I Want You Back (Want You #1)(57)

“How wide do you think she’s grinning inside that helmet?” Lucy asked behind me.

“So wide she could pass for the Joker.”

“Do you need to take some fast laps too, Coach Daddy?”

“Nah. I’m good.”

“I’ll say.”

Her compliment surprised me. I turned and looked at her briefly before returning to watch Mimi.

“Well, you are. Mimi tends to tune out when she thinks she understands something. I couldn’t hear what you were saying to her, but her body language said she was one hundred percent in the moment, listening to you. That is a commendable feat.”

My neck burned from the praise. “It’s the first day, Luce.”

“How many days a week are you planning on working with her one-on-one?”

“Two. And she’ll have an hour of skills classes twice a week.” I groaned. “That’s already more ice time than what I told you.”

“A man who underestimates rather than exaggerates? That’s novel.” She laughed—a sensual rumble that flowed into my ear and vibrated through my entire body.

Christ. When we were together I’d craved hearing that sexy sound because I’d never heard her make that noise around anyone else.

Mimi headed straight for me at a speed she couldn’t control, so I braced myself for impact.

Even though she was small, I let out an “Uff” of surprise at the solid hit she’d landed.

Immediately she started babbling. “Daddy! I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to! I couldn’t slow down—”

“It’s okay. But from here on out keep that speed down until you’ve learned forward stops, okay?”

She nodded.

“You and your mom can head to the changing room.”

And like her mother, Mimi opened her mouth to argue, probably to tell me she wasn’t a baby and didn’t need help getting undressed. But at the last second, she nodded again and carefully walked across the mats to the locker rooms. Lucy took her hand and they turned the corner.

As soon as they were gone, Gabi, our crabby rink guide from earlier, skated toward me.

“I thought your daughter would be more advanced,” she said without preamble.

“She’s eight. How advanced could she be?”

She shrugged. “Some people start their kids when they’re like three.”

“Then hockey is the parent’s choice not the kid’s. I didn’t assume she’d love hockey just because I did. Her wanting to try it just came up.”

“She’s lucky we have openings. Usually we’re full. All leagues, all ages.”

When I researched this place a little deeper last night after Lucy had gone to bed, I noticed the eight-year-old age bracket was the only one without a full roster. I’d wait to see if my suspicions were correct about that.

“I sent all the enrollment forms to the email address on your application. Bring them filled out when you come to skills class on Wednesday afternoon.”

“No problem.”

“You should remember that parental observation means observation only. No coaching from the stands.”

Her brusqueness started to bug me, especially since Margene had been so helpful and friendly. “What level do you teach?”

“Why? Are you afraid you’ll get me as your daughter’s coach?”

“Afraid? Not hardly. I’m just curious if you’re coaching younger kids or older. If you’re part of the community skate or the club skate.”

“I’m assistant coach to the fourteen-year-old club skaters. I also assist with the newbie classes.”

“So you will be working with Mimi.”

She narrowed her eyes at me. “I assist with the open eight-year-old class, which is boys and girls, not the closed girls’ eight-year-old class.”

“We’re putting Mimi in the open class, not the girls’ class.” I smiled at her shocked expression. “Thanks for all your help, Coach Gabi. See you Wednesday.”

Even after my short conversation with Gabi, I still beat Mimi out of the locker room. Once she emerged, yawning and holding her mother’s hand while Lucy carried her equipment bag, I couldn’t help but pick her up and carry her out to the car. Pretty soon Mimi would be too big for a “daddy carry,” so I’d take it every chance I could.

We’d barely turned out of the parking lot and Mimi was sound asleep. Poor kid. It’d been a rough couple of days for her and she needed a nap.

I looked at Lucy. “Should we let her sleep? Or will that mess with her schedule?”

“If she’s that tired then she needs it.”

“Agreed. You want me to just drive around aimlessly? Or did you have a specific destination in mind?”

“I want to see the bar you own.”

Shit. “Why? It’s not open on Sunday.”

“I wasn’t asking you to swing by because I need a cocktail, Jax. I just want to see where it’s located.”

“Sure, if you’d rather drive through the city and not alongside the Mississippi River, leaf peeping at the beautiful fall foliage . . .”

“I’ve already done that. I want to see the place where you’ll be spending so much time.”

I should’ve been more prepared for this since I’d owned the building for almost three years.