Trying to Score (42 page)

As Fallon sat in her seat, she couldn’t help but think of Lucas. She was still a little lightheaded from her kiss with Lucas, but at least she wasn’t regretting it or questioning the hell out of it. Now all she wanted to do was trust him. She wanted to give those two weeks a chance. She wanted to take Aiden and go to Disneyland with him. She wanted to have sex with him so bad she could taste him. But she couldn’t do any of those things until she trusted him, or at least forgave him.

Molly returned the smile. “Yes, I should have never called you a coward, or the scum of the earth. You are a good girl, so I’m sorry.”

Fallon looked down at her hands before turning in her seat to wrap her arms around Molly. Molly returned the hug, holding Fallon close as the tears sprang to Fallon’s eyes. No matter what, she would always love Molly. Molly was an amazing, sweet woman.

“I deserved it,” Fallon whispered before they pulled apart.

Molly gave her a watery smile before taking her hand in hers. “Water under the bridge. Now let’s talk about how amazing my grandson is.”

Fallon nodded before Molly hit her with question after question. She wondered about the pregnancy, the birth, his baby years, everything. It was so great to talk to Molly about it all. Fallon used to be worried about the way she would deal with things when it came to Aiden, but she learned that Lucas was the same way as a child. Hearing Molly say she had done a great job made Fallon’s day. Being a single mom, Fallon tended to second-guess herself, but hearing from one of the best moms she knew that she was a good mom really did put all her fears aside.

Just as they were finishing up the conversation the Assassins took the ice. Aiden was on his feet screaming for Lucas and soon the three women joined him. Lucas would glance back at them and smile as he did laps around the rink. It not only took Fallon’s breath away but it gave her butterflies. Fallon had been a very avid Sharks’ fan when Lucas played for them — she went to every game and sat in the exact same seat — and watching Lucas now was like déjà vu. It was so unreal. She found that she had missed it all, and standing beside Aiden cheering for Lucas was everything Fallon thought it was going to be.

Perfect.

When she was younger she used to dream of taking their children to Lucas’ games, and just as she had dreamed it, Aiden’s face was bright with excitement. He was bouncing as he leaned with his nose against the glass, watching every move Lucas did. Fallon soon found herself doing the same thing. Lucas was marvelous on the ice. He skated the way he walked, confidently. He knew he was one of the biggest and baddest guys on that ice. He didn’t care about anything but winning. He was a beast.

Oh, that man. Fallon covered her fluttering stomach with her hands. With every passing day, something came up that showed that Lucas had changed. Before, he would have never said he was playing good because of her. It was always about his skill, about how his dad trained him to be the best, but now it was Aiden and Fallon that made him play well? It all blew her mind.

Fallon looked out onto the ice and watched as Lucas played the game. Before when she would go to the games, she would always be lonely, but now having Aiden, Audrey, and Molly, she could never feel alone. When the guys scored, they all stood up singing. They shared nachos, funnel cakes, and popcorn. They joked between periods and talked about how awesome the game was. It was wonderful.

The only problem was that through the whole game, Fallon kept noticing that one of the Ducks players kept taking cheap shots on Lucas. It was expected, but still it worried her. She knew Lucas’ temper, and she hated when he got into fights. Plus, Aiden was there. He didn’t need to see his dad pounding some guy’s head in, but when number eight basically held Lucas in a bear hug and then threw him on the ice, Fallon’s temper snapped and she came out of her seat.

“Are you fucking kidding me?! Aren’t you going to call that?!” she screamed as she banged on the glass since the referee was just standing right beside her. It was obviously a holding call but no one was calling it! “What does he have to do? Buy him dinner before you actually call something!? That was close to fucking rape, you idiot! Do your damn job!”

“Tell them, honey,” Molly said. Fallon turned to nod at her but when she turned to look at Audrey and Aiden, they were looking up at her in complete shock. Poor Aiden had his pretzel frozen right in front of his mouth, and Audrey had her drink right at her lips while staring up at her.

“Wow,” Audrey gasped before looking back at the ice.

“Mommy, you just said soooooooo many bad words. I’m so telling Dad.”

Fallon paid them no mind as she looked back at the ice, ready to start screaming again. This is why she hadn’t been a game in years — she always jumped the line and went to Crazyville.

Damn hockey.

Lucas threw an elbow, knocking the guy that had basically tried to kill him off of him. As he slowly got up, he heard the general yell of the crowd but also a certain brown-haired beauty. His eyes went straight to Fallon as she banged on the glass, cursing out the referee that stood by her. His mom was nodding while Aiden and Audrey looked up at her like she was crazy. It was a great image to witness; he just wished he had a camera.

The referee ignored her, like they were supposed to, and went to the left side of the goal to drop the puck. Lucas looked over at Fallon one last time and grinned.

Man, he loved having her there.

**********************************

“And then! Mommy said the most awful things to the ref guy and Grandma agreed with her! AA just shook her head! It was so cool!” Aiden gushed from the backseat. Lucas chuckled as he drove to the house. He was a little bummed when he came out the back to only see Aiden and Molly. He was hoping that Fallon would be there, but she apparently had some work to do. He wasn’t going to let it bother him though. Aiden was staying the night again, and the Assassins had won the game.

Barely.

Matty Haksson was a great guy, but he was not the goalie that Jordyn Ryan was. Out of the 34 shots on goal tonight, Matty had only blocked 29. Ryan would have blocked all of them. It sucked that he was hurt, but that was hockey. People got hurt and teams had to adjust, but that didn’t help Lucas’ worry.

