Oh, my gorgeous Celeste.
I’ve done a lot of things in my life, some good and some bad, but Celeste, she’s the best damn thing I have accomplished. I may want the Cup, and it may suck that I don’t have it, but at the end of the day, I get to be Celeste’s daddy, and nothing compares to that. Which reminds me, Lilly should be on her way with her. I glance at the clock above my stove as I put away the formula and baby food I got in preparation for my week. Since it’s summer, the parenting plan says we alternate weeks of care for Celeste. I wish I could have her all the time, every single day, but that would mean I would have to have Lilly. And I’d be damned before I let her in my life again.
I almost got away from her, but she came back pregnant with Celeste. I gave it my best shot the second time, but nope, like always, she couldn’t seem to keep her legs closed. It may make me a dick, but I had a paternity test done to make sure Celeste was mine. Thankfully, she is, because when she was born, I fell in love with her. My sweet princess.
I move through the kitchen getting things ready, which was what I was doing before I started daydreaming about not having the Stanley Cup. I really need to stop doing that. It is what it is. I don’t have it—move on, work harder. All I can do is stay in shape this summer and soak up as much time with Celeste as I can get. When the season starts, it’s going to be hard, but we’ll manage. We’ve been doing it for six months, and I don’t doubt we’ll continue the same. I may greatly dislike Lilly, but I force myself to outwardly respect her for Celeste’s sake.
Lilly doesn’t do the same for me, though.
She treats me like crap, guilts me when Celeste isn’t with me and I’m playing hockey. I asked her not to bring a man around my child until she’s dated him more than a month, but she ignores that wish at every opportunity. Could be because the average length of a relationship for her is a week, but still. It drives me crazy she won’t honor that one request. I guess I shouldn’t expect much since I asked her not to cheat on me too, and she still did that. The guy she’s with now, though, Marc, has been around for a month, so here’s to hoping he locks her down. Not because I want Lilly happy, but because I want stability for Celeste.
I don’t understand Lilly, to be honest. She doesn’t seem to care about what is best for Celeste. Only herself. It makes no sense since she comes from a solid upbringing, good parents, and a great family. Meanwhile, I raised myself, and I’m out-parenting her, tenfold. Pretty sure her parents feel sorry for me, for Celeste, but no one corrects her behavior. Except me. I don’t give a shit. Treat my child right, or I’m calling you out and fixing the situation. She could be a good mom—if she wanted to. She doesn’t want to, and that annoys me.
Really, everything annoys me lately.
I move through my house, picking up and cleaning up so that the house is ready for Celeste. I bought a nice home on the beach right when we found out Lilly was pregnant. My teammate and buddy, Chandler, and his family live on the other side of the beach in a smaller neighborhood, but word is, his wife is pregnant again and now he’s looking over here by me. It would be nice to have a friend close since I live between two older couples. They’re wonderful people, but they sure do love being in my business. They really don’t like Lilly, but they love Celeste, which is good.
I never saw myself in a large home. Especially since I slept at the rink for most of my life. Now though, I have a pretty decent four-bedroom beach home that I love. Things may not be how I dreamed them, but at least I have a career, a daughter, and a house I love. One day, a wife will come, but for now, I want to focus on training and Celeste. Maybe even upgrade the deck in the back. Something kid-friendly for when Celeste starts walking. I look out the large gallery windows to where my back deck is. It’s a nice deck, but the wood planks are way too far apart. It’s more decorative than practical. I want to replace them so I can take Celeste out there.
When the doorbell rings, I pull my gaze from the deck and the beautiful view of the ocean and head for the front door. It should be Lilly with Celeste, and when I open the door, I’m filled with joy at the sight of my blue-eyed baby girl. I reach for her, taking her chubby self in my arms and hugging her tightly.