A Lifelong Promise

Paul was making himself at home in Clare's kitchen, busy making pancakes and eggs for the two of them to enjoy before she went to work for a few hours and he went to practice. He wasn't exactly looking forward to seeing his teammates, one in particular, but he knew that it was worth it.

He heard Clare open the door and make her way down the hall to the kitchen. When she laid her eyes on him and what he was doing, he saw her eyes light up and a smile of pure gratitude spread across her face. "What are you up to in here? I thought you left me when I woke up and you weren't there," she gushed as she walked to him and wrapped her arms around his waist. She lifted her face up and waited for a kiss as Paul happily obliged before burying her cheek in his chest and pulling him tighter.

"Never," he breathed out as he held her close and lightly rubbed her back. "I figured you wouldn't mind some breakfast."

"I never mind breakfast," she laughed. "I'm just not used to someone making it for me- I'm usually the chef."

"Well you better get used to it. Things are gonna be a lot different around here."

"Oh yeah?" she looked up at him, her arms still perched tightly around his back.

"Yeah," he nodded. "You know all those nights you left the arena crying?" he asked and she gave a little nod. "Never gonna happen again." He looked down and saw the smile spread across her face as she reached up and kissed him again. "Can I keep you here with me forever?" she whispered. "Don't go to practice today."

"Oh I wish," he let out with a grin. "Gotta keep you wanting more though," he teased. "If I don't leave you'll get sick of me."

"Impossible."

"So about last night..." he started wanting to make sure she wasn't regretting her decision. He knew deep down that she didn't, but still wanted the reaffirmation.

"What about it? That was some good sex," she said as she flashed him a playful smile.

"That was never in question," he threw right back.

"So what is?"

"Just making sure that you're okay with it."

"I wouldn't have let it happen if I wasn't," she answered sweetly. "I was okay with it because I love you and I meant that when I said it."

"I just know how you are when it comes to sex- it's serious... and I don't know, I just needed to hear you say it, I guess," Paul let out a little flustered.

"Hey," she cooed as she reached up and rested her hand on his cheek. "If you want to hear me say it then you'll need to hear me say that I love you- despite what you may think- and being with you last night meant everything to me."

Paul got lost in her eyes for a second as he absorbed her words. Without even thinking he leaned down and kissed her before forcing himself to pull away enough to rest the bridge of his nose against hers. "Do I need to be at all prepared for the possibility of you leaving me to go back to him?" he asked quietly, needing to hear the answer.

Clare pulled back and forced him to look her in the eyes. "No," she shook her head. "I want to be with you."

Paul nodded and gave her a little smile. "I know you do- and that makes everything alright at the end of the day."

"Good," Clare stated as she pressed her nose against his again before sliding it down and lifting her lips to kiss him. "Now I don't know about you, but those pancakes smell delicious and after that sex last night- I'm pretty hungry."

Paul let out a laugh and squeezed her tight to him. "Yeah, go sit down. I'll get it."

***

Paul took a deep breath before he got out of the car and made his way inside the arena. He could only imagine the type of things the guys would say to him, how James would react, and who would give him a hard time. He figured most of them had to think that he had moved in on Clare before James and her split up and even though he knew it wasn't true, the thought of other guys thinking that and judging him because of it made him uncomfortable.

He saw the looks he was getting out of the corner of his eyes as he made his way over to his locker and tried not to notice.

"Alright," Letang barged over to Paul and prepped for whatever was going to come out of his mouth. "This has nothing to do with me but I can't not acknowledge this elephant in the room. What's the deal with you and Neal's wife- did you really move in on her while they were together?"

"Think what you want," Paul shrugged. "Doesn't make it true."

"Who goes after their teammates wife though, man? Who does that?"

"I don't know," Kunitz yelled as he laced up his skates. "I kinda believe him dude."

"What do you mean?" Letang yelled back.

"I don't think he made a move while they were together."

"Does it really matter if we were or weren't," James chimed in. "That's my wife. He's my friend. You don't do that."

"I didn't do anything," Paul said defensively as his jaw tightened. "You don't fuck everything with a pulse behind her back, you're still waking up to her every morning."

James looked at him with daggers as he walked over to him. "Does it make a difference? You don't date my wife!"

"I love her!" Paul immediately yelled back not realizing what he just revealed. James had stopped dead in her tracks and the other guys whipped their heads around looking at Paul in amazement.

"You...you...what?" James asked flabbergasted. "You love my wife?"

Paul gave an unapologetic nod. "I do."

"What the fuck," James spat out as he went to start a fight with Paul, but Crosby stepped in to end it.

"Enough! You two obviously have issues to work out- but you guys gotta do it outside these doors and try to keep it out of the locker room. You," he turned to James and looked at him sternly. "You have no one to blame for your wife leaving you but yourself. I know for a fact that Paul tried to warn you to cut your shit out. I did too. Some guys cheat, some don't- some wives mind, some don't. I would never do to Hannah what you've put Clare through- I love my wife and I can't see how you can say you do when you did what you did. I don't respect it. But you made your bed, lie in it now."

