Page 78 of Sin Bin

She shook off the dangerous thought. “Congratulations on the big win tonight. You guys totally demolished Buffalo.”

He chuckled. “We do our best.”

“I’m impressed. You scored a goal and stayed out of fights.”

“Yeah, well, I sorta made a pact with someone.”

“Who?”

“This kid I mentor,” he grumbled. “He promised to stop fighting if I do.”

“Oh, boy.” Meadow laughed. “I can’t believe you agreed to that.”

“That makes two of us.” There was a wry smile in his voice. “Did you get some sleep before hitting the road?”

“A little.”

“Got coffee?”

“Yup. And 5-hour Energy drinks.”

“Go easy on those. They’re bad for you.”

She sighed. “Yes, Daddy.”

He laughed. “On that note, baby girl, let’s rock ’n’ roll.”

They talked nonstop as the miles stretched away, taking her farther from Las Vegas and closer to him. His deep, lazy voice wrapped around her as she drove through the Nevada desert along a lonely stretch of highway. He kept her smiling and laughing as the Utah scenery flew past her window, the spectacular mountains stretching to the horizon.

He told her about the places he’d traveled to, with his team and on his own. She listened raptly as he described in vivid detail everything that he’d seen and experienced. He hung on her every word as she told him about the life-changing summer she’d spent in Botswana, the adventurous week in Paris with her aunt, and the many other places she hoped to visit someday.

They whooped and cheered together when she crossed the Colorado state line. He stayed on the phone with her when she stopped for gas in Grand Junction, known as the hub of Colorado’s wine country. After filling her tank and using the restroom, she bought coffee and a Danish, then spent a few minutes describing the beautiful predawn scenery to Logan. He told her they should return in the summer to explore the vineyards and do some wine tasting. It scared her how good his invitation sounded. Scared her to admit even to herself how much she enjoyed being with him.

As the first soft rays of dawn broke across the sky, she forced him to get off the phone and grab a power nap before practice. The moment he was gone, she missed the sound of his voice, the dark richness of his laughter. She popped in an audiobook, but the narrator’s animated tones were no substitute for Logan. So she put on some music, thinking of him as she crooned along with Ella Mai’s “Boo’d Up.”

When she was thirty miles from her aunt’s house, Logan called her again. “Just got out of practice. Where are you now?”

“I’m almost there. I ran into some traffic, so it should take another forty-five minutes or so.”

“Awesome. Not the traffic,” he clarified. “I meant—”

“I know what you meant.” She smiled.

There was an answering smile in his voice. “I’m heading out to grab some lunch with the guys and then I’ve got a few errands to run. Maybe I’ll stop by later and help you unload your stuff.”

It was crazy how quickly her pulse spiked at his casual offer. “If you come over,” she warned, “I’m definitely putting you to work.”

His deep laugh rumbled over the phone, warming her from head to toe. “See you soon, Jupiter.”

“Mmkay.” She hung up, smiling harder.

When she pulled into the driveway of her aunt’s house, her five-year-old cousin burst out the front door yelling excitedly, “Meadow!”

She grinned and jumped out of her car, throwing her arms wide as the little boy launched himself at her.

“Hiya, Bear!” She caught him to her, laughing joyously and hugging him tight as he clung to her like a koala. “I’ve missed you so much!”

“Missed you, too!” Cameron clung a moment longer, then drew back and beamed up at her. “What took you so long to get here?”

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