My face goes beet red over his proclamation and I almost jerk away from his hold. But he senses my discomfort and a thumb skims over my knuckle in reassurance.

“No, Sutton and I have something different,” Alex continues in a low voice. “Something you would never be able to comprehend. Hell, I’m having a hard time comprehending it myself, but I know it’s unlike anything I’ve ever experienced before and probably nothing I really deserve.”

Cassie’s eyes go large and round, disbelieving the conviction of what Alex is telling her. And it is with conviction he said those words.

Turning away from Cassie, so he’s looking at me…only at me, he says, “You’d be so lucky, Cassie…to find something as real…as intimate, as what I’ve found.”

I smile at him and he returns it for a moment, filled with so much emotion in place of those three words that he has yet to tell me, but in my heart I believe he feels. Then he turns back to Cassie. “I really hope you find it one day. Truly. But make no mistake…you talk badly about Sutton again—in her presence or out—and I will rain so much misery down on you, you’ll wish you’d never heard the name Alex Crossman. Are we clear?”

Cassie just stares at him for a moment, almost not understanding what he’s saying. Then I see her swallow hard and a look of sadness comes over her face. “We’re clear.”

“Good,” Alex says jovially. Pulling me along, we walk past Cassie and he shoots her a solicitous smile. “Have a merry Christmas, Cassie.”

Now that we have had some one-on-one bonding time, Alex leads me back down into the party and never leaves my side the rest of the night.

Chapter 27

Alex

It’s Christmas Eve, and Sutton should be here any minute. She was having dinner at her parents’ house, to which I was invited and declined. I wasn’t much in the “familial” mood tonight, not with my own dysfunctional family plaguing my thoughts. Truth be told, I’m not even in the mood for Sutton to come over tonight, but it’s not like I can cancel plans with her on Christmas Eve, especially not when I leave tomorrow for a three-game road trip.

Cameron called me late last night to let me know that Dad had checked himself out of rehab after only nineteen days and well before his release date. I’ve heard from him twice more today. Each time he called he was fairly frantic because Dad had not gone home. He was nowhere to be found.

My worst fear was that he was drunk and lying in a ditch somewhere, which in Canada in December is a death sentence. The most likely scenario, and one that didn’t bode well either, was that he was sitting in a bar somewhere…drunk.

The thought of him being out of rehab, of entering my life again as nothing more than a failed addict, causes my skin to itch so bad I have to restrain myself from clawing at it. Just when I thought maybe…just maybe I could have a chance at normal, my dad goes and starts to f**k it all up again.

The doorbell rings and I stand from the couch, wiping my damp hands on my jeans. Why I’m so nervous about seeing Sutton is beyond me, but I feel a little out of sorts…maybe a tiny bit out of control, since getting the news from Cameron last night.

Taking a deep breath before opening the door, I paste a smile on my face and pull the handle toward me.

There, looking fit and healthy, stands my dad. He’s holding a small suitcase in his hand, but that’s not what really gets my attention. It’s the fact that his complexion has a healthy glow, he’s gained a good ten to fifteen pounds since I last saw him and his eyes are clear.

I can’t remember the last time I saw his eyes clear.

“You look like you’ve seen a ghost,” John Crossman says to me.

Blinking hard, I open the door wider and motion for him to come in. “What are you doing here? Cameron called last night…said you’d checked out of rehab?”

My dad walks in and I shut the door behind him. He drops the suitcase and I get the not-so-subtle message. He’s staying.

Turning to me, he starts to shrug out of his winter coat. “I’m doing great, Alex m’boy. Really got control of things. I wanted out. They wanted me to stay for a few more weeks. But it’s my choice and I decided enough was enough.”

My mind starts frantically taking in all of the places I have alcohol around the house. I’m not a big drinker, but I have a stash. A few beers in the fridge, a bottle of wine on the counter that one of my teammates gave me for my birthday, and a bottle of Jack Daniel’s in the kitchen cabinet. I start thinking of how I can surreptitiously get those hidden.

I don’t even know what to say. I want to chastise him for leaving rehab, but damn he looks good and I feel like I should praise him. I’m ill-equipped to deal with this situation, and my first reaction is to call Sutton because she would know.

Fuck…Sutton’s on her way here, and I’m not prepared for them to meet.

And as if this day couldn’t get any more stressful, the doorbell rings and there’s no doubt as to who that is.

Stepping past my dad, I open the door and let Sutton’s beauty infuse me with just a few moments of unfettered happiness. She’s got her flamed hair loose, and it sparks hot against the coal black of her wool coat. She’s wearing a dark green knit scarf and matching beret, and she’s holding a large, red foil bag that I assume holds my Christmas present.

I just stare at her, wanting to pull her into my arms at the same time I have the crazy thought to shut the door in her face so she and my father won’t meet.