He turned to Paul. "And you, I told you I don't blame you for what happened but your decision has a ripple affect in this room. Like it or not, it's a distraction. I've put a gag order on everyone in here to keep their mouths shut because the media doesn't need a whiff of this. Hate each other all you want, but make it work when you're in this building."

Paul gave a nod. He understood what Crosby was saying- Paul didn't ask for what happened to him but like it or not, it was a distraction. He knew that and he knew it wasn't anyone else's fault to get dragged into it.

James had slow, shaky breathing as he begrudgingly gave a nod and angrily walked away.

"Thanks," Paul whispered before Crosby walked back to his locker.

"Don't thank me," Crosby said softer so only Paul could hear. "I can't let you two kill each other in this building," he gave a very slight, crooked smile. "As tempting as it may be, don't torture the guy."

Paul shook his head. "I'm not trying to."

"I know," Crosby said with a nod. "You gotta make the tougher choices here though, whether you like it or not."

"I know," Paul nodded his confirmation. "But if I can be honest with you about this- it's worth it."

"Good," Crosby said as he flashed a smile. "I hope so."

"You should know, you had to go through a lot to be with Hannah, and it was worth it for you."

"Yeah," Crosby nodded wholeheartedly, the obvious love and affection for his wife plastered on his face. "Still is. I hope it works out just as well for you."

***

When practice was over Paul walked outside the arena and as he made his way to his car he heard his phone go off. He looked down at the screen and smiled when he saw Clare's name flash across the screen.

"Hey beautiful," he answered with pure elation on his face just from the sound of her voice.

"Hey you," she gushed from the other end of the phone. "You don't look so bad yourself."

"I don't? You don't even know what I'm wearing," he flirted.

"Oh I have an idea." And Paul listened as she began to rattle off the precise things he had on.

"Where are you?" he asked as he looked around but didn't see her.

"Come to your car," she answered before abruptly hanging up.

Paul picked up his pace as he raced to his car and saw her sitting on the ground hiding next to the passenger side with two Starbucks cups- one perched in front of her on the ground, one in her hands being pulled from her lips. "What are you doing here?" he asked with a genuinely happy smile, not complaining at all that she was there.

"I missed you," she said simply. "I wanted to surprise you on my lunch break." She stood up and pressed against him as she reached up for a kiss.

"This is an unexpected but very happy surprise," Paul said before leaning down to kiss her lips. "Thanks baby."

"I can't stay and obviously I don't want anyone to see me but I wanted to see you and give you a kiss to get me through the rest of the day." She wrapped her arms around him and held him tight to her and he felt like he won the lottery.

"I'm the luckiest guy in the world- you're so amazing. You have such a big heart...thank you."

"I gotta go, I don't want to but I really do. I'll see you when I get home in a little while." Clare looked up into Paul's eyes and rested her hand on his cheek. "I love you, Paul."

"I love you," he breathed out as he leaned down to kiss her good and hard. Any doubt he might have had at her love for him had completely diminished and he knew she felt just as seriously for him as he did for her. "I'll be counting the minutes."

***

Clare was walking on the sidewalk to the door of her building when she saw James leaning against the brick wall. She went to turn around and use the back entrance without being seen, but had no such luck.

"Clare!" she heard her name echo from behind her as she rolled her eyes and slowed to an annoyed stop.

"What do you want?" she asked as she spun around to face him. "How long have you been waiting here?"

James stood awkwardly in front of her and gave a shrug. "I don't know. Long enough for the doorman to ask me to leave the lobby...and before he asked for my autograph."

Clare couldn't help giving a little laugh. "Well isn't that great for you. What do you want? I thought everything was covered last night."

"Maybe you thought so but I can't just walk away," James stated as he looked at her desperately.

"James this is enough!"

"Do you love him?" he asked kind of cutting her off, causing her jaw to drop and eyes to widen.

"What?"

"You heard me. Do you love him?"

"That isn't your business," she said trying to shield him from the answer he didn't want to hear.

"Are you having sex with him?" James asked as he took a step closer to her- already close as he was.

Clare looked up at him annoyed as anything. "What does that matter?"

"I need to know," James pleaded. "I can't handle it, alright? I can't."

"What does it matter if I am James?"

"It matters because we're still married."

"Okay," she said with a nod. "Let me ask you something. Who's the last person you had sex with?"

"You," he answered quickly. "On the couch in our house."

"No," she shook her head. "Aside from that mistake of a night. Who was the last person you had sex with James? Because I can tell you that before that night and every other time before that- it was you. It was only you. But you...you can't say the same thing, can you?" she looked at him unforgiving as he looked at her with guilt in his eyes before he dropped his head and looked away entirely.

"That's what I thought," she spat out before she walked by him and went inside her and Paul's building.