Weapons of War

"You ready for this?" Shea asked Riley as they stood in the kitchen, Shea watching Noah play on the living room floor while Riley stared at the clock on the stove. Christina was due any minute and Riley had been stressed out and nervous all day.

She shrugged her shoulders, "Honestly I don't know. Ask me that after she leaves."

There was a knock on the door and Shea turned to Riley and told her, "Ready or not."

She smiled and gave him a gentle shove before they both headed to the front door. Riley pulled the door open and managed to produce a not so fake looking smile toward Christina who was standing on the porch with a small smile on her face.

"It's good to see you."

Again Riley smiled as naturally as she could, "Come on in."

As they stepped back so that Christina could come in Shea held his hand out for her and said, "I didn't really get the chance to introduce myself last time. I'm Shea."

"I know." Christina told him and when Shea looked at her in confusion and Riley raised her eyebrow she explained, "Dave told me all about you. Although that was a very long time ago."

They both lead her into the house, where Riley spotted Noah on the floor in the living room with Dug, who came running over to inspect the new human. Shea instantly grabbed him, turned to Christina and asked, "Are you okay with dogs? I can put him outside or downstairs or something if you're not."

"He's fine." She told him and Shea eased up on his collar before letting him go all together and Riley watched as Christina gave Dug a pet.

"Noah." Riley said, and he turned to face her. His eyes flickered to Christina for a minute before they went back to Riley as she told him, "We have someone for you to meet."

He continued to stare at her, and Riley didn't know how to proceed. Shea caught her apprehension so he turned to Noah and explained, "This is Christina. You know how grandpa is my dad? Well this is mom's mom."

His brows furrowed and he asked Riley, "She is?"

Riley nodded her head and Christina glanced at her before she motioned to Noah and asked, "Can I?"

"Yeah." Riley and Shea watched her approach Noah.

"Hi Noah." He waved his little hand, and said hi back in his quiet, shy voice he often used around new people. He was so, so much like Shea. Christina asked him, "Can I sit down with you?"

He nodded again, "Okay."

Once she was sitting beside him Noah pushed a handful of building blocks toward her and Riley and Shea watched as together they built a large wall of blocks. Riley turned to Shea, let out a small breath of air and he wrapped an arm around her shoulder, speaking softly, "Maybe this will be okay."

"Yeah, maybe."

A few minutes later Noah turned toward them, "Daddy come help!"

"What do you need my help with?" Shea asked him curiously.

Noah pointed to the wall of blocks and exclaimed excitedly, "We can't reach!"

So Shea kissed Riley quickly and headed over to help Noah and Christina with their project. Riley started on dinner, every so often she would turn to check on everyone in the living room and if Christina wasn't looking at Noah she would be looking at Riley with the same happy smile on her face. Shea was right; maybe this would be okay.

An hour later Shea, Noah and Dug were playing in the backyard and Riley and Christina had just taken seats on the back deck to watch them. It was then that Christina told her, "You have a beautiful home."

Riley smiled gently, "Thank you."

"You like it here? In Nashville? Instead of Kelowna?" Christina asked her curiously.

Riley shrugged, "I love it here, but not over Kelowna. Nashville is home during the season and Kelowna is home during the off season. We like it that way."

Nodding slowly Christina asked her, "And you're having another one?"

Riley let out a small chuckle, glanced down at her much more prominent baby bump and said, "Yeah."

"Can I ask how far along you are?" Christina asked her, her eyes following Riley's down to her stomach.

Riley told her, "Twenty weeks."

"Halfway done." Christina commented and Riley nodded her head. She asked her curiously, "Do you know what you're having?"

"No, we decided we wanted to wait. We never knew with Noah either." Riley told her, it was odd; she expected the small talk to be much more difficult but it seemed to flow much easier between just the two of them when they were alone than it had at dinner with Shea and Noah there. Shea and Christina had done most of the talking then.

Christina cleared her throat and told her, "You know, when I had you I was in labor for about nine hours and your dad never left my side for a second of it. He was always like that."

Riley really didn't care to hear about those things, especially when it came to Dave. She didn't like the idea of sitting and talking to Christina about anything to do with Dave. But she also wasn't sure why she even responded, "It took over twenty hours with Noah, and then they wanted to do a c-section but thankfully we didn't have to."

"How big was he?" Christina asked her curiously.

