Harmless(25)

It was almost eerie how much his life had changed in two months. Then again, it had been changing for a while now. Ever since he up and moved out of the small apartment above the marina office and into Cassie's less-than-desirable duplex, Roan had been living pretty much out of a gym bag. Now, he had twenty-five hundred square feet and a kid.

Life was good.

Okay, maybe not good good. But it was better than it had been. If only Roan could stop thinking about Seg. It was getting easier every day since he hadn't heard from the man since the night of that last phone call. The one that had freaked Roan out completely. While Seg had been admitting that he wanted to see him, Roan had been tempted to tell him that there was no way this could possibly go anywhere because he was now a single dad. How on earth would that work into a hockey player's schedule?

Not to mention, he seriously doubted Seg was looking for something serious. Now that he was a father, Roan couldn't fathom having casual encounters. What sort of role model would he be if he let his son see that type of behavior from him?

And that was exactly how Roan viewed everything these days. From Liam's point of view. He peered down at the drowsy baby in his arms. "I want to give you the best life possible," he whispered. "In order to do that, I have to keep my focus right where it is. On you. Not on handsome hockey players."

Anytime he thought about Seg, he reminded himself of what the outcome would be. If anything, Roan figured Seg was looking for a replay of that night. Sure, Roan wasn't above hoping for that as well. Seriously, his brain could easily be overruled by his libido from time to time. But those were simply fantasies. Nothing more.

"Seriously," Roan mumbled, more to himself than to Liam. "If I even wanted a replay, I would have to find a babysitter, hop in my truck, drive the half hour to Austin, another ten to Seg's place … " Roan pressed his lips to Liam's forehead. "By then, I'd be ready to run back home to you. It won't work."

While Roan separated the laundry, he glanced down at the baby still cradled in his arm. As usual, Liam had fallen asleep. Taking a break, he lifted Liam to his shoulder, patted his back gently until he'd earned himself a huge burp, then took the sleeping kid back to his crib. With monitor in hand, he headed back to the laundry. Before he could start folding towels, his phone rang.

His stomach instantly bottomed out, the same way it had every time the phone had rung since the night Seg had called. And just like every time since, it wasn't the hockey player on the other end.

"Hey, Cam."

"Hey, bro. Gannon was sitting here wondering-"

In the background, Roan heard Gannon grumbling, "Don't tell him a story. You're the one who was wondering."




 

 

"You were, too," Cam told Gannon, then turned his attention back to Roan. "Sorry. So, I was wondering if maybe Liam could come over for a sleepover."

"Tonight?"

"Sure. It's Saturday night, right? That's a good night for you to go out, maybe grab a beer, call up a hockey player … "

Roan snorted. "Ain't happenin', man."

"Oh, come on. I want to spend time with Liam. Y'all have been gone for two days, and it's too quiet around here."

"I'm seriously doubting that," Roan countered. "You never shut up, so I'm not sure how that's even possible."

Cam laughed. "It's still early. No game tonight. And I happen to have it on good authority that the Arrows are not on the road."

Roan shook his head, but strange thing was, he was seriously considering this. He could take Liam over to Cam and Gannon's, then head into Austin.

Or  …  maybe he could call Seg up, see if he wanted to grab dinner.

Maybe he'd want to stop by.

No.

This was a stupid idea.

Hadn't he just been telling himself that this new way of thinking was the only way of thinking? He couldn't do casual sleepovers with hot hockey players ever again.

"I just got Liam down," he told Cam. "I don't think tonight's a good night."

"Okay, fine. I tried. But the offer's open anytime. We'd love to chill with Liam for a while, if, you know, you ever need a break."

"I'll keep that in mind."

"You do that. Talk to you later."

"Later." Roan hung up the phone and dropped it on the bed, but he continued to stare at it.

Forcing himself to finish the laundry, he put it all away, then made a quick stop by Liam's room to check on him. Surprisingly, Liam had been sleeping for close to six hours a night, which was a blessing. If only Roan would go to sleep when Liam did …

"I'm gonna do it," he told himself when he returned to his bedroom to find the phone sitting on his bed. "I'm gonna call him."