Page 58 of Double Puck

"Mason." Zoey turns to him, ignoring me. "Declan." She turns to him too. "Neither of you thought to mention this?"

"Pretty sure I mentioned it, Zo," Declan says.

"You said there was a trade discussion. You didn't say Beck was sitting next to her at my welcome lunch."

Beck gestures broadly at Declan with his now-empty margarita glass. "To be fair, Declan's truth-telling hasn't exactly been his strongest skill lately."

The table goes briefly, carefully quiet.

Josie was right. The tension in this family is off the charts.

Then Mason picks up the guacamole and offers it to Zoey without a word, which is apparently the Morrison version of we're changing the subject.

Zoey takes the guac, and just as I start to thank my lucky stars that the moment has passed, Zoey turns back to me.

"So. What's the verdict then, Darcy? He staying or going?"

Every eye at the table finds my face. I sit up straighter without meaning to.

"The evaluation is ongoing," I say. "But, to be fair, Beck's off-ice presence and recent performances have shown me things I didn't initially account for. He's doing well."

Silence.

Then Beck puts both hands flat on the table.

"I'm sorry," he says. "Can we just—" He turns to the whole table. "Did everyone hear that? Darcy Madden just said I'm impressing her." He presses a hand to his chest. "I would like this recorded. Diego, can you get it engraved on something?"

"It's not a compliment, it's a—"

"She's impressed." Beck tips his face to the sky like he's receiving a blessing.

"Does this mean you're changing the recommendation?" Josie asks, ignoring the little dance Beck is now doing that sends Morgan into a fit of giggles.

"The evaluation isn't complete. We have the game this weekend, which will be an important part of it."

It comes out more clipped than I intend, because the real answer is complicated.

Colin's emails have been getting shorter and more urgent all week. Other teams are circling. Another team is interested. Like he already knows the value is there and he doesn't want to lose it.

If I approve the trade, it needs to happen sooner rather than later to get the full value of his contract.

Zoey, apparently satisfied, pivots immediately. "Are you an only child, Darcy?"

I try to stop my brow from crinkling. "Uhhh… yes. Why's that?"

"Oh my God. No one stole your Halloween candy either," Morgan says, gleefully. "It's so good, right?"

"It absolutely is," I confirm, despite the fact I've never once been trick or treating because my mother thought it was "an organized excuse for children to beg from strangers."

"So that also means no one locked you out of the bathroom for forty-five minutes before school either then," Zoey adds, pointing at Declan.

"It was one time—"

They start arguing again, and suddenly, despite me feeling like I'm behind enemy lines, I'm smiling again. I can feel it, maybe warm and loose from the margaritas and the sun, but this is exactly what I never had.

A family who can disagree on things, but simply… moves past it.

You're not made to feel bad, or imperfect because you don't agree with something. You just… accept it and move on.