Page 2 of Pay the Piper

“It’s not like there’s a rule against that, per se…”

“Jesus, man,” Teddy groans as Ellie laughs.

“And! Those are two good reasons, but Mila told me one more. Apparently now that she’s found her soulmate and one true love—”

“Don’t—”

“She wants Misha to find the same. So she kicked him out of the nest to stay here with us, so we can be his wingmen.”

“That is not—”

Ellie takes up Thatcher’s argument immediately, her eyes gleaming with the thrilling prospect of matchmaking. “You can volunteer at the hospital with me! There are tons of cute nurses. Or there’s usually a good crowd at the beach cleanups. We’ll find someone for you in no time.”

“Thatcher is exaggerating, Ellie. I’m not looking. I’m here to stay out of the Russian affairs because that part is true and to keep an eye on him. A close eye.”

“Speaking of which,” Teddy says as we file into the living room. “Are you ready for practice tomorrow?”

Luckily, I don’t have to answer that with a definitive no, because Thatcher’s managed to log into my streaming service.

“Oh, hell yeah. You’re a fan of Family Love Island, too?”

It is my current favorite guilty pleasure, but Teddy and Ellie clearly haven’t heard of it, and I leave them to bicker and go to the kitchen to make myself a cup of tea. It was mine and Mila’s guilty pleasure, the latest in a long line of trash television that we drowned ourselves in when we moved to the States. Our gateway drug was watching Gordon Ramsey make chefs cry over sauce, and we quickly spiraled, marking the day of the week by which of our shows were on.

“What the hell is Family Love Island?” Teddy’s bewildered expression as Thatcher queues up the first episode of the series makes it clear that his mind went straight to the gutter.

“It’s not like that. It’s like dating between the families while they all fight among themselves and try to survive,” Thatcher explains, pointing out the different families during the show’s theme song.

“Yeah, but still, imagine trying to get some while you’re nasty on an island, but the bush you choose is already occupied by your grandma and someone else’s grandpa.”

“Family drama makes the best reality TV, babe,” Ellie interjects. “And you know you enjoy curling up with me to watch Keep—”

“I like cuddling you! Not watching the trash!”

“That’s the whole point, guys. It’s trash. It melts your brain and makes you forget about real life. Tell them, Misha. It’s so bad it’s good!”

Settling into the open end of the sectional, I sigh at the reality I live in, where I’m agreeing with Thatcher Prescott. “It’s so bad it’s good.”

His triumphant whoop and Teddy’s grumbling about how he thought this was a “safe space” from reality TV make it impossible not to chuckle. It’s a little slice of normalcy to have Thatcher around even though I can tell that he’s a shade dimmer without Mila. Teddy and Ellie are the same as I remember. He was an asset during our operation in Russia, but now that he’s back with his pregnant woman, he’s more like the big softie that I first met.

We all chat for a while about the vague updates that Mila’s been sending, the upcoming hockey season, and Teddy and Ellie’s nursery renovations. It’s going to be a very different team in Thunder Bay this year, with the usual post-season trades shaking things up. Ellie’s brothers Nikki and Gabri still play for the team, and with Thatcher added, they have quite a bit of firepower. He’s not the offensive addition that everyone had hoped for, though. An all-too-common feud between families took out the most promising Santori talent. His loss, while heartwrenching, was a stark reminder that no matter how hard we all try, the life we live is a dangerous one.

That perilous undercurrent is one of the reasons Mila wants my eyes on Thatcher. Even with Ellie’s family and our Taranov strength surrounding him, you never know who to trust in this business. That’s one of the reasons it’s easier to be single. I know it is. Mila swears it’s worth it to finally open up to emotions and love, but I can’t see how. Especially when…

“You guys can go without me. Misha promised he’d show me the bike!” Thatcher’s energetic hop up from the couch shakes me back into the present.

Ellie laughs as she stands, and I must have been zoned out for longer than I realized. The episode’s over, the sun has gone down, and Teddy and Ellie are preparing to leave. Thatcher, on the other hand, isn’t making any move at all to leave, and that’s a problem.

“I am not showing you the bike tonight. It’s late.”

“Ugh, fine, Grandpa.”

“I’m the same age as your girlfriend.”

Instead of seeming insulted, Thatcher smirks. “That’s right. Do you wanna know what I call her?”

“And that’s our cue to leave!” Teddy opens the front door as I push Thatcher toward it.

“Take this with you.”