Page 39 of Rowdy Hearts

“Okay. See you later, Mommy. Come on, Miss Raffi.” Krista tugged on Raffi’s hand. “Let’s go play.”

Raffi smiled as she let Krista drag her back to the entrance tothe suite, leaving me to settle into a seat. The suites were located just above the general seating. People were already starting to filter into the arena, most of them wearing Devils jerseys, sweatshirts, t-shirts, baseball caps, scarves, gloves. Some wore camouflage-print pants in the Devils colors of black and red. Every single person wore something with the Devils logo on it.

The merchandising alone had to rake in hundreds of thousands of dollars. Which is probably where the team, or the Lawrences, made most of their money, because it definitely wasn’t on tickets. I’d noticed the prices listed above the ticket windows and, even though Raffi had mentioned that the game was sold out, I knew enough about the economics of ticket prices to know that, even if they sold out every game this season, they couldn’t make enough to cover arena upkeep, player salaries, not to mention staff salaries and all the other costs that went into maintaining a venue like this.

So either the Lawrences were pouring money into this team and facility, or they made a shit-ton of money on merch. I guessed the answer was somewhere in the middle.

Once again, I wondered if I’d fallen down a rabbit hole and ended up in some backcountry Wonderland.

And I really had to stop thinking about St. David as backcountry. Was anywhere on the East Coast truly backcountry? The town had cell service and running water. It wasn’t like they were living in the Middle Ages. Although I had seen a horse and buggy on the road today. I’d stared at it for way too long then laughed when the little boy sitting next to the driver made a face at me.

A feminine growl of frustration from the hall announced Rainbow’s entrance. The curvy brunette whirlwind stomped into the suite, threw herself onto the chair next to me and looked for all the world like someone had told her she couldn’t play with her favorite toys anymore.

“Don’t ever work with athletes, your brothers or your father. They will find ways to piss you off that you would never think ofin a million years. They will treat you like a twelve-year-old and tell you not to worry your pretty little head about things and then expect you to design and order an entirely new line of merchandise for next year.”

Rain let out a low scream of fury that should’ve made any grown man cower in fear. I had only met Rain this afternoon at her parents’ house, when she’d stopped by to drop something off and had made me feel like a forever friend within five seconds. She’d complimented my hair, my skin and, weirdly enough, my battered and well-loved Chuck Taylors sneakers.

Then she’d asked if I wanted to join her and a few friends for Sunday brunch. No men allowed, Rain had said. Just gossip, mimosas and enough food to soak up the alcohol.

My head still spinning from the torrent of words Rain had unleashed, I had paused only a moment to say, sure, I’d love to. Which was totally not like me. I didn’t like to be thrown into intimate situations with strangers. I ended up quiet and awkward. But I couldn’t deny I wanted to go to brunch with this woman. She seemed a lot like her mom, who gathered people into her orbit with her heart and smile.

Now, Rain took a deep breath while I tried to figure out how I should respond to her barely leashed fury.

“Do you have any brothers?” Rain said before my brain had stopped working.

“No, just a sister.”

Rolling gorgeous brown eyes that appeared to be a Lawrence family trait, Rain shook her head. “You’re so damn lucky. Don’t get me wrong, I love my goddamnannoyingbrothers with all my heart, but if I ever get the chance to lace their beer with castor oil, I will laugh as I watch them run to the bathroom every two minutes.”

By this time, I was laughing so hard, I actually snorted. Covering my mouth with one hand, I had a flashback to mychildhood and my other life, the one I’d lived in front of a camera and an audience.

Rain lifted her brows as she watched me try to contain herself.

“Well, I’m glad someone thinks I’m funny instead of cute when I’m pissed off. When you’re cute, everybody thinks you’re harmless.”

Rain wasn’t wrong about the cute part. She looked like she could walk on set and immediately everyone would know she was the girl next door. The one who pined after the hot neighbor boy, the captain of the hockey or football team.

“I don’t think you’re harmless at all. And besides, if they think you’re harmless, they’ll never see you coming.”

Rain’s smile took over her whole face now, wiping away the last of the faint bitterness. “I knew I liked you. I definitely think you should stay a while. I mean, like, after Monday.”

Raffi had been careful all day not to bring up the subject of when Krista and I were going to leave. And frankly, I hadn’t wanted to think about it. The mess I’d left back in New York wasn’t going anywhere and, since I hadn’t even peeked at my social media since before I’d left, I didn’t know how bad it was.

I liked being disconnected. Out of reach. And the more I thought about it, the more I was leaning toward maybe taking a few more days next week to stay.

“I mean, I’m not trying to pressure you or anything,” Rain said, “I just figured maybe you might want to take a real break.”

I arched my brows and looked at Rain, who was practically biting her lip, trying not to ask invasive questions, even though I knew she could barely contain herself. Raffi seemed more than willing to let me keep my secrets, at least for now. Rain… not so much.

And I found I wanted to talk to someone. Not that I wanted to spill the whole truth, which was kinda shitty. But I’d grown so used to protecting herself and Krista from a world that wouldwant every little piece of us they could get, that it was second nature now.

“I’m actually considering maybe staying a few days next week. It’s…quiet here.”

Just at that moment, “A Night on Bald Mountain” began to blast through the speakers as the lights brightened throughout the arena and the fans began to cheer. I knew the game wasn’t supposed to start until seven p.m. so this must be warmups.

Lasers shot around the roof of the arena and light projections of flames surrounded the Devils logo at center ice.

Rain leaned forward so I could hear her over the music.

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