Page 74 of Knights Like These
“That’s it.”
“No kiss?”
I drink my water and don’t answer.
“There was a kiss.” He grins. “Look at you. Going on dates, kissing women, playing like an animal. This is a whole new Archer.”
“It’s the same Archer.”
“It’s absolutely not the same Archer. The old Archer let in three goals during the last practice. This Archer just stopped thirty-two shots and is smiling. I’ve never seen you smile at practice.”
“I smile.”
“Sure you do, Woody.” He claps me on the shoulder. “I’m happy for you, Arch. Seriously. You deserve this.”
“Thanks, Ollie.”
“Now go stop some more pucks before Coach thinks you’re slacking.”
I head back to the crease. Zayden lines up for another shot, and I’m already in position, reading his hips and anticipating the angle. My body feels loose and ready in a way it hasn’t in months. I feel good. I feel like myself for the first time since Bree left, maybe even longer, and I know exactly why.
After practice, I shower and check my phone. Sydney sent a photo of the twins at the kitchen table eating lunch—Lily has spaghetti sauce on her forehead, while Luke is eating his noodlesone at a time with a fork. The caption reads:guess which one used a fork.
I’m typing a response when my phone rings. Not a text. A call.
It’s Bree.
Bree doesn’t call. We text. A phone call means something is either wrong or important, and my stomach drops before I even pick up.
“Hey, Bree. Everything okay? The kids—”
“Everything is okay.” Her voice is calm, measured. It’s the tone she uses when she’s had time to think about what she’s going to say before she says it. “Do you have a minute?”
I sit down on the bench in the locker room. Most of the guys have cleared out. Ollie is still at his stall, tying his shoes, but he catches something in my face and stands up, walking toward the showers without being asked.
“Yeah,” I say. “I have a minute.”
“Lily told me that you and Sydney went on a date.”
I close my eyes.
“She said Logan babysat, you wore a fancy shirt, and Sydney looked pretty. You came home happy.” Bree’s voice doesn’t waver. “She was thrilled about it. She kept saying, ‘Daddy and Syd went on a date, Daddy and Syd went on a date.’ She told me at breakfast like she was reporting the best news of her life.”
“Bree—”
“I’m not calling to yell at you, Archer. I told you at the birthday that I’m not angry anymore, and I meant it.” She pauses. “But I need to say some things, and you need to listen.”
“Okay.”
“If you’re dating Sydney—and it sounds like you are—then we need to revisit our arrangement. Not because I think she’s bad for the kids. She’s clearly great with them. Lily adores her. Luke trusts her, which, uh, Luke doesn’t trust easily. I know that.”
“So what’s the problem?”
“The problem is what happens if it doesn’t work.” Her voice gets quieter. “When I moved out, the twins lost having both parents in the same house. They’ve adjusted. It took months, but they adjusted. And now Sydney is there every morning, every night, and at every bedtime. They love her, Archer. They really love her. Lily called her ‘Mommy.’”
My jaw tightens. “That was an accident. She corrected herself.”
“I know. She told me about it. My point is that she’s attached. Both of them are. And if you and Sydney try this and it falls apart, they don’t just lose a relationship. They lose their Auntie Syd — the person who makes their breakfast, reads their books, and braids Lily’s hair. They lose their whole daily life again, for the second time in a year.”
