Page 84 of Icy Pucking Play

"Did you invite me to lunch just to criticize my eating habits?"

"No, I invited you to lunch because you're spiraling and someone needs to call you on it." She leans forward. "What happened with Sophie?"

"Nothing happened."

"Right. That's why she's not answering anyone's calls. That’s why Natalia cried over math homework yesterday. That’s why Ryland says practice feels like a funeral."

"It's complicated."

"It's really not." She steals another fry. "You're pushing her away because you're scared."

"I'm not…"

"Save it for someone who didn't watch you fall apart after Chelsea." Her voice softens. "But Sophie's not Chelsea, E.”

"You think I don't know that?"

"I think you're so busy protecting yourself from getting hurt that you don't see you're hurting everyone else." She pulls out her phone. "Want to see how many times Natalia has asked about her this week? Or should we count the practice sessions Ryland's missed because the tension is too much?"

"Jules…"

"Or maybe we should talk about how Mom keeps making extra portions of everything 'just in case Sophie stops by’."

"That's not fair," I mutter, but the guilt is immediate and crushing.

"No? Then let's talk about last night's practice."

"Rather not."

"Too bad." She scrolls through her phone. "According to Ryland, you missed eight easy shots, snapped at three different players, and made Coach Martinez say, and I quote, 'I haven't seen him this bad since the divorce’."

"Are you done?"

"Not even close. Want to hear what Mom said when Sophie missed Sunday dinner?"

"Julia."

"Or maybe we should discuss why you're really angry. Because Clark's sniffing around Ryland? Or because he's sniffing around Sophie?"

I freeze with my water glass halfway to my mouth. "What?"

"Oh, you didn't know?" Her smile is sharp. "They're having dinner tonight. At Giovanni's."

The glass hits the table hard enough to slosh water. "They're what? I told her to absolutely have nothing to do with that jackass."

"Interesting." She sits back, studying me. "That got a reaction."

"When did you—how did you…"

"Helen from copy editing tells me everything. Occupational hazard of bringing her my famous banana bread every week." She tilts her head. "The question is, what are you going to do about it?"

I think about this for a moment. WhatcanI do? Apparently, she’s not listening to me anyway. "Nothing. She can have dinner with whomever she wants."

"Even someone who tried to destroy your marriage?"

"She doesn't know about that."

"Because you won't tell her!" Julia throws a fry at me. "God, you're infuriating. This amazing woman walks into your life, looks at you like you hung the moon…"

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