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TYLER
Tyler strutted around the arena, humming to the music that streamed through his earphones. The last twenty-four hours replayed in his head. An entire twenty-four hours of no gym, no cell phones, no work related anything for either of them – even though Paige did agree to watch some of Boston’s hockey game.
For one whole day it was just him and Paige. It made him realize that he does tend to let his career take over even his spare time. Maybe this was all they needed – to refresh and reconnect.
That doctor of hers really had something there with her suggestion of a getaway. Even though he wished their stay could’ve been longer, he hadn’t seen her smile that much in a long time.
Tyler was already mentally planning a month away during the off-season. He’d have to give her time to rearrange her schedule.
With a bit of swagger in his walk, he strutted down the hall to his wife’s office.
“Knock-knock.” He said as he knocked on her office door. Patiently, he waited for her to tell him to come in before he opened the door. Taking a quick glance around the room, to assure she was alone, he smiled. “Hey babe. I brought you a coffee and sandwich.”
Tyler sat on the edge of her desk instead of in a chair, he looked back at his wife and flashed a grin.
She closed her laptop but didn’t get up from behind her desk.
He hadn’t seen Paige since this morning, and her sweet smile was all he needed to get him through the rest of the day.
“Thanks.” She pouted a tiny bit before standing up, “I want to go back to yesterday.”
Paige walked around her desk, meeting him on the other side.
Tyler looked his wife up and down, she was gorgeous as always. Paige liked her pencil skirts that fit her like a glove, with a jacket that hid her amazing body.
Positioning her between his legs, Tyler unbuttoned her jacket and slid his hands around her waist, pulling her closer. He placed a kiss on her neck, and growled, “think anyone would miss us if we slipped away?”
Paige let out a drawn-out sigh. “I wish.”
“We wouldn’t even have to leave the building. Your door has a lock, right?” Tyler dropped another kiss on her neck. Paige’s apple perfume had his senses mesmerized and his body humming for her.
A soft laugh rang from her lips at his idea. “Babe, we can’t–”
“Please?” Women liked when men begged, right?
Paige covered his lips with hers and kissed him soft and slow. He tangled his tongue with hers and savored her kiss. When she finally pulled away, her lipstick was a mess and he was at full attention.
“That didn’t help your case any.”
“Well, that will have to tide you over until after the game tonight.”
“You do realize I have to go home and nap like this?” he motioned to his blue jeans.
All Paige did was smile as she grabbed a tissue to fix her lipstick.
“Are you sure we can’t–”
“I’m sure.”
“Raincheck?”
“Sure, tonight.”
Tyler looked around her office. Then with a subtle smirk, he arced his eyebrow and nodded to her office couch, “no, I mean...”
“Hmm.” Paige thought for a minute. “We’ll discuss that later. But thanks for the coffee.” She picked up the cup and took a sip.
“You’re really going to leave me hanging like this?” he said with a chuckle.
“Paige, we need to get the media list for tonight– Oh, hey Ty. Didn’t expect to see you.” Melanie opened her office door.
Paige smiled wide. “He was just leaving. It’s time for his game day nap.”
Tyler shook his head. This woman had him wrapped around her finger. “Hey Mel, yeah, I was just leaving.” He moved close to Paige and wrapped his arm around her waist. Tyler dropped a kiss on her cheek. “See you after the game. Love you.”
“Love you too, babe. And thanks for the sandwich.”
IT HAD BEEN A LONG, lonely night without his wife. So much for Paige’s promise of an evening of fun after the game. He never even got to see her after the game.
They won the game 4-3, but the victory was not as sweet as it should’ve been. The plan was to head home after the game and pretend they were still on their mini getaway. But plans changed.
Paige was called away in the third period of last night’s game because Rylee went into labor. Tyler was notified after the game was over, but by then she was already at the hospital.
He didn’t sleep well without her, he never does, so this morning started off tired. With a full schedule today, he was already on his second coffee.
The halls of the arena were quiet, and he almost stopped off at Paige’s office before he remembered she wasn’t in today.
After he changed into sweats, and grabbed his gear, he headed to the ice. Today was the Little Tykes Hockey with Tyler event.
The morning with the kids went by quickly, and his coffee wore off early on. But they were having so much fun he couldn’t help but get caught up in it.
He grabbed a water bottle from the bench, taking a quick while the little kids did a few laps. Their laughter and little voices filled the arena. Tyler loved having the chance to work with the little kids helping to mold their love for the game.
The kids had been at this since eight this morning and even though Tyler was already exhausted, these kids seemed to have an endless amount of energy, no matter how many laps they did.
He used to be able to handle this event with just him and Sal, but the older he got, the harder it was to keep up with the little ones.
“Hey, kids, looks like you’re wearing ol’ Tyler out!” Dom called as he led the kids around the rink.
This year Tyler had a few helpers: Dom and Kaden as goalies, as well as Kris, Harrison, and Sam. The guys skated laps with the kids, ran drills with them, and broke into groups to give the kids tips and answer questions.
While Tyler took a water break at the bench, Melanie teased, “Yeah, you look winded, Ty.”
“I didn’t get a great night’s rest last night.”
“Yeah,” Mel crossed her arms over her chest. “Paige was gone all night?”
“Yeah, she’s still there. Last update I got was early this morning, and Rylee had been in labor all night.”