"Nine pounds, four ounces." Riley told her.

"That's a big one." Christina said and Riley nodded her head slowly with a small smile on her face as she watched Shea told Noah up above his head to throw the ball for Dug. Christina then told her, "You were five pounds. Five pounds and six ounces if I remember correctly. You were so tiny, I guess that never really changed though."

Riley let out a small chuckle and nodded her head. She glanced over at Shea and Noah, and Shea caught her eyes and he grinned at her. She smiled back and then Noah, after following Shea's eyes toward Riley, made a face at her that made both Riley and Christina laugh.

Christina then told her, "He looks so much like his dad."

"Yeah he does." Riley nodded her head in agreement.

"Not that that's a bad thing. Shea is very handsome." When she said this Riley nodded with a small smile. Christina then told her, "He seems like a really great guy Riley. I wouldn't have picked a professional athlete for you, but Shea seems like he's pretty great, and I can tell you love him. Dave was very fond of him."

"How do you know that?" She ignored the comment about what Christina wouldn't have picked for her, Riley didn't see the point in starting an argument over it.

"Your dad and I used to get together once or twice a year when he was on business trips in Vancouver. I knew you didn't want to see me then, and I understood it, so he would update me on everything that was going on in your life." Riley had no idea Dave did that, part of her wanted to be angry with him. Christina, either not sensing Riley's mood toward that comment or simply ignoring it, went on, "Once you graduated those dinners stopped, but we ran into each other a few years later and had dinner. He told me you moved to Nashville with Shea, I think you'd been here two or three years then. He showed me some pictures of the two of you and… you looked really happy."

"I was. I am." Riley told her.

"You would have thought Shea was Dave's kid honestly, he was so proud of him. He'd spend like an hour of our dinner telling me about all his games and every single goal or point he got since the last time we saw each other." Riley smiled gently, hearing that made her heart warm, but it also made her heart ache a little bit too. Christina glanced out at Shea and Noah and she told Riley, "Noah reminds me so much of Dave. He's like a little mini Dave."

Riley nodded her head, both she and Shea had noticed that now that Noah was getting more vocal and more of his personality was beginning to come out. She said, "Yeah he really is."

"Dave really would have loved him."

Their conversation halted when Noah came running up the steps, Shea chasing after him. Dug laid on the grass at the bottom of the steps to the deck, as if too tired from playing in the yard to come up them. Shea picked Noah up just before he could reach Riley, and he tickled him. As Noah giggled and squirmed in his arms Shea asked him, "Where do you think you're going?"

"Mama!" Noah yelled out, reaching his little arms out for her. Shea swung him out toward Riley, keeping a good grip on him, before pulling him back to his chest, he did that a few more times before Noah said, "I quit!"

Shea immediately stopped moving and asked Noah, "You do? I thought we said Weber's don't quit?"

"I do." Noah stated matter-of-factly. When Riley and Christina chuckled Shea bent down and set Noah down on his feet on the deck.

He took off, climbing onto Riley's lap where he turned to Shea and grinned widely. Shea shook his head and said, "You little brat."

Noah let out a small giggle and he looked up at Riley but when he opened his mouth to talk a yawn came out. She covered his mouth and then told him, "Bed time."

He pouted but nodded, and Shea told her, "I can take him."

"It's fine, I got him. I'm faster at bed times." And so Shea and Christina followed Riley into the house and while Riley took Noah upstairs Shea directed Christina into the living room.

As she got Noah dressed in his pyjamas he asked her, "Mama?"

"What's up?" She asked him as she lifted him up onto the bed and got his covers pulled back for him. He crawled underneath them quickly and Riley brushed his dark hair from his forehead.

Once he was all tucked in he looked over at her and asked, "How come your daddy and daddy's mommy don't visit?"

Riley took in a breath of air, and she thought about it for a moment. She and Shea had never even talked about how they were going to approach this subject with him, they figured he wouldn't ask for a while, at least another year or two. Noah waited patiently for an answer and Riley knew not answering would only make him continue to ask and she didn't want Shea to have to answer that so she told him, "Well… do you remember the book grandpa sent you when you had to go to the hospital the first time for your medicine?"

"Fighters." He corrected her.

She smiled and nodded, "Right. Well, remember how in that book it tells you all about how angels protect you and look after you all the time?"

"Yes."

