Page 130 of Best Man
Niko couldn’t stop smiling. This was an incredible feeling, no doubt—the payoff of a life’s work. And though this day would surely go down as the happiest day of his life, winning the Cup was actually a distant number two.
Yana,he thought, wondering how long he “had” to party with the boys before he could rush back to the hospital, and not be roasted alive for bouncing early.
Jax, whose jersey was also stained with cider, emerged from the crowd. He sat next to Niko, holding a cell phone to his ear.
“What? I can’t hear you!” Jax yelled, plugging his other ear with his finger. “You saidwhat?”
Nothing about this was unusual—many of the boys were trying to make phone and video calls to loved ones. With all the music and singing and yelling in the room, no one could hear.
But Niko leaned closer and listened in.
“Now?” Jax asked, looking over at Niko with alert eyes. “Okay. I’m on my way,” he said, and hung up his phone.
“What’s up?” Niko asked.
“Guess who’s water just broke?” Jax asked.
“Holy fuck! Get your things, Big Rig! This might be fast!”
The two quickly took off their ice skates, swapping them for sandals. They didn’t even bother to take off the rest of their hockey gear.
“Have fun, boys!” Jax yelled, his voice booming over the party. “I gotta run! Drink a few for me, will ya?”
“What?!”The boys reacted like you might expect when a valuable member of the team announced he was bailing on the celebration.“BOOOOOOOOOOO!”
“Yeah, where the hell are you goin’, Big Rig?” Dane asked. “We gotta party!”
“Piper’s water broke,” Jax said.
Suddenly, the boys understood.
“Oh, shit!”
“It’s fucking on!”
“If she’s anything like her sister, you better hurry!”
“And I’m going with him,” Niko said.
The team booed once more. Parisi cracked his pussywhip in the air,whip-pah.
“Hey! That’s not fair!” Niko fired back. “I was in such a hurry to get back here, I didn’t even get to hold my daughter yet!”
“I’m just kiddin’ ya, bud,” Parisi said with a grin. “Go hold your baby. And give Paulina a big ol’ kiss for us!”
“Thank you. I will,” Niko said with a nod. “Now put some real fucking booze in that Cup, boys! You earned it.”
The boys went up with a cheer, and a bottle of champagne popped a second later.
40
Paulina
One Month Later
Jean-Gabriel Parisi, who could barely stand without staggering five minutes ago, was already halfway up the ladder to the ten-foot diving board before anyone noticed.
“Oh no! Sasha, look!” Paulina muttered. She was lying in a lounger by the poolside, an umbrella protecting her from the late afternoon sun.
