Chapter 11

“You’re a pro,” Cory said, gesturing to me to hand Grace over to him.

“Oh, so now you want her,” I said, handing her over. Although doing so made bagging up the dirty nappy and wipes easier.

Cory smirked and bounced Grace on his lap a couple of times, which resulted in more raspberries.

“Dah-dah-dah.”

“No, little girl, I’m not your dad but he shouldn’t be too much longer,” Cory told her, pulling her close and kissing her cheek. “But you can call me Uncle Cory. And that’s Uncle Mike.” He turned her to face me. “Can you say Uncle Mike?”

“Mama.”

* * * *

I was relieved when the ref blew the final whistle. A wind was getting up and a black cloud loomed ever closer.

Cory looked down at a sleeping Grace, still cradled in his arms. “Wish I could have slept through that…crap, too.” At least he hadn’t ranted and raved at his team or the official like he had during the first half.

We stood when several members of the Lightning team came over to talk with Cory.