Bury the Hatchet

Chapter Three - Bury the Hatchet

HUNTER

Even after showering and changing clothes, I still felt like I was going to melt and drip down the drainage system on the Tulsa streets. I didn't know how anyone could live in heat like this, and I wasn't even remotely thrilled about the fact that I was going to have to figure it out, and soon. After my fuckup, I'd thought that I was only going to be here for a week or maybe two right now, long enough to work out a plan with the team for dealing with the media, and then I would go home for the rest of my off-season. That was all I had planned for when I'd packed for this trip. I should have been able to head back to Prince George for a month or so to finish up my summer training regimen before settling in here in preparation for the new season, but I was quickly learning that life didn't always turn out the way I'd planned or expected. I wasn't supposed to have to stick around in this heat—not with the way I'd mapped everything out in my head—but here I was.

Not only that, but I couldn't exactly run to Canada if I was getting married this weekend and making a show of being unable to keep my hands off Tallulah. I was going to have to suffer through this heat—both the literal and the figurative versions of it—while I trained for the new season. That meant I'd have to find a good gym and a personal trainer here, and I'd have to cancel with my usual guy back home.

And then there was the small matter of filling in my parents about all of this. I hadn't even picked up the phone yet because of all the running around I'd been doing since leaving the Thunderbirds offices, but I could already hear the dismay in Mom's tone. What do you mean, you're getting married? Who is she? What's her family like? What kind of name is Tallulah? What about Carrie? There wasn't a chance in hell Mom would leave Carrie out of it. And then there was the fact that I would have to break it to Carrie, too, which was no small matter.

She and I had been in an on-and-off relationship for the last decade or more. We had spent a lot more time in the off phase than in the on phase, especially in the last five years or so. Our relationship was complicated, made more so because of issues between her sister, my brother, and our niece. More than anything, Carrie was the girl I knew I could hook up with when I went home if I needed a release for some pent-up frustration. We'd been friends with benefits since just after high school, a relationship that had worked well for both of us. She had a career of her own. She'd never wanted to leave home, and I'd had to for my career. And now she had Kaylee to think about, too.

The only problem was that our mothers didn't want to accept it. They'd been trying to get the two of us together since we were about seven years old. I was pretty sure Mom thought I was going to come home after I washed out of the NHL and marry Carrie, maybe make some babies with her. Carrie and I had never wanted that, but it didn't stop Mom and Mrs. Schuster from trying to make it happen.

Anyway, talking to either Mom or Carrie would have to wait until tomorrow. Whether I wanted plans or not, I had them for tonight.

After renting a car, buying a fucking ring that would meet Mr. Roth's requirements, and getting cleaned up at the hotel, I didn't have a lot of time left before the Roths would expect me to pick up Tallulah for dinner. Besides, I hadn't sorted out what I wanted to tell anyone, and it might not be a bad idea to work that out with my bride-to-be in advance of breaking the news to everyone at home.

So instead of picking up my phone, I put some gel in my hair to tame it somewhat, pulled on a pair of slacks and the only shirt and tie I'd brought with me for this supposedly brief visit, and headed out to pick her up.

I followed the directions dictated by my GPS and drove into a gated community. It was full of big, old houses, the sort that made me think they must be part of a historical district. As Mr. Roth's secretary had informed me, there was another gate at the driveway to the house. I put my car in park and rolled down the window to identify myself on the speaker. A beep sounded and the gate opened.