Page 81 of Hot for the Hockey Player
“You’re being weird, Mom,” she finally said.
“No.I’m not.Mav can come over.Mav can take you to metalwork, and woodwork, and watercolor.I’m not being weird.”
“She’s being weird,” Laurel said to Damon.
He nodded.“Yeah.Now you’re being weird.”
I glared at my offspring as I finished my yogurt and rinsed out all of our empty cups.“Go get ready for metalwork.Do you need to wear anything special?Like chainmail or plated armor?”
Damon snorted.At least he knew I was joking.“I dunno.Guess we’ll find out.”He disappeared into his room, but was only gone long enough to grab his hoodie.Then he leaned back against the counter.
Laurel was now eating an apple by slicing off pieces and dipping them into the jar of peanut butter.I couldn’t remember the last time the three of us spent this much time together outside of eating dinner—voluntarily.
“How was your first day of homeschool?”Laurel asked her brother.
His head bobbed.“It was great.Way better reading selection.I’m already halfway through the book I have to read for my book report.Math was good too.I like their workbook better.”
My throat grew tight with emotion at how happy he sounded.He never talked like this about school before.He’d put in the minimum effort, and it was like trying to bathe a cat to actually get him to do the work.The fact that it was only day one, and he was already halfway through his reading assignment floored me.
A knock at the door made me jump.
The kids looked at me strangely as Damon went to the door.“Hey, Mav!”
Maverick stepped into the entryway, then followed Damon into the kitchen.“Hey, Laurel.How was school?”
“Fine,” she garbled, chewing a mouthful of peanut butter and apple, and tossing in a one-shoulder shrug.
I raised my brows at her.
Her eyes widened, and she pointed at her mouth.“It’s full.”
“And have you started homeschool yet?”he asked Damon, intentionallynotlooking at me, which just set me on edge and made my pulse hum through my veins even quicker.
“I did.Today was the first day, and it was great.”
The door opened again to reveal Austin and Marco.
“Hey, guys.Ready to go make some stuff out of metal?”Maverick asked them.
The boys nodded.
Laurel finished her apple and peanut butter, put it all away, waved at Maverick, then disappeared to her room.
Maverick handed Damon his keys.“It’s just a push-start button, but you need the fob in there to start it.Want to all go climb in and I’ll meet you there?”
Damon’s eyes sparkled with excitement as he took Maverick’s keys, slid into his shoes, and he and his cousins headed out the door.
My belly tingled and my heart hammered as we both waited for the door to close.
The moment it did, he only had eyes for me and stepped into my space.“So?”
I swallowed.“So?”
Ooh, that smirk.That smirk was going to be the end of me.“How many times did you think about me?About us?About … this counter?”He glanced at the counter—the exact same spot—where just yesterday, he lifted me up and kissed me like I’ve never been kissed before.
I tucked my hair behind my ears, but he didn’t let me drop my hands before grabbing my wrists.“What’s this?”He cradled my hands gently as he turned them over, taking in the redness of my inner wrists and the rubber bands I wore like bangles.“Are these … punishment for thinking about me?”
I jerked my hands away.
