Bailey felt shaky. It didn’t matter how many times Poppy or Molly tried to tell her it was normal, that standing up for himself and his teammates was something Luc was respected for, seeing Luc lose his cool was shocking. She watched the rest of the game on tenterhooks, super tempted to gnaw her nails, despite the recent mani-pedi with Poppy when they’d celebrated the first check from her YouTube channel earnings. Luc had also scored an assist, which apparently meant he earned something called a Gordie Howe hat trick, when a player scored a goal, an assist, and had a fight. The first two were okay, but she wished he hadn’t had the last. For his sake, because she dreaded what had been said to make him snarl like that, as much as for what it would mean about her father.
She exhaled slowly. Dad would freak out. And it wouldn’t matter what she said, he’d likely tell her to avoid Luc, like he’d been hinting for weeks now. Luc was too big, too ruthless, too tattooed, too fierce, too different. But still a stubborn thought refused to bend. The same stubborn thought that had refused to listen when her father had suggested she put her grandmother’s will money into a trust he’d set up.
“Come on. Let’s go find him.”
She followed Molly and Poppy to the room where the family members waited until the players were released. This felt awkward, like there were so many eyes on her, and nerves gnawed as she wondered what she’d say.
Perky Bailey she could not be. Not yet. She didn’t know how to reconcile this side of him, of this sport he loved passionately, with the man she thought she knew. The one who called himself a Christian, who had prayed with her, who had tenderly cared for her when she’d wept. Maybe she didn’t know this man as well as she thought she did.
The door opened, and a few players trickled in. Some she recognized, like Nate Campbell, the goalie. Most she didn’t, although she might’ve met them before. Then Molly’s partner arrived and kissed her, and he nodded to Bailey. “He’ll be out soon.”
She nodded, her mouth too dry to speak.
“Want me to stay?” Poppy asked.
Bailey nodded again.
“Hey, you don’t need to look so worried. He’s tough, and to be honest, he probably needed to do that to set the boundaries so people won’t call him soft.”
Soft. Like those drunk men had done. She exhaled. “I wish people knew how unsoft dance is.”
“I don’t think we’ll ever be able to change some people’s minds.” Poppy shrugged.
Probably not.
The door opened, and at the sight of Luc, she squeezed Poppy’s hand, then released it, moving tentatively to him.
The hard slant to his face softened, as he smiled. “Hey you.”
“Congratulations on your win.”
“Thanks.” His lips pulled to one side. “It was pretty scrappy.”
“Speaking of scrappy.” She touched the cut on his cheek and he winced. “Are you okay?”
“Totally okay. Seeing you is the icing on my day.”
“Isn’t icing something that happens in the game?”
“Look who’s been paying attention.”
“I tried.”
He smiled, more fully now, then drew her near, bending his face as if to kiss her, when he noticed Poppy. “Hey Poppy.”
“Good game. Good fight. You looked like you won. The game and the fight.”
He shrugged. “It wasn’t the plan, but these things happen.” He turned to Bailey. “I’m sorry that happened on your first game.”
“It’s okay,” she murmured.
“Is it?”
She nodded. It would be. It would have to be, if they were going to stick together.
If? That it was even a question shocked her, and she hugged him. He pressed a kiss to her hair, then nodded. “So, we’re all going back to yours?”
She nodded. It was what they’d agreed on. She and Poppy would Uber to the arena, and he’d drive them home.
“Actually, if it’s all the same with you, I might Uber back,” Poppy said.
He shook his head. “It’ll take forever on game night. I’ll drive you.”
“Yeah, but I think you and Bails need some time alone.”
He nodded, but said, “I’ll drive you both home then we can talk there or somewhere else.”
Five minutes later she and Poppy were sitting in his vehicle as he finished talking to a member of staff. “Bails, you need to not make a mountain out of this,” Poppy warned.
“Has Franklin been in a fight?”
“A few. Not as many as Luc, I imagine, but then part of Luc’s role has always been to stand up for his teammates. It’s why the team like him, and probably why the staff made him captain. They know he’s passionate about the game and his team.”
“Won’t they be upset that the new captain was fighting in his first game?”
“It probably wasn’t ideal, but we don’t know what was said. And from what Franklin has said in the past, it’s probably not something you want to know.”
