Page 89 of Man Advantage

“You like blueberries,” he said.

“Not surprise blueberries.”

Ford stole the edge of the pancake from her plate while she was looking at Cole. Charlotte caught him chewing and pointed her fork at him. “He stole my breakfast.”

“There’s more on the stove,” Ford said.

“That isn’t the point.”

Cole slid another pancake onto her plate. The Penalty Box party started soon, and at this rate, getting the three of them out the door would take longer than breakfast.

“Are we ready?” Cole asked.

“No,” Ford said from the table.

Charlotte drowned the new pancake in syrup. “I am.”

Cole looked at Ford. “You’re outvoted because we’re both ready.”

They reached the Penalty Box after most of the team. The long tables had been pushed together, with players and families filling every chair and spilling into the space near the bar. Nobody wanted the season to be over. Each player preparing to leave town set off another round of hugs and promises to keep in touch.

Riggs waved them toward the open seats beside him. Cole helped Ford navigate the narrow gap between chairs, then took the seat beside him. Charlotte spotted Nadine and Halsey across the room and hurried toward them before Cole had his jacket off. Nadine caught Cole’s eye and gave him a small wave, letting him know she had her.

Ford rested his arm along the back of Cole’s chair. The contact was casual, warm against Cole’s shoulders, and visible to everyone at the table. Nobody paused. Riggs asked Ford about rehab. Leo pushed a basket of fries toward Cole. Across the table, Dawson argued with a defenseman about whose turn it was to organize the first summer cookout.

Riggs took a fry from the basket Leo had pushed across the table. “You heard anything about next season?”

Ford’s arm remained behind Cole. A month ago, the question would have tightened every inch of him.

Cole took a drink before answering. “I don’t know.”

Riggs waited, but Cole didn’t have another answer to give him.

“It depends on what the organization does this summer. They could bring me back here, call me up, or send me somewhere else.” Cole looked at Ford. “I don’t get to decide where I play.”

Ford’s fingers pressed briefly against Cole’s shoulder.

“But home is here,” Cole said.

Ford’s arm slid from the chair to Cole’s shoulders and pulled him close enough for a kiss. It was brief, more affection than performance. Cole felt it all the way down.

Riggs tipped his beer toward Ford. “What about you?”

The arm around Cole stayed where it was, but Ford’s thumb stopped moving against his shoulder. “I don’t know.”

Nobody hurried to fill the silence or promised him an answer he didn’t have. Ford glanced across the room as Halsey approached with Charlotte riding on his back. The kid had carried the Stags through the end of the season and into the playoffs. Ford watched him coming without any of the resentment Cole might have expected months ago.

Halsey stopped beside Ford’s chair and adjusted his grip beneath Charlotte’s knees. “Can we keep doing video this summer? Once your PT schedule settles?”

“If you still want the time, yeah,” Ford said.

“I do.”

Ford’s surprise gave way to a smile. “Then we’ll keep meeting. If you go home for part of the summer, we’ll do it online.”

Halsey started talking about the clips he wanted to review first. Cole leaned into the arm around his shoulders, and Ford drew him closer without taking his attention from the kid.

Someone at the far end of the table started collecting dates. Teammates shouted over one another about camps, weddings, fishing trips, and who would still be in town by the weekend. Cole added his name beside Ford’s before passing the phone down the table.