Page 32 of The Game Changer

“You’ll figure out the right time, just don’t wait too long. If she’s as amazing as you’ve told me she is, then you don’t want to let her get away.”

“Got it,” I tell her, knowing that she’s probably right. “Hey, Mason, are you hungry for some lunch?” I ask my nephew, who’s focused on his iPad in the back seat.

“Yes! Can we get McDonalds?” he asks, hope and excitement filling his voice. I inwardly groan, I can’t stand the fast food place myself.

“You leave it open-ended like that and he’ll always suggest that.” My sister laughs at me.

“So how about nuggets for him from there and lunch for us from somewhere a little more appetizing?” I suggest.

“Works for me,” Cindi says.

“Have you hit the cravings portion of pregnancy yet?”

“Not the real weird ones, yet,” she says, laughing.

“Any requests for lunch then?”

“Tacos from that place you love!” she says, rubbing her hands together. “With the biggest bowl of their fresh made guacamole and chips.” She smiles at me, and I can practically see her salivating at the thought of the food.

“That I can do,” I tell her as I pull into a drive through to order Mason’s nuggets. “Here, call the restaurant and put in a to-go order. We can swing by and pick it up next,” I tell her, handing over my cell with the contact pulled up. Order me a lunch number seven,” I tell her as the employee comes over the intercom saying to order when I’m ready.

With Mason’s food secure, I hand over his kid’s meal box so that he can start eating while his food is hot. “Be careful, buddy. No making a mess of my back seat,” I tell him playfully, helping him get things open and as secure as possible. I turn back around in my seat and pull out of the parking lot.

“God, I’m starving,” Cindi says once I’m back in the truck with two bags of food. The smells fill the cab of the truck and have my own stomach growling.

“We’ll be to my place in just a couple of minutes,” I tell her with a chuckle. I look over and see she’s already digging in to one of the bags of chips and has the lid off her container of guacamole.

“Too late.” She smiles at me, a chip full of the guacamole already set to be devoured.

I laugh at her antics. “You act like you’re pregnant or something,” I tease her.

“Laugh all you want, mister. Who’s got all the food in her lap?” she asks, raising her brows at me in question.

“Okay, okay.” I laugh again. “I’ll be nice, but if you hold my lunch hostage, I won’t be so nice. Pregnant with my two nieces or nephews or not,” I tell her in my not so stern, but trying to be stern voice.

“Johnathan, you crack me up and I love you for it,” she tells me as I pull into the garage.

“Love you, too, sis,” I tell her as I back my truck into my spot. “Ready to help Uncle John with the bags, Mase?” I ask my nephew as I turn the truck off.

“Yeppers!” he exclaims. I hop out of the truck, opening the back door and reaching in and unbuckling him from his car seat. I help him pick up all his trash from his lunch. He successfully ate it all while we drove to get our food and then home. I help him down from the truck, then head for the bed to grab their bags. I hand Mason his suitcase, pulling the handle out for him so he can roll it. I grab Cindi’s suitcase and carry on while she handles the takeout bags.

“Does Jill live in a house or apartment?” Cindi asks once we’re sitting down and eating our lunch. Mason is playing with the toys that he packed in his backpack for the flight.

“She rents a condo across town,” I tell my sister between bites.

“Whenever the conversation comes up about moving in together, I think that you should think about picking out a place together. That way it is a fresh start for both of you,” she suggests.

“That’s not a bad idea. I’ve just lived in this place for so long that I’ve kind of forgotten that I’m paying someone else’s mortgage with every rent payment each month.”

“With the close proximity to the rink, it made sense to be here. Plus, it worked out really well over the years with having guys on the team as roommates, but with your retirement now finalized, I think it would be good for you to move on. Find a place that can be yours. Hell, buy a house that needs to be fixed up and do the work yourself. It would give you something to focus on and do. Work with those hands, and get your mind off all the ‘could have beens’.”

“I don’t think I’m cut out for home remodeling.”

“Maybe not, so maybe a turn-key house would be more your style, but even with a turn-key, there are always things that need tending to. You could become the guy with the perfectly manicured lawn.”

“Doesn’t sound like me much, either.” I laugh again at my sister’s suggestions. I know that she’s just trying to give me ideas and cheer me up, and hell, what do I know, maybe one of her crazy ideas will help me.

“Tired?” I ask once we’ve finished eating and I have the leftovers packaged up and in the fridge. When I looked over at Cindi on the couch with Mason, her eyes looked a little heavy as she tried to hide a yawn behind her hand.

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