He held her gaze a moment longer. She lowered her microphone and turned away.
The PA announcer took over, and music blared. She swore she could feel him staring at her but that would be silly. The players would be skating around, shuttling out distractions and getting in "game only" mode.
She handed off her microphone and found Dylan. He pulled her into a hug. "Do you want to talk about it?"
"Not really. Maybe. I don't know."
"Come on, let's go someplace quieter." He led her through the maze of hallways to the empty locker room. "Okay, spill it."
"I don't know where to start."
"Do I need to kick Leo's ass?"
"If it would knock some sense into him, then yes." Blowing out a breath, she sat on the bench and relayed the conversation she'd had with Leo the morning he walked out. The emotions she'd felt replayed right along with the words, twisting inside her like a thorny vine. "I don't know what to do, D. I fell hard and fast and now that he's not there, I feel like a vital part of me is missing. You have no idea how much this hurts."
Emotions from sympathetic to angry had ranged across Dylan face as he'd listened, transforming him even more so into the protective presence he'd always been. He patted her shoulder. "I don't like to see you hurting. Do you want me to talk to him?"
"No. No way." She managed a smile. "This isn't like when we were little and you would force the boys to let me play hockey with you guys."
"You kicked their asses every time."
"That's because I had a great teacher."
He nodded. "Dad's the best."
"Not Dad. You." At his surprise, she continued. "Why do you think I switched from defense to center? Duh, to be like you."
"I had no idea. Maybe I should tell Rod. Knowing him, he'll try to convert you to switching to goalie now." His laughter mingled with hers.
Laughing felt good, it helped shake the sadness out. "I don't want you or Rod to say anything to Leo. We tried having a relationship and it didn't work. I'll need to talk to Rod too. I don't want this to cause any awkwardness on the ice or in the locker room."
"Then come by the house tonight. We'll have a siblings' only meeting. You might as well stop at your place and grab the dog too. If it goes late you can crash at our place."
"It would be nice to be with just you guys and Arielle, and Icing of course. I think I need it."
"Then we'll make it happen."
She gave Dylan a hug and sent a text to Arielle to let her know.
Forget about love. She'd focus only on work and her family and friends. They'd proved that they'd never let her down. Her life needed to return to just like it was before Leo had come into it.
And if he was gone at the end of the season, maybe that would be for the best too. He could be where he would be happiest, and she could move on easier without him around.
THE LAST GAME OF THE regular season was in the books, thankfully with a Bedlam win. Leo exited the Philadelphia Power arena with his teammates and bid them goodbye as they boarded the bus for their ride to the airport. The playoffs wouldn't begin for another week, and Coach had rewarded them with two days off.
He and Vince would be spending that time in Philly visiting their families.
Rod was the last person to board the bus. He raised his post-game coffee to Leo and Vince as they passed by, but something was up. For the past few days, Leo had detected a subtle shift in the way Rod treated him. The goalie was still friendly, but he was more polite, less likely to joke around, and didn't start a conversation unless he absolutely had to do it.
The reason for the subtle shift had to be Kelsey.
Vince nudged his arm. "Want to walk?"
"Sure." He didn't care. The walk wasn't far. He glanced at the Power's logo on the side of the arena. "Has your dad mentioned which positions he thinks they'll be looking to fill in the off season?"
"Why, are you looking to make a move?"
He stared at Vince, unsure of how to answer. He didn't need word getting back to his teammates that he was already looking that far ahead. They'd question his commitment to them. "I'm just thinking out loud. My contract was only for the rest of this season. I don't know what the Bedlam will want to do for next year."
"I'd hate to think our days of playing together might be coming to an end. I still have three more years on my contract. But I'll mention to my dad that Philly is on your radar."
"Thanks." He tugged his fingers through his hair. "I'm just trying to plan."
His words sounded weak to his own ears.
Vince stopped walking. "You don't have to worry. I'm not going to say anything to the guys. But I hope you come back to Buffalo. I'd like at least one full season with you."
"You've been a good friend." The words sounded so serious but they were true and needed to be said.
"Now we sound like we're saying goodbye forever." Vince elbowed him in the side. "We still have at least one round of the playoffs to get through."
"It better be more than that, or the fans will run us all out of town."
He parted ways with Vince and let himself into Ryan's house. The calmness of the space settled over him as soon as he walked through the door. "Ry? Where is everyone?"
Ryan bounded down the stairs. "Dad put in the early shift at the gym so he went home to sleep. Shane is actually back at work if you can believe it. And Xavier is on a date."
"Oh.
