Page 51 of Hockey Wife

“I was thinking along the lines of taco fixings.”

“You mean shred some cheese or something like that?” She sounded excited at the prospect, like this matched her skillset exactly.

“There’s cheddar and mozzarella in the fridge. Usually, I mix them for tacos. You could also cut up some red onion and limes.”

“Definitely!” She got busy pulling the raw ingredients out of the fridge while he directed her on the location of a cutting board and the box grater.

“And we could do margaritas! But maybe you don’t do alcohol during the season, except on your wedding night, of course.” The saucy wench winked at that. Look at them, joking about their big mistake in Vegas.

“I can do a margarita. Work on the cheese first.”

“Si, señor!” She gave him a jaunty salute.

He continued browning the ground turkey, then added the taco seasoning and some water.

“You okay with cilantro?”

“Love it.”

“My sister April is one of those weirdos who thinks it tastes like soap.”

“Oh, Dani was like that too. I used to think she was faking it until I read an article about it. They can’t help being weird. It’s genetic.”

He scoffed. “April can. She’s weird about everything. Won’t let her food touch on the plate. Won’t share a bottle. The cilantro thing is definitely on brand for her.”

“There’s one in every family.”

He waited a moment, letting the silence settle. It felt nice working side by side.

“How do you get along with yours?”

He felt her stiffen. Georgia hadn’t mentioned her parents much except to say continuing this was needed to impress them. Maybe that said it all. The vibe at that gala was definitely off.

“Oh, not too bad. I’m a bit of a strange duck as far as they’re concerned.”

“How so?”

“They have certain expectations for me. Contributing to the family, upholding the name. I don’t really fit into their plans.”

“And what are their plans?”

“Have me become the face of one of their many companies. Or chair of a charity foundation they approve of. Failing that, marry someone in their circle.”

Like that Oliver douche. “Well, that last one’s off the list.”

He was supposed to add for now to that, but he didn’t have it in him.

“I know it seems kind of frivolous not to be more … useful.”

“I didn’t say that.”

She smiled. “You didn’t have to. It’s okay. A life like mine is always going to look suspect to someone who works so hard.”

“How do you know I work hard?”

“I looked it up online. Theo Kershaw has a huge Insta following, and he’s always talking about his diet and his exercise regimen and all the skating practices. If you’re doing half of that, then yeah, you’re working your ass off.”

At his age, he was working twice as hard as Kershaw. But did she have to look at Superglutes’s videos to learn this?

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