Page 31 of Wake Me Up
“Now you’re talking crazy,” she says, clearly annoyed. “You might not have gone to law school like you wanted to, but you and Jamie created a beautiful life together. And soon, you’ll be able to take over the bakery.”
In my heart, I know I’ll likely never be able to take over the bakery. My grandfather is practically married to the place, and that isn’t something I can do, having three kids. Not to mention the huge financial burden it takes, especially in the times when people aren’t buying treats.
“Listen to me,” she says, pulling my hand, forcing me to sit back down beside her. “I am not saying you should do something so crazy as marrying a man you don’t know just to get your daughter surgery since your stubborn ass won’t take money from the people who brought you into this world, but I am going to say this …” She stops, squeezing my hand. “Have you ever, just once, stopped and paid attention to all these things Tripp keeps doing to help you? And have you ever wondered why?” She inhales, smiling at me. “He’s not looking at you like charity, baby. He sees you as someone worth helping. And I’d say he’s pretty dang fond of your kids too.”
Releasing my hand, she grabs her drink from the coffee table and relaxes into the sofa. Snatching the remote between us, she turns it up. “Now, let’s watch the Sharks finish kicking the Bruins’ ass, yeah?”
I look blankly at her, but eventually, I work up a nod. I’ve spent all this time wondering why Tripp is so determined to do nice things for me. It’s never crossed my mind it’s because he likes me.
And that makes it even more set in stone that I can’t, under any condition, marry this man for his health insurance. Because if a man that successful and that good-looking is interested in a widowed mother of three, there’s only one reasonable explanation.
He’s batshit fucking crazy. Obviously.
I told Cash and Cane to stick around after the game—as long as it was okay with their mom. In the stands, I can see they are decked out in their gear, and I’m sure they’d love to have their shirts signed by the guys.
Cane is a big Cam Hardy fan—even though he plays for the Bruins—so when I see Cam skating toward me, I know what I’m going to do. I know I’m a fucking weirdo when I keep doing this nice shit for these kids. But they lost their father. They’ve been through hell, and if I can make them feel a bit better, I’m going to do it.
“Not only did I lose, but I also had to miss my daughter’s hockey game.” He shakes his head, but plasters on a grin to hide his disappointment. “Good game, brother,” Cam says genuinely, even though his team just lost. “Hard to take a loss, but if it’s to this team, I guess that’s all right.”
When he throws an arm around me, I pat his back. He’s one of the best in the league, but he’s also an all-around good dude too.
“Your daughter plays hockey?” I ask, and he nods proudly. “That’s badass, man,” I toss back because that’s cool as hell.
“You played a hell of a game, Hardy,” I say, giving his back one last smack before he releases me.
“Hey, do you have a few minutes after this to sign a couple of autographsfor two kids who are fans of yours?” I pause, punching his arm. “Yeah, I know. They must have something wrong with them to be Bruins fans.”
“Ha-ha, so funny,” he utters, shaking his head. “Sure, man. Anything for a big dawg like yourself.”
“Thanks. I appreciate it,” I say before lifting my glove up.
Holding his fist up, he bumps his glove against mine and skates away.
I know the past couple of days have been tough on Cash and Cane. I hope this makes it a bit better.
“I can’t thank you enough for the tickets,” Freya’s dad says before holding his hand out toward his grandsons. “Or for introducing them to so many players. This will be a night they won’t forget—that’s for sure.”
I look over at Cane and Cash, who are showing each other all the autographs they got. Both are grinning ear to ear and look pretty damn happy.
Good. That was the goal for me tonight. Just take their mind away from everything else going on at home. They deserve that.
“It’s no big deal,” I say modestly. “Glad they had a good night and enjoyed themselves.”
Freya’s grandfather steps forward to talk, and in the past hour or so that I’ve been around him, I can tell he’s a bit of a hard-ass, but I can also sense it’s an act and he’s just one of those old men who thinks he’s funny.
“So, you’re trying to date my granddaughter, huh?” he says, narrowing his eyes at me.
I look at his son-in-law, widening my eyes because I don’t really know what to say to this dude. I glance nervously back at the old man to find his eyes still on me, only he’s moved even closer.
“Ignore him. He’s a crazy fucker,” Freya’s dad says, shaking his head. “Cut it out, you old bastard, would you? He did a nice thing.”
“Nice things come at a cost, you know. I was a young man once before.”
“Yeah … when dinosaurs roamed,” he utters with a chuckle. He turns his attention to me, thankfully being a buffer so that I don’t have to answer his father-in-law. Instead, Frank walks off toward the boys, muttering something. “That was a good game, Tripp. You know, I was worried about this season with Kolburne, but somehow, you fellas have pulled it together.”
“Thanks,” I say with a nod. “We’ve got a strong team, no doubt. I wasn’t sure how today would go. The Bruins always give us a run for our money.”
“It’s that damn Cam Hardy,” he says, shaking his head. “Then again, Walker James matches his talent and hustle.”
