Chapter 31 - Runaway

 

With the season finally over, and the Blizzard losing early on in the playoffs, Ryan was all too aware of Trent’s threat to tell Emma about the bet if he failed to do so himself. He could still hear Trent’s words ringing in his ears, “There’s no way I’m letting you bring her back home practically as your fiancée, without her knowing the truth.”

 

Shuddering a bit as he cleaned out both his own locker and Luke’s – who was still playing for the team at the next level up – Ryan caught Trent’s eyes and murmured to him in a voice only loud enough for the interim Captain to hear, “Today. I promise you.”

 

But even as he made the promise, even as Trent nodded his acknowledgment, Ryan wasn’t sure how he could tell her. He was all too aware of how this conversation could go, how her quiet fury would rage at being betrayed by him yet again – and this time, quite worse than the first.

 

Sighing to himself, Ryan grabbed what remained of his cousin’s sticks, tapping them together for easier transport, mind still drifting on how to deal with telling Emma. Could he even tell her face-to-face, he wondered?

 

As he shook his head to himself, his cell phone rang with Luke’s tone, and Ryan soon picked up. “Bonjour! Comment allez-vous?”

 

“Been better.” Ryan answered softly, ducking out of the locker room for the conversation, moving to pace off towards the practice rink, sticking to English even though he knew French would be safer. “What’s up?”

 

“I’ve been instructed to move out of my hotel and find a place to settle up here. Think you and Emma could load up a U-Haul with the rest of my stuff and Ourson and come pay a visit?”

 

Eyes closing briefly, Ryan told him in the same soft voice, “I think it would perhaps be only me coming, I think once I have a conversation with her later today she’s going to want nothing to do with either one of us.”

 

“Pourquoi pas?”

 

“Remember that idiotic bet we made when we first moved in, when you were trying to get my goat and threatened to make Emma a notch on your bedpost, etc?” Off Luke’s confused but affirmative noise, Ryan sighed again, telling him, “She overheard us. Didn’t realize we were talking about her. But she told Trent, and he questioned me about it, and he’s basically told me I’ve got ‘til the end of today to tell her or he will.”

 

“Crisse de Tabarnak.”

 

“No fucking shit. I mean that bet was stupid, God, I know it was stupid, we both knew it at the time even, but I never expected it to come back to bite us like this. She’s going to hate us both, you realize, not think she can trust either one of us, since we’ve both kept her in the dark about it.” Ryan shook his head, but glanced around, to make sure no one had followed him and that he was still alone – which he was.

 

“So, what are you going to do then? If you must tell her. How are you going to say it?”

 

“That is the million loonie question, my dear cousin. Because right now? My chicken ass is ready to load up that U-Haul, tell her I need to bring stuff up to you, and leave her a note, while hiding out with you for a bit until her rage cools.”

 

“Are you sure that is the best idea? Running away doesn’t solve anything, Tortue.”

 

“I don’t have any better ideas. I can only hope she’ll forgive me once she finds out.”

 

~*~

 

Dear Emma,

 

I know you were expecting to come back and find me, and for sure not find a letter in my wake, but I have to tell you something, and I couldn’t bring myself to do it face-to-face.

 

You see, baby, I know you’re going to be so angry at me, and I couldn’t bear that. So, I’m taking the chicken's way out and writing you this letter.

 

Do you remember when Luke and I first moved in, and you walked in as we were fighting? I never realized you overheard the bet we were making. And baby, I’m ashamed to say, the bet was about you.

 

I didn’t know how to tell you, I didn’t know what to say, and I knew you’d be so very angry, so I’ve made the trip up with Luke’s stuff on my own, to give you time and space to work through your anger and anything else.

 

But please don’t think I’m running from us. I just didn’t think my presence would make the situation any better.

 

I’ll be back in town in a few days, and I’m really hoping that you’ll be willing to talk to me about this face-to-face.

 

All my love,

Ryan

 

~*~

 

Just below his signature, and in large letters he wouldn’t be able to miss, Emma scrawled out, “IT’S OVER.” And just to make sure he got her point loud and clear, she removed her promise ring, leaving it with the letter.

 

‘Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.’

 

And Emma Connelly was no one’s fool.

~*~

 

This couldn’t be happening. The deception, the kiss. That had been bad enough. But to find out that she was the target of the bet on who was going to bed her first? Emma ran almost blindly over to Trent’s apartment, pounding on the door with her hand until Trent opened it, and then almost immediately curling against him, face pressed into his chest, and tears already streaming down.

 

“I’ve got you sweetie,” Trent whispered into her hair, wrapping his arms around her tightly and rocking her a bit side to side. He continued this for several minutes before finally pulling back from her a bit to gaze down, having a good idea what the answer was, but needing to hear it definitively from her. “What’s wrong?”

 

Emma just buried her face more into Trent’s chest, not answering for several minutes, as the tears continued to stream, soon muttering almost too low for him to hear, “Letter. From. Ryan.”

 

And at that Trent’s arms tightened, realizing that his teammate had chosen the cowards way of dealing with his mistake and kissed the top of her head, telling her softly, “Shuuuuuuush, sweetie. It’ll all be okay, I promise you that.”

 

Emma’s only response was a choked but hollow laugh and to cling to Trent tighter.

 

~*~

 

Sat curled up in one of Trent’s team-issued leather chairs, Emma gazed at Trent quietly, her voice eerily calm, but her eyes still betraying the emotions of the situation. “I think it’s best if I move out of there. I’m sure the team will let me move out. But I’m not sure where I’d stay.”

 

Making a small tsk noise at her, Trent told her softly, “You can stay here. You’re always welcome here. You can sleep in my room, and I’ll fold out the couch into a bed.”

 

“That will only work temporarily, I couldn’t make you sleep on that couch for anything long term. Sounds like I’d need to talk to my brother about finding me my own place away from the team.” But after a pause, and tilting her head a bit, Emma murmured at him, “Didn’t you have 2 bedrooms?”

 

Eyes brightening a bit despite the situation, Trent stood, moving over to her and reaching for her hands, telling her, “Let me introduce you to my pride and joy.”

 

And for the next hour, instead of dwelling on her own heartbreak, Emma managed smiles as Trent told her all about hydroponics, showed her his setup in the second bedroom, and even offered to make her lunch with vegetables fresh from his garden.