Total pages in book: 63
Estimated words: 58792 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 294(@200wpm)___ 235(@250wpm)___ 196(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 58792 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 294(@200wpm)___ 235(@250wpm)___ 196(@300wpm)
Chloe chuckles and shakes her head, a tiny smile crossing her lips. “Don’t embarrass him,” she warns.
“I wouldn’t dream of it, darling,” Sydney coos.
Drake’s mom is a real character. After reading the bio on her website and watching some of her hilarious YouTube videos, I figured she’d be interesting to meet. Drake shared enough with me to provide a clearer picture, but meeting Sydney Carroway in person is an experience.
Midway through the game, Sydney touches my arm with her long, red fingernails. She leans in close, her sweet perfume filling my nostrils. “I’d like you to come for Easter dinner. I told Drake to ask you, but in case he forgets, I want to invite you.”
“Come,” Chloe says, leaning over to flash a set of bright white teeth. “Jacque makes the best honey glazed ham with sweet potatoes.”
Confused, I ask, “Who’s Jacque?”
Chloe chuckles. “Oh, Drake didn’t tell you about our chef? Jacque is amazing.”
“He mentioned you have one just not by name.”
“Drake keeps begging Mom to send him to his house to cook for his teammates.”
“Probably because Shannon stopped cooking for them,” Bex says.
“Regan mentioned Jamie’s girlfriend,” Sydney says. “Poor thing, little Jamie.”
I almost laugh at the way she says little Jamie because he’s a big guy until I remember Jamie is a junior.
“He screwed that up,” Bex adds. “What an ass?”
Sydney looks taken back by Bex’s forwardness, but she brushes off her comments, made aware of the situation by Jamie’s mom. Their families are so close I doubt there’s a single thing they don’t share with each other, their children’s love lives included.
“So…” Sydney says to me, “… dinner. Will we see you at the house?”
“Yes. I’d love to come. Thanks for inviting me.”
“You know…” Chloe says, “… you’re Drake’s first girlfriend since high school.”
“Yeah, he told me.”
“He’s a big guy,” Sydney says. “But my Drakey is sensitive. Please be careful with my baby’s heart. Don’t hurt him.”
“Syd,” Carter says in a tone that sounds threatening. When their eyes meet, I can see Drake’s dad issuing a silent warning to his mom.
It says stop embarrassing the damn kid.
“I would never,” I whisper, and Sydney smiles in response.
His dad leans forward in his seat, gaze set on the game playing out before us. He mutters something under his breath when the Strickland Senators take a shot and miss. Sydney and Chloe go back to talking about books, and I’m sure I hear his mom say the word cock at least once. I laugh to myself thinking about how much she uses it in her books.
“What is Preston doing?” Bex chews on her bottom lip, speaking so low only I can hear her. “He keeps arguing with Kellan.”
I was so nervous about making a good impression with Drake’s family that I forgot about the game. Now that the introductions are over with, I can sink into my chair and relax. But Bex’s concern is transferring to me once I inspect the ice. Preston and Kellan are in each other’s faces. This goes way beyond two players scrambling for possession of the puck.
“He promised not to get his revenge,” I say.
Bex leans forward with her elbows rested on her thighs and cups the sides of her face in her hands. “It looks like Kellan’s the one going after him.”
“Think of it this way… if you never told Preston about Kellan, you would have a lot more explaining to do.”
“Preston will end up fighting Kellan if he keeps getting in his face.”
I cup her knee with my gloved hand to offer her support.
Once the game ends, the crowd erupts into a mixture of boos and cheers. The Strickland Senators win the game, though there are very few people from Strick U in the stands to give them the round of applause they deserve. Drake was amazing. He guarded the net like the wall of man he is, forcing a win in his team’s favor.
Our team congratulates each other, about to line up to slap hands with the Boston players when Preston swings at Kellan. My mouth falls open in shock as I watch the horror unfold in front of us. Bex gasps, covering her mouth with her hand.
Preston lands a punch to Kellan’s jaw, backing him up against the glass. Kellan attempts to dodge Preston’s fists, though he takes more hits than he misses. But Kellan eventually gets a clean hit on him. Bex cries out as if she’s in pain when Preston’s head turns to the side as Kellan hits him hard in the nose.
Before it escalates further, both teams are surrounding them, their teammates clawing at their jerseys to pull them apart. The linesmen force their way through the crowd, but even they can’t stop Preston as he takes one last shot that spews blood from Kellan’s nose and mouth.
From this vantage point, I can see Preston covered in blood. He stares down at his knuckles after Kellan’s body slumps to the side, forcing his teammates to catch him. But the madness doesn’t end there. Nope, Preston spins around to face his teammates and ends up elbowing a linesman in the face.