The Shots You Take
59 pages • 1-hour read
Rachel ReidThe Shots You Take
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Chapters 23-29Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of sexual content and antigay bias.
Chapter 23 Summary
Adam and Riley arrive at Susan’s house for breakfast. Adam mentions hosting the hockey banquet, and Riley is privately amazed he is going through with it. The family shares a large breakfast, reminiscing and catching up. When Lindsay mentions the dinner party at Darren and Tom’s house, she deduces it will be mostly couples and smiles knowingly. Riley observes Adam during the meal and wonders if rekindling their romance might not be a terrible idea this time.
Lindsay prepares to leave for Halifax with Harvey’s truck. After the family says goodbye outside, Lindsay hugs Riley and teases that Adam has feelings for him. Susan agrees, using one of Harvey’s catchphrases. Riley offers to stay with his mother for her first night alone, but she declines, saying friends will visit.
Back inside, Riley and Adam finish the dishes. In the living room, Riley is hit by a memory of making out with Adam on the sofa. Adam examines a photo of himself handing Riley the Stanley Cup. Riley leads Adam upstairs to his childhood bedroom, still filled with hockey memorabilia, and remembers their sexual intimacy there years prior. Adam says he has good memories of the room, which makes Riley’s heart race. They reminisce about past summers, and Adam suggests Riley take him for a boat ride on his next visit.
That afternoon, Riley shows Adam his greenhouse. Adam is impressed, and Riley feels a strong urge to kiss him. When Lucky barks at a rabbit in the yard, Adam jokes that rabbits have replaced Kevin Kroeker as Riley’s nemesis, and they bond over cursing their former antigay teammate. Riley is struck by how beautiful Adam looks in the sunshine.
Chapter 24 Summary
Riley gets dressed for the dinner party in an expensive new outfit, wanting to impress Adam, who is stunned by how good Riley looks. In Riley’s truck, he explains that the other guests are all queer couples: Bea and Nell, Darren and Tom, and Jackson and Marcel. Adam decides not to drink, wanting to be sober for what he anticipates will happen with Riley later.
At Darren and Tom’s, Adam looks forward to being in a room where no one recognizes him from hockey. He observes how relaxed Riley is with his friends and realizes Riley has built a whole life without him. During dinner, when Jackson asks about Riley and Adam’s history, Darren mentions they were roommates. Adam feels jealous when Darren compliments Riley’s appearance and counters that Riley was cute then but is gorgeous now. Riley insists he and Adam are just friends, which stings Adam. He then comes out as gay to the entire table. The group cheers in support. A proud Riley smiles at Adam and squeezes his knee under the table.
After dinner, Darren corners Riley in the kitchen, insisting Adam is in love with him. Riley raises obstacles like Adam’s kids and the distance to Toronto, but Darren dismisses these. As they leave, Tom hugs Adam and shares his own experience of coming out later in life, advising that being happy now does not negate his past with his family. In the car with Riley, Adam confesses he has felt stuck, worrying about how coming out would be perceived. Riley teases him about the extremes between his current suburban life and a hypothetical future as an out gay man living in a penthouse, making Adam smile.
Chapter 25 Summary
Back at Riley’s house, Adam and Riley put on a record and slow dance. They share their first sober, mutual kiss, which deepens as Riley demonstrates new confidence. Lucky woofs in his sleep, making them laugh and breaking the intensity. Riley suggests they go upstairs.
In the bedroom, Adam takes off his shirt, feeling self-conscious, and Riley reassures him. Adam says he likes it when Riley calls him Adam instead of Shep, and Riley tells Adam to call him Riles. They kiss and explore each other, gradually undressing. Both orgasm quickly. Afterward, they lie in bed together, and Riley agrees to let Adam stay the night in his room. Adam says he wishes he had stayed with Riley in the past.
Chapter 26 Summary
Riley wakes up with Adam in his arms, feeling calm and happy. After letting Lucky out, Riley returns to find Adam awake. When Adam says he needs to pee, Riley worries Adam is having regrets. Adam returns, dispelling Riley’s fears. Sensing Riley’s unease, Adam reminds him they can be together now, and they begin kissing again. Riley notices Adam’s kiss is gentle and worshipful, rather than fearful and desperate as it was before.
Riley and Adam continue their passionate exchange, talking and joking throughout. After they orgasm again, they laugh together in the afterglow.
Adam remarks that Riley would have been a good boyfriend, and they acknowledge they were both messes back then. They shower and have breakfast, kissing frequently throughout. As Riley leaves for work, they share a final, passionate kiss at the door. Driving away, Riley tells Lucky, “It’s going to hurt like hell when [Adam] leaves” (255).
Chapter 27 Summary
Adam visits Harvey Tuck’s grave alone. He thanks Harvey for being the best father he has ever met and explains he tried to model his own parenting after him. Adam confesses his love for Riley and promises he will deserve Riley and not hurt him again, leaving the moon snail shell at the grave.
That evening, Adam enthusiastically hosts the Avery River Minor Hockey banquet. Riley and Susan watch from the back of the room, and Susan remarks on how great Adam is. After the awards, kids swarm Adam for autographs and photos. Adam then leads Riley to a storage room, where he kisses him hungrily. They make out until Riley stops them, concerned about being caught at a youth event. They emerge from the storage room looking disheveled, just as Cathy appears to tell Adam a local CBC reporter wants to interview him. When Cathy jokes about booking Adam for next year’s banquet, Adam looks at Riley and says he might be available.
Chapter 28 Summary
In the truck on the way home, Adam asks Riley to explain LGBTQIA+ terminology. Riley tells Adam he would be very popular at a gay bar, and Adam says he has never been to one but would want everyone to see him leave with Riley. They share a slow, romantic kiss under the stars. Inside, Riley feels anxious about their impending intimacy, but finds Adam on the bed in his underwear, masturbating, which dispels his worry.
