Bennett (On the Line Book 2)(16)

He was in his early thirties, not much older than I was. He’d retired from the NHL after donating a kidney to his nephew. From what I’d seen of his coaching style so far, he was tough, but fair.

“Pretty good, I think. The first line always pulls our weight.”

He nodded. “And then some. I’m not talking about your play, though. I’m asking about your life outside of this place.”

“Oh, yeah . . . it’s good.”

He narrowed his eyes slightly and just stared at me for a few seconds.

“You seem to have something on your mind lately,” he finally said.

I shifted in my chair. “Does my game seem off?”

“This isn’t about hockey, Bennett. Your game’s as solid as ever. Stop looking so damned nervous.”

“Everything’s fine with my personal life, Coach.”

“Don’t bullshit me. You don’t go out after road games anymore, and you always look like you’ve got the weight of the world on your shoulders. What’s up?”

I sighed deeply and bowed my head, elbows resting on my spread knees.

“I’ve had something come up,” I admitted. “And yeah, it has been on my mind.”

“Have you talked to anyone about it?”

My single note of laughter held no amusement. “Not exactly.”

“Anything you say to me in confidence stays that way,” he said. “If you need a sounding board, I’m here.”

I glanced at the door to double-check it was closed before speaking in a low tone. “I, uh . . . yeah, this does need to stay between us, but . . . I’m gonna be a father.”

“Oh.” Orion’s brows shot up in surprise. “Well, congratulations.”

“Thanks, man.”

“But I take it this is a surprise?”

I nodded solemnly. “To me and the mother of my kid. We only . . . got together the one time.”

“Is it the thought of fatherhood that has you concerned, or something else?”

“All of it. Kids are expensive and I don’t make much money. And the circumstances . . . let’s just say, it’s not ideal.”

“Is she not a woman you could ever see yourself in a relationship with?”

I couldn’t hold back a smile. “I think it’s the other way around. She’s no fan of mine.”

“She was for at least one night.”

“Yeah, and I left my number the next day, really hoping she’d call. But I didn’t hear from her until two months later with the pregnancy news.”

Now Orion was the one smiling. “I find this kind of hard to believe. You’re a damned good-looking guy.”

“You hitting on me, Coach?”

He tossed a pen across his desk at me, and I ducked out of the way. “Not a chance, Morse. Seriously, you’re a good guy. You’re not cocky, not an *. You like this woman?”

“Yeah, I do. Most of the time, anyway. She’s sexy and smart. But she’s got a mind of her own.”

Orion gave me an amused look. “And that’s a bad thing?”

“The chemistry is there, but she lets me know at every turn that she doesn’t need me. Frustrates the hell out of me.”

“So show her why she does need you.”

I shook my head and leveled a serious look at him. “You know what Liam’s like? Flies off the handle, sometimes irrational? She’s a lot like that.”

“But you and Liam are like brothers. You guys get along great.”

I couldn’t help laughing. “Yeah, not for long. In the most spectacularly awful coincidence of my life, totally unknown to me that night, it turns out that I’m having a kid with Liam’s younger sister.”

“Oh, shit.” Orion’s eyes widened with shock.

“Yeah. Guess I kind of do have the weight of the world on my shoulders.”

He cleared his throat and regained his composure. “And he doesn’t know?”

“Well, my balls are still attached, so no.”

A few seconds of silence passed before Orion leaned his elbows on his desk and spoke again.

“A baby will change your life, Bennett, but it’ll be for the better. And Liam will get over it.”

I decided to tell him about the worry that was pressing down on me night and day.

“I wonder if maybe this is a sign,” I said. “That it’s time for me to move on and get a job that pays more. That way I can be home to help Charlotte instead of traveling all the damn time.”

“Don’t feed me that line of shit, Bennett.” Orion leaned across the desk and glared at me. “How many years have you worked your ass off to get to the first line here?”

“A lot. But we don’t all make it to the big league.”

“If you don’t make it, it’s your own damned fault. Bear down, man. This should light a fire under your ass to play harder than ever. You want to make more money? Do it. You’ve got the talent.”

My throat tightened with emotion. “Thanks, Coach. I appreciate that.”

“I mean it. You want something bad? Go after it.”

I nodded solemnly.

“And Bennett?”

“Yeah, Coach?”

“I’m not just talking about the big league.”