Page 29 of Hot for the Hockey Player
“No worries,” Hugh said, undeterred.He scratched at his gray chin scruff which matched his thick mop of unruly gray hair.“We can do hand sculpting instead.It’s easier.”
“Oh, good.”At first, I followed him around like a lost puppy as he went from one corner of the big studio to the other, mostly talking to himself getting things ready.Then I realized I was probably in his way.So while I let him do his thing, I wandered around, checking out all his art.
“See those shelves there?”he said, pointing to a bookcase along the far wall.“Pick somethin‘ from there.Any shelf.Doesn’t matter.And we’ll make that.Or a variation of it.”
Nodding, I went to the bookshelf where brightly painted mugs, jars, bowls, plates, dishes, and fairy houses decorated the unfinished wood.
My mother was obsessed with bees, so the bee mug with the honeycomb design around the mug instantly drew my attention.I picked it up.“Can I make this?”I asked.
“Bring it over.”He beckoned me with a sweeping arm and a nod.
I met him at a workbench where he had two big bricks of gray clay, two pots of water, a series of tools, and a small lazy Susan for each of us.
I set the bee mug down and Hugh nodded.“You like bees?”
“My mother does.”
“Mother’s Day is not far off.You gonna paint it?”
“Today?”
He shook his head and grunted.“Next week.Then it’ll be ready a week after that.”
“Excellent.”
He pulled out his phone and turned the music up a little just as Fleetwood Mac’s “Landslide” came to an end.“We need to condition the clay.So fold it in half and press down.You want it the thickness of a slice of banana bread.”
I snorted.“Love banana bread.”
“Me too.”
I followed his instruction.
“What’d you do to your back?”he asked, as we rolled out the clay with our small wooden rolling pins.
“Got bodychecked from behind in hockey.Fell, crushed my L3 and L4.”
He lifted his gaze to mine.“Fuck.”
“Yeah.”I pinched my brows a little.“Do you know Jolene Dandy?”
It was like he’d seen a ghost.This did not bode well.“What did you tell that woman?”
“Uh …”
“She is The Island Mouth.If you told heranythingthe entire island will know it by the end of the week, if not sooner.”
“I, uh …”
He shook his head.“What’d you tell her, kid?”
“Just … just that I was staying at the McEvoy cabins and I’m here visiting the Campbells.Then the receptionist at Unger Wellness told her to leave me alone.”
“Ramona is a gem.Love her,” Hugh said.The twinkle in his eye said maybe helovedRamona in more than just a platonic way.His dry lips twisted for a moment.“Did you tell her your last name?”
I shook my head.“No, I know better than that.”
“Okay … okay.”He nodded.“Did you tell her anything else?Did sheaskanything else?”His level of alarm was beginning to make me panic.I knew small towns were breeding grounds for gossip and rumors, but just how much of a megaphone was Jolene Dandy?