Melanie nodded. She stood behind the bench, as today’s sole PR Person, documenting today’s event on social media and snapping photos for the website. “Sometimes that’s how labor is. I just hope mine isn’t so long. I’ll be happy if this little peanut could just pop right out.”
Tyler shook his head with a laugh, certain that was not how childbirth worked. “Mel, you look good back there. Ever think of changing careers?” Tyler joked. “Coach Mel.”
“Ha! Not even close. I’m content simply keeping you knuckleheads in check, and doing the administrative stuff.” Melanie joshed. She rubbed her belly, “I’ll be busy enough, I don’t need another occupation.”
Tyler laughed as he skated away joining the group.
“All right kids, you have been doing great this morning! For the last part of today’s program, we’ll be doing some passing drills and accuracy shooting.”
Tyler lined the little kids up and began to give instructions. Harrison, Kris, and Sam aided the kids in the drills and cheered them on. Tyler watched each of them, offering suggestions and positive reinforcement. But he mainly gave fist bumps and high fives.
As he watched the kids follow his instructions, he could see the passion each of them had for the game. He just met them this morning, but he already felt a sense of pride watching these kids play.
Warmth filled his chest as he spoke with each child. He could do this all the time, instruct little ones at the game that he loved. The money he spent on equipment for each of these kids was nothing compared to the joy he felt seeing them so happy.
“You’re really good with these kids.” Harrison said.
Tyler shrugged. “It’s just fun for me to see these kids enjoying the sport, that’s all.”
Ty wished he had more than one day with these kids. He’d love to have the time to teach them some of his signature moves. Maybe someday.
And maybe someday he’d have a little team of his own to pass down his skill set to.
TYLER TOOK HIS TIME getting changed after the other guys were gone. Today had been a long, taxing day. He didn’t remember any other year being this difficult. It wasn’t the kids; they were a delight like always. It was him. He was different this year. He saw his possible future in all of these kids, and it affected him.
Finally getting his cell out of his locker, there were four missed calls on his phone. All from the same number, his agent. Tyler was sure if it was important, he would’ve left a message, but there was none. He grabbed his bag and slowly walked out to his car. Next stop was meeting Paige at the hospital.
She ran out during the third period of last night’s game to meet Rylee at the hospital, she was in labor. There was no way he could meet her at the hospital and still be alert this morning for the class, and Paige was as awesome as always about it.
He received a text just as he was driving into the arena this morning, that the baby was born, and mom and baby were doing great.
After spending the day with those kids, he was looking forward to holding that little newborn. Tyler wasn’t always a baby person, but what young guy typically was?
Uncharacteristically for him, he was in a good mood and looking forward to the visit. Maybe it was his time away with Paige, or maybe it was the thought of them trying to have their own little one. Whatever it was, he was on cloud nine today.
Taking a moment of peace in his car, his phone rang again. It was his agent, Lee.
“Lee. Hey, what’s going on?” Tyler said, happily.
“Tyler, I’ve been trying to get ahold of you.” Lee’s voice was rigid and quiet.
“I saw that you called.”
“Ty, I am really sorry to do this over the phone. Do you remember the little boy you visited with last year in Montreal?”
“Sure I do, Cody. Why are you sorry, what happened?” Cody was a young Renegades fan, specifically a Tyler Kidd fan. The poor little guy had been dealt a rough hand, a life-threatening illness. When Tyler met him, Cody had just gone into remission, and things were looking up for him. They spent the afternoon talking and eating pizza, Cody’s favorite food.
Tyler’s heart dropped; he didn’t have a good feeling about this phone call.
“Ty, he passed away last week. I am so sorry.”
Tyler sat, speechless for what felt like forever.
“Tyler? Are you still there?”
“Yeah, I’m here. Did you say last week? And I’m just being told now?” Tyler snapped at his agent. Catching his tone, Tyler took a breath to dial things back.
“Yes. I apologize for the delay; I just was notified this morning.”
Tyler closed his eyes and asked in almost a whisper, “When is the funeral?”
“It was over the weekend. Again, I am so sorry to tell you like this.”
Tyler was numb. Cody was only ten. He was supposed to live a long healthy life. He was in remission the last he heard. “Thanks for the call, Lee. Please see if there’s anything the family needs and take care of it. Anything at all. Thanks. I’ll talk to you later, okay?”
Tyler hung up and stared at his cell phone. He texted Lee with a more direct request. He told Lee to take care of all the funeral expenses and anything else the family needed. If he couldn’t use his money to help others, then it was no good to him.
He got out of the car and opened the trunk. Unzipping his hockey bag, he pulled out a baseball cap. The baseball cap that Cody gave him. He has worn it during every post-game interview since Cody gave it to him.
And he would continue to wear it for the rest of the season. Not just because he was a creature of habit and did the same thing before and after every game, win or lose. But because this hat was special.
He had many hats at home, but this one was his favorite.
He stared at the hat. The hat with dried lines on it from wearing it while sweaty after a game. The hat that he wore in honor of that little boy, hoping he’d see him wearing it on television. The hat that meant more to him than any expensive item he ever bought. This hat was given to him by Cody.
He took a deep breath and put the cap back in his hockey bag.
As he shut the trunk his cell phone rang. Paige’s name lit up his screen.