Marek (Cold Fury Hockey #11)(5)

My words trail off as I remember just how awful that day was. Owen was enraged, and he stormed out of the church once he realized he couldn’t change my mind. I had to walk down that aisle by myself and stand up in front of five hundred people to tell them the wedding had been called off.

As for me, my emotions were all over the place. I wasn’t sure if I’d been saved or not.

Josie doesn’t comment, and when I get the courage to look back at her, her head is tilted as if she’s pondering something. “Can I ask you a personal question?”

I shrug. Why not? She knows most of my baggage.

“Reed told me that Owen was really wealthy. I’m sure he would have helped you fight Marek to keep Lilly with you. So why cancel the wedding? Why give in to Marek and uproot your life like that?”

This time, I don’t blush with embarrassment. Instead, I can feel my skin cool as if all the blood had drained from my face. It’s the one question I don’t want to answer for anyone, and I wasn’t expecting it from her. “Um…well, I just figured…Marek had the right. I’d deprived him of his daughter for so long.”

Josie shakes her head. “No, that’s not it. I mean…I can see that bothers you. You don’t strike me as a particularly spiteful person, and I can hear the regret in your voice, but there’s something else.”

There is something else, but that’s my secret to bear alone. I shake my head at her and lift my chin. “No, there’s not. You don’t know how bad I feel about this, Josie. It’s something that has plagued me every single day since I found out I was pregnant. It’s a regret I’ve swallowed time and again. I wronged Marek in a way that’s hard to forgive, and so I’m taking my lumps right now. I’m not going to let this hurt Lilly, so as long as Marek will make an effort with her, I’ll give this a shot. I’ll do my penance and take his crap. It’s the least I can do.”

Josie has no poker face whatsoever. I can tell she’s weighing my words, wondering where the truth is. Finally, she gives me an accepting smile and touches my shoulder with her hand “Okay. I hear you. But you don’t let him walk all over you. You hear me?”

The laugh that pops out is slightly hysterical, slightly amused. “Um…I’ll try, but he’s sort of a bully.”

“Just keep your focus on Lilly,” she advises. “And I’m leaving you my number and email. You reach out to me whenever you want. Just to talk or whatever. We’ll go get coffee too, okay?”

“I’d like that,” I tell her softly, overwhelmed by her kindness and what appears to be a new and unexpected friend.

The sound of the front door opening and two sets of heavy footsteps coming our way has both of us stepping apart from each other. Marek walks in followed by Reed.

His eyes go to Josie first, then to me. He gives me a tentative smile and says, “Hey, Gracen. Good to see you again.”

“Hey,” I say softly, leaning a hip against the counter.

“You ready to go, babe?” Reed asks Josie.

She seems to be startled. I’m thinking that perhaps we’d all have continued coffee and chitchat. Instead, she sets her cup down hastily. “Yeah, sure.”

Turning to me, she pulls me into a quick hug, and when she releases me, she has her phone out of her pocket. “Give me your number.”

I rattle it off to her and she taps it into her contacts. Smiling up at me, Josie says, “I’ll text you tomorrow. We’ll make a coffee date.”

“That would be awesome,” I say as my eyes cut over her shoulder to Marek, who is standing there with his arms across his chest. His face is a stony mask of indifference.

Reed waves at me and doesn’t say a word to Marek, which I find telling. Clearly those two aren’t on the best of terms right now, and I’m dying to know what was said. Josie and Reed walk out without another word, and I keep my eyes on them until they are out of sight.

I pick up my cup, take another sip of coffee, and risk a glance at Marek. His eyes are on me and they are determined. He nods his head toward Lilly and says, “It’s time.”

My heart skips a beat. I knew this was coming, but I’m not prepared. Lilly’s three and a half years old. Her grasp of complex situations is limited. I have no clue how to even begin this discussion with her, but the one thing I do know is that it’s time to be honest.

I’ll just have to trust in the fact that Lilly is a sweet, loving child who also happens to be pretty resilient. Which means she’s probably going to handle it better than I am.





Chapter 3


    Marek


Once I hear my front door close signifying that Reed and his meddling ways are out of my house, I turn my gaze to Gracen. I’m pissed Reed felt the need to come here and act like my dad or something, and my natural instinct is to turn that anger toward Gracen. Let’s face it…she’s an easy target. Maybe that makes me an asshole—whatever.

But annoyingly, the words Reed just laid on me out on my front porch ring hard in my ears.

“I hope you’re not here to act as my conscience,” I’d told him as we stepped out of the house and Josie walked right in to meet Gracen.

“It’s exactly why I’m here,” Reed said calmly. “You need let that anger go, brother.”