Page 56 of Scoring with my Bestie's Ex

I want to reach across the table and pull her into a hug.

“I’m proud of you. That can’t have been easy, but you did what you needed to do to get your peace of mind.”

Bella beams at me. “Yeah. So, that’s how my day went. How was yours?”

I tell her about my trip to Castleton. Our conversation turns to reminiscing about the various activities we did there.

More than once, I catch a wistful look on her face. When we’re done eating and have cleaned up, two hours have gone by. Mike and Ellen should be coming soon.

We sit in the living room, and the conversation turns to talks of the future.

“Once my name is established, I hope to be able to have an affordable clothing line,” Bella tells me. “I want to make beautiful clothes that everyone can enjoy.”

“How much money do designers earn?”

Bella shakes her head. “Oh, it depends on so many factors. But I don’t care about getting rich off it. I would like something that allows me to be comfortable, with enough to save for retirement and donate to charity. What about you? How much do NHL players earn?”

I grin in answer. “Enough that I could retire right now and be comfortable for the rest of my life. I’ve been prudent with my spending habits.”

“So, what do you want to do when you retire?”

“I want to find a small town where I can coach a kid’s hockey team. I’m not looking to create the next big star. I want to give kids the chance to enjoy the sport and have a sense of community,” I tell her.

She rests her chin on her hand. “How small of a small town?”

“Less than ten thousand people,” I answer. “Preferably a place that has an ice rink, but I’m willing to build one.”

Her eyes nearly bug out of her head. “That’s got to cost a few million dollars!”

“It varies in cost,” I hedge.

“You have enough to build that and still be comfortable with the leftover?” she demands.

I grin. “My salary has been reported on before. You can check it if you want.”

She whistles. “Will you name the arena after yourself?”

“Goodness, no!” I laugh. “I’m not that arrogant. I’d name it after the town I’m in. That is, if the small town I end up in is so small they don’t have a rink already.”

A distant look comes to her eyes as she hums. “I could see myself living in a small town. Just as long as it’s close enough to the city to continue my work.”

My heart flutters. “How close is close enough?”

“A lot of what I do could be done from home. Especially if I start my own lineup, just so long as I have the proper space in my house.” She taps her chin. “But assuming I had to commute every day, I’d say no more than an hour.”

“An hour? So you’d have a two-hour round-trip commute every day?” I ask, surprised.

She gives me a puzzled look. “It already takes me almost an hour to get from here to Imogen’s studio. Honestly, some people have it worse. But like I said, I could work a lot from home. I wonder if I could be a work-from-home mom. Doing two jobs at once seems like a lot of work.”

“If you have a husband who has most of his day free, then he could have the kids during your work hours,” I say.

Bella meets my eyes. “That sounds lovely.”

She twines her fingers in mine. My gaze drops to her lips, and I remind myself that there is no kissing in the apartment.

Maybe I should ask her to step outside for a moment—

The door opens and we both turn. Ellen and Mike come in, arms around each other, giggling like a couple of lunatics.

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