While Adam performs oral sex for Riley, Riley asks if Adam wants to have penetrative sex. Adam responds by asking Riley to be on top, shocking Riley. Adam explains that he is serious and has been practicing with toys. Riley prepares him, and they confirm they are both comfortable having sex without a condom, as Adam is on PrEP and recently tested. At Adam’s request, they change positions so Adam can see Riley’s face. Adam confesses he probably wanted this in the past but was too scared. As they have sex, Riley is overwhelmed by love and thinks of all the things he is scared to say out loud—that he loves Adam and does not want him to leave. Adam thanks Riley for their intimate encounter, but Riley’s anxiety resurfaces, as he worries that this was just a trust exercise before Adam explores with others, but he pushes the thought away and allows himself to imagine a future together.
Chapter 29 Summary
On the day of Adam’s departure, he and Riley struggle to say a final goodbye. They already attempted to leave an hour earlier, but Adam got excited about spotting a deer outside, which resulted in them having oral sex on the sofa instead. Adam jokes about staying until October, but Riley gently reminds him of his commitments in Toronto. Adam expresses regret for their lost years and asks about their future. Riley states the facts—Adam is returning to Toronto, and he is staying—and says he needs time to think because he is still a mess from his father’s death. Adam is heartbroken but tells Riley he understands, and he can wait a really long time if a future together is a possibility. A softened Riley says he thinks it will be and asks Adam to keep contacting him. They share one last kiss before Adam departs.
Chapters 23-29 Analysis
The longer Adam stays in Avery River with Riley and his queer community, the more ready he feels to reconcile The Conflict Between Public Persona and Private Identity, a central narrative theme. During a dinner party hosted by Darren and Tom, Adam finds himself surrounded by queer couples who do not recognize his legendary hockey status. This environment strips away his protective NHL persona and forces him to confront the disparity between his isolated, closeted existence in Toronto and the robust, authentic life Riley has built in Nova Scotia. When Darren playfully compliments Riley’s appearance, a flash of jealousy prompts Adam to assert that Riley is gorgeous before explicitly coming out to the table. This spontaneous declaration signifies a critical internal shift: Adam is no longer meticulously guarding his public reputation. Furthermore, Tom’s advice about coming out later in life validates Adam’s complicated history with his ex-wife, suggesting that embracing a new, public truth does not erase his past as a father and husband. Tom’s character is subtly urging Adam to relax his hold on his public identity to embrace a more authentic, balanced version of himself. Adam’s gradual internal shifts underscore the novel’s small-town setting as a sanctuary, establishing a space where Adam can safely shed the institutional pressures of the professional sports world and articulate his identity without fear of career-ending ostracization.
As Adam embraces this newfound openness, the physical intimacy between the two men undergoes a fundamental restructuring, moving away from the shame-driven encounters of their youth. This evolution crystallizes when they share their first mutual, sober kiss while dancing in Riley’s living room. The deliberate pacing of their subsequent sexual encounters—marked by teasing, laughter, and clear communication—replaces the furtive desperation that previously defined their hidden relationship. Whereas their forbidden, secret romance was defined by anxiety and urgency, their present-day encounters are characterized by conversation and consent. In the bedroom, Riley’s decision to take an unapologetic, “bossy” role, culminating in Adam asking Riley to penetrate him for the first time, reverses their historical power dynamic. In their twenties, Adam dictated the terms of their secret hotel hookups, keeping Riley in a state of continuous emotional limbo. By surrendering physical control and actively asking Riley to take charge, Adam demonstrates a radical new willingness to be vulnerable.
The narrative further anchors Riley and Adam’s reconciliation in the theme of Grief as a Catalyst for Connection and Change, using Harvey’s memory as a mediating force rather than an emotional barrier. Adam visits Harvey’s grave alone, promising to “do [his] best to deserve” Riley and leaving a moon snail shell among the flowers (251). This private confession operates as a request for a patriarchal blessing, demonstrating Adam’s recognition of the damage he previously caused and his enduring commitment to repairing it. The moon snail shell, an organic artifact from the local landscape, acts as a physical emblem of Adam’s integration into Riley’s Avery River life. Additionally, Adam channels his supportive role through public action by enthusiastically hosting the Avery River Minor Hockey banquet. By stepping into the communal leadership role Harvey left vacant, Adam proves his reliability to Riley through tangible, selfless service rather than mere words. Riley’s quiet observation of Adam’s dedication from the back of the room confirms that the shared mourning process has softened his defensive walls.
Despite this interpersonal progress, the narrative structure maintains tension by imposing the hard deadline of Adam’s return to Toronto, ultimately resulting in a deliberately deferred resolution. The characters’ impending separation intensifies the stakes of Reckoning With the Past to Earn a Second Chance, another key theme. On the morning of Adam’s flight, the organic proximity that has facilitated their reunion finally expires and compels the characters to overtly confront their future. Riley refuses to make immediate promises, stating that he needs time to think because he remains overwhelmed by the recent loss of his father, but Adam promises to wait—now sure of what he wants, who he is, and how he feels about Riley. While this open-ended conclusion momentarily frustrates the genre conventions of an immediate romantic reunion, it honors the psychological realism of Riley’s compounding traumas. He cannot neatly separate the grief of losing his father from the immense emotional risk of trusting Adam again. Adam’s willingness to wait indefinitely signals his understanding of the damage caused by his past impatience and panic. By delaying a definitive romantic commitment and replacing desperate vows with a simple request to maintain contact, the narrative insists that a durable future requires extensive emotional processing.
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