"That's what they are for you." She wasn't sure he would understand what she was saying, but it was the best way she could think of to explain it to him.

"Is it sad?" He asked her.

"Sometimes. That's why we don't really talk about them. It makes us sad." Riley told him, and she was thankful for the fact that while she knew he didn't really truly understand it he seemed to get it enough to drop the subject.

He puckered his lips and Riley leaned down to give him a quick kiss before he said, "Night mama. Love you."

"Goodnight baby, love you too." She told him, brushing her fingers through his hair once more before she got up and left his room. She pulled his door to a near close, not wanting anyone to wake him up that night, before she headed downstairs.

As she approached the couch Shea looked over at her and joked, "You're the quick one huh?"

She rolled her eyes and messed his hair up as she passed him, but before she could sit down Christina glanced at her watch and said, "I should get going."

It was Shea who asked her, "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, it was a long day with flying and I don't want to take up any more of your time." Riley should have told her it was fine but instead she followed Christina to the door, Shea staying on the couch. As Christina dug the keys for her rental vehicle out of her bag she told Riley, "Thank you for doing this."

Riley nodded her head, "I'm glad we did this."

"I'd like to see him once more before I leave, if that's okay with you and Shea." Riley nodded her head to Christina's question.

"Yeah, I think that would be okay. When do you leave?" She asked her.

"Really early on the twenty-fifth. Two in the morning early. It was the best flight I could get, I have to be home for Christmas." Riley could read through that, what she was saying was that she had to get home to spend Christmas with her other family, but she decided she wasn't going to let it bother her.

"What if you came for dinner tomorrow? We could do it early." Riley told her, knowing Shea didn't have a game or any engagements Christmas Eve so they would be able to swing an early evening dinner if need be. They didn't have any company or plans for that day, just their usual Christmas dinner plans with a few of the guys on the team.

Christina smiled, "That would be great. Let me know what time and if I can bring anything."

"I will."

Shea was already up and standing by the stairs when Riley approached them, he asked her, "Can we call it a night even though it's only eight?"

Riley chuckled and nodded, following him upstairs and into their bedroom. She got ready for bed in the bathroom while he changed, and then while she changed he went into the bathroom. She was already under the covers when Shea came out of the bathroom and he plopped down on the bed beside her. She watched him carefully for a few minutes and then asked him, "You feeling better?"

"Little bit. Head doesn't hurt so bad, not as nauseous." He told her honestly, knowing there was no point in lying to her; Riley would see right through it.

It had been nearly a week of no playing and while he hated it he had to admit that being home with Noah when he otherwise wouldn't have been able to be was kind of nice, and he knew that Riley would never admit it but she liked the extra set of hands around the house.

He was surprised when Riley told him, "Noah asked why his other grandparents didn't visit like your dad and Christina today. That's what took so long tonight."

"He did? What did you tell him?" Shea asked her curiously. Secretly he was glad Noah had asked Riley, he wouldn't have known what to say at all to that.

She told him, "I'm gonna have to call your dad tomorrow to thank him for that book he sent for when Noah started his treatment."

"Which one was that again?" The kid had so many books Shea lost track of which one was which and who had sent it.

"The one about the angels. I don't think he really understood what I was talking about but he got enough of it to be satisfied I guess." Riley stated. She curled into Shea's side, and after a few seconds of silence she asked him, "Do you think they're gonna clear you to play any time soon?"

"I don't know. I hope so, but we'll see." He told her.

"Do you think you should play?" She asked him, watching him carefully.

He struggled with what to say, and finally he told her, "As the captain of my team yes I do think so… as a husband and a father no… probably not."

She was so grateful for his honesty about it. Injuries were something Shea tended to lie to her about, especially when it came to the severity of them and when he was really, truly ready to get back on the ice. Which, if she was being honest, she wasn't sure why he bothered lying about it because she always knew anyway.

She grabbed her cell phone from the nightstand drawer and Shea watched her go through some app before she turned the screen so he could see it better. It was a few pictures of nursery designs and she told him, "So you can see my vision a little better."

He was having trouble getting on board with the yellow, grey and white scheme. Mostly just the yellow. But now that he looked at the pictures, and he saw what she meant, he told her, "I like it. I wasn't sure about the yellow but I do like it."

"Because you thought it was gonna be Preds yellow." He narrowed her eyes at her and she let out a giggle, correcting herself, "Right, sorry gold."