Page 88 of Meant for Mayhem

Logan held both hands up innocently before turning back around. “I’ll be quiet.”

That lasted almost five whole seconds.

“But if you need a little mile-high action, I can hold Leena for a few minutes. I don’t think it’ll take you long, right, buddy?”

Shannon laughed under her breath, shaking her head as she buckled Leena into the little belt extender Nolan had brought over. After she’d been quiet the last two nights, it was nice hearing her laugh again.

The engines rumbled to life beneath us, the familiar vibration settling through the cabin as we taxied toward the runway. Leena buried her face against Shannon’s shoulder.

“I’ve got you,” Shannon murmured, rubbing slow circles across her back. “You’re okay, sweetie.”

The plane surged forward. Leena peeked one eye open, then another. We lifted off the ground a minute later, and she craned her neck toward the window, completely forgetting she’d been nervous moments before.

Shannon wasn’t much different. She leaned toward the glass while the morning sun caught the gold hoops lining her ear, her entire expression softening as Denver shrank beneath us.

“Wow,” she breathed.

Leena had one chubby hand pressed against the window while Shannon pointed out the tiny roads disappearing below us, both of them completely captivated by the clouds outside.

I pulled my phone from my pocket before either of them noticed and snapped a picture. It wasn’t perfect—Leena’s hair had come undone from the style Shannon arranged it into this morning, and Shannon had her hair in a ponytail, not curled like she normally wore it. But it was real, and they were mine.

I saved it as my lock screen before I over thought it, then leaned back in the chair.

Once we reached cruising altitude, I took Leena from Shannon, and she pulled out her tablet. Just like at home, she contorted her body into a little ball, legs up on the chair. “I ruined myself for life by flying on a private plane first, didn’t I?”

“Oh, for sure,” Logan answered, once again turning to face us. His arms rested across the seat, head propped on his fists. “It would be hard to do your little pretzel moves in the main cabin. Meeks here hardly fits in a standard seat, and I’m not talking about those thighs. He needs room for all that⁠—”

“Quit talking.” My hand rubbed up and down Leena’s back as she settled against my chest, already dozing off. “Let her sleep.”

“Fine,” Logan whispered. “But only because she’s cute and we don’t need two grumpy Giants.”

Shannon chuckled under her breath. I wasn’t sure if it was at her book, or at Logan’s comments, but this was all going smoother than I expected. Right until Richard stood in the aisle, asking to trade seats with Carter.

“Can’t put ‘em off any longer, Mikko,” he said before he’d even sat down across the aisle from me. “You have to do an interview tomorrow.”

“No media.”

“I get it, man. I do. You’re a private guy. But the number one defenseman in the league disappeared, and they have questions.”

“That’s not my problem.”

“It’s not that simple.” Richard pinched the bridge of his nose. “If you don’t say something, someone else will, and then we lose control of the story. So, I think we go with the truth. We say you have a kid⁠—”

“No.” I cut him off, my pulse rising. “Leena stays out of it.”

“Kids aren’t their business,” Carter said in my defense. “Nobody else blasts their kids on the news.”

Richard threw his hands in the air. “Then what do you want me to tell them? How do we spin this?”

“Me,” Shannon said. “Blame me. New wife and all.”

I turned to look at her, but she didn’t even bother taking her eyes off her tablet. She did, however, flash her left hand to show off the glittering ring she wore.

“Really?” Richard scoffed. “You want the media to believe you took time off during the regular season for a woman?”

“My woman,” I growled, hating the way he continually talked to and about her. “And it would serve you right to remember it.”

“Yeah, Dick,” Logan said.