Page 46 of The Nanny Goal

“Yes, it’s exactly like that.” He growls in frustration, and I have to laugh.

He meets my gaze.

Oh.

Ignore those feelings, Emery.

“Would you come with us to the arena?” he asks. “You can skate, too. If you want to? Might be fun.”

“I don’t have my gear.”

He shrugs. “What size skates do you wear?”

* * *

They go to the hospital without me, which gives me some quiet time to further familiarize myself with the kitchen and start to make a shopping list for groceries for the next week.

And then I get changed for skating. I have limited clothing options since I packed light for the Granger Road Trip—a situation I will need to rectify, but can’t fix in this moment—so I go for my thickest black leggings and my Buffalo hoodie that I was going to wear to that game. I snap a picture of me in it and send it to the Granger sibling group chat and tag Logan so he can see that I was thinking of him.

Emery

Wearing this to skate at the Hamilton barn today.

Logan

That’s my baby sister! Yes! Represent. Get Ty Connor to sign it. He’s from Buffalo.

The team isn’t there, sorry.

Wait, so who are you wearing it for, then?

I frown.

You, you dummy! For this photo! And I have limited clothes here.

What’s going on?

OMG, doesn’t anyone in this family talk about anything other than hockey? Alexei Artyomov’s mom had a heart attack. I stayed in Hamilton to help their family.

Oh shit. That’s nice of you. Maybe don’t rile him up with a division rival sweatshirt, though.

He can handle some riling, don’t worry

Forrest

Catching up… be nice to Alexei, he’s not a brother stand-in

Oh, if Forrest only knew just how true that is.

I take another picture, this one flipping them both off, just before I hear the front door open upstairs.

“Emery?” Alexei calls out. “We’re back.”

“Coming!”

He’s waiting at the door when I emerge from the basement. His quick sweeping gaze takes in my sweatshirt, but he doesn’t say anything about it.

Inessa is excited when I get in the passenger seat. She waves at me in the lightweight mirror attached to the headrest in front of her rear facing car seat and babbles at me in Russian at first, until Alexei reminds her to use English.

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