I believe that’s how he put it.” She smiled more genuinely now. “He said the other guys needed that.”
I checked on Rain, asking without words if she was all right. She gave me a little smile, but as I stepped closer, she moved to my side and sagged against me.