Lucas turned into his driveway and parked the car in the garage. He was ready for the next two days with Aiden and his mom. They had so much planned and he couldn’t wait. Worrying about the team, Fallon, and everything else would have to be put on the back burner.

All that mattered for the next couple of days was Aiden and Molly.

It seemed like the days passed in hyper speed because the next thing Lucas knew, he and Aiden were standing at the airport telling Molly they loved her before she left. Molly held Aiden in her arms, kissing him over and over again while she told him she loved him.

“I will,” Aiden nodded. “I’ll send you a letter!” he declared and Molly ate it up, wrapping her arms around him for more love. Aiden was so much like Lucas it was scary. The kid could charm anyone,
just like his daddy
, Lucas thought with a grin.

When Molly finally let him go, she was crying as she wrapped Lucas up in her arms. He wrapped his arms hard around her. He missed her so much when she was gone. Having her with him the last couple days made everything so much easier for him. She brought a special kind of peace with her wherever she went. He couldn’t love her more. “Everything is going to work out, okay honey?”

Lucas nodded, his face in her shoulder. “Okay.”

“Don’t you doubt yourself for a minute. You are an amazing man, and Fallon will come around. You’ll have your family, baby. I know it.”

Lucas closed his eyes, hoping like hell she was right. He would do anything for that, anything. “I won’t. Thanks Mom.”

“Anything for you, baby,” she gushed as she backed away, giving him one last kiss before picking up her carry on. “Okay, my two favorite boys, I love you both, and I will call when I land.”

“Love you too, Mom.”

“I’ll miss you Grandma! Love you!” Aiden said, waving at her as she walked away. Lucas watched as Molly boarded the place before looking down at Aiden. He was looking up at Lucas with wide eyes.

“Yeah, but not for long. I’ll be home just as much as I’m gone. After we win the Cup, I’ll be off for four months,” Lucas reassured him, but Aiden only nodded. They reached the car and after getting buckled in, Lucas drove off towards the airfield. Fallon was going to meet them there so she could take Aiden home, and Lucas couldn’t wait to see her. It had been a long two days.

Aiden was quiet as they drove and Lucas knew he hated that Lucas had to go. It had to be tough on the little guy because it was tough on Lucas. He didn’t like being away from Aiden, but they both needed to get used to it. Lucas wasn’t retiring anytime soon.

When Lucas pulled onto the drive for the airfield, Aiden took in a deep breath. Lucas looked at him in the rearview mirror before parking the truck. Once he parked, he turned in his seat looking back at Aiden, “Bud, I’ll be back before you know it.”

“I know, I just wish that you lived with me, Mommy, and AA,” he said sadly, looking down at his hands.

Lucas turned into his seat because he knew his face showed how much he wished that, too. He got out the truck, and went to let Aiden out just as Fallon pulled up beside them. Aiden had already undone his seat and was ready to get out. Lucas picked him up and held him as he shut the door. “Everything is going to work out, okay?”

Aiden nodded before laying his head on Lucas’ shoulder. “Okay.”

Lucas’ heart broke at the sound of Aiden’s small, little voice. Fallon came around her car with a bright smile on her face. Man, had he missed her. She wore a pair of jeans and a off the shoulder black tee. Her hair was in a ponytail, and her eyes were covered by a pair of sunglasses. She looked beautiful and carefree, just like the girl he remembered.

“Hey guys,” she said brightly. She leaned over kissing Aiden’s cheek before giving Lucas a sweet smile. “I’ve missed you, Punkin’.”

“I missed you too, Mommy,” Aiden said, but he didn’t move. He stayed glued to Lucas. Fallon didn’t seem to mind as she moved out of the way so Lucas could walk forward. Fallon walked beside Lucas as they made their way towards the airplane. Everyone stood around with their families as Lucas stopped, wrapping his arms tighter around Aiden.

“No tears buddy, this isn’t goodbye. This is I’ll be home soon,” Lucas said, opening his eyes to see Fallon looking at him. She moved, placing her hand on Aiden’s back, rubbing it softly.

Aiden pulled back, his eyes full of tears and his face wet from the ones that had fallen. “I’m going to miss you,” Lucas said. He then gave Aiden a lopsided smile, and Aiden returned it, but it didn’t reach his eyes.

“I’ll miss you, too.”

“Okay,” Lucas said with a grin, begging his own tears to not appear. Lucas hugged Aiden close to his once more before placing him on his feet. “I love you, bud.”

Aiden looked up at Lucas with a big tear rolling down his cheek. “I love you, too.”

It was the first time had told each other they loved each other, and Lucas could describe the feeling that filled him. It felt as if his heart had exploded while Aiden looked up at him with sad eyes. He loved this kid with everything inside of him. Aiden was his everything.

So was Fallon.

Lucas ruffled Aiden’s hair before looking up at her. He didn’t expect anything less than the tears that rolled down her cheeks. She was so freaking emotional. It used to drive him insane, but now he loved it. He loved everything about her. He gave her a smile before taking her hand and bringing her to him, crushing his lips against hers. Aiden was sandwiched between them, but Lucas didn’t think either of them cared. When he parted it was only for a second before he gave her two more small kisses on her glossed-up lips. He ran his tongue along the bottom of her lip, tasting faint strawberries before smiling against her lips.

“Those are for the road,” he whispered against her lips.

She took in a shuttering breath before backing away and wrapping her arms around Aiden’s neck. Lucas started towards the plane and couldn’t bear to look back at them. He knew if he did, he would break down. With every step he took, he felt like he was leaving his whole heart behind.