Page 70 of The Only Goal

“You got maple syrup?”

“Of course we do.”

“And bananas?”

“You know it.”

His eyes start dancing with enthusiasm as I tip my head toward the kitchen and lead him into the pantry. We pull out ingredients, and I find a couple aprons. I tie one around his tiny little waist, and we get to work, sifting flour, cracking eggs, and making a big ol’ mess.

By the time Tammy shuffles into the kitchen, her hair all mussed, Kai and I are both covered in flour, have batter smeared across our faces, and he’s singing some pancake song his mommy taught him.

“You wait for the bubbles, then you flip it o-ver.” His little off-key voice is adorable and blends perfectly with Tammy’s delighted laughter.

As I spin to drink her in, we share a special smile, and I swear I’ve never been so happy in my life.

Her eyes start to glisten, like maybe she’s thinking the same thing, and I take a mental snapshot of her smile and those perfect dimples.

CHAPTER 33

TAMMY

I sip wine from the bulbous new glasses Rachel purchased this week and try not to laugh at the look on Mikayla’s face.

“What is this crap?” She sticks out her tongue and gags.

“Oh, stop it.” Rachel lightly slaps her arm. “You have no taste.”

“I think it’s delicious.” Lani licks her lips, then tries another sip. “I really like it and think you should definitely have this on the drinks menu.”

“As long as you’ve got normal stuff too,” Mikayla mutters.

Caroline starts to laugh. “For the plebs like us, who can’t tell the different between a five-dollar bottle of wine and some ancient bottle made in France, right?”

Mikayla lifts her glass. “That’s right, my friend. That is so right.”

Rachel and Lani roll their eyes, then share a look.

“Why did we invite them to this tasting again?” Lani murmurs.

“We didn’t! They just showed up and parked it.” Rachel looks around the table with a pointed glare that has no real venom to it.

“What else were we going to do?” Caroline blows a red curl off her face. “The guys are at practice, I’m caught up on my assignments for a change, and Jolie wanted to hang out with you guys.”

Her cousin gives us a shy smile, and Mikayla leans forward with a conspiratorial whisper. “Is that actually true, or is she just being polite on your behalf?”

Jolie’s cheeks turn neon pink as her eyes dart to each of us. “It’s true. Being here’s always fun.”

Rachel’s expression softens as she nudges the cheese board closer to the freshman. “How are things going? Is it getting easier?”

She bites her lips together, then nods. “Yeah. I’m writing an article for the school paper. I mean, they may not publish it. It’s kind of like an audition.”

“What’s it about?”

“I’m not sure of my exact angle yet, but I’m interviewing some guys on the basketball team and thought I’d do a feature to highlight their season. Well, the start of their season, anyway.”

“They’ve got a solid team this year. From what I’ve heard.” Mikayla grabs a cracker and dips it into the hummus Rachel made from scratch. “But I think you should focus on the girls’ team. They’re way better.”

“I did think about that, and I’m considering interviewing some of the female athletes as well. Like maybe I could do a story about the similarities and differences, but I know I’ll need to be really careful what I write there, because I can’t show favoritism.”

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