Page 116 of The Vacation Mix-Up
My sports-loving heart deflates. I’d much rather see that than a smelly lagoon.
“Is DeRozan on the USA roster this year?” Riles asks.
“He is, love.”
“I like him. Great player.”
“You would say that. He’s almost a bigger ball hog than MJ.”
“Ben,” she chastises through a sigh, “are we really going to do this again?”
He lifts his drink and winks at her. “Yes, love, we are.”
“Are you sure?”
“I am.”
She sighs again. “Fine. Answer me this. Who was the best team during MJ’s reign?”
He scoffs. “The Bulls, of course. But that doesn’t make MJ the GOAT.”
“I’m not finished.” She raises her finger, silencing him. “Who was the best team during Kobe’s reign?”
“Lakers.”
“Correct.” She leans forward, her pretty eyes intense. “And who is the best team during LeBron’s reign?”
Ben opens his mouth but then closes it again, eyes narrowed.
“That’s right—the Warriors.” She leans back in her seat again, sips her Cosmo, then elegantly places it on the table. “Does Lebron play for the Warriors, pray tell? No, he doesn’t.”
I smirk; she’s got him.
“LeBron is the GOAT,” the Ohio teenage son mumbles.
“See?” Ben snaps his fingers at him. “Even the kid knows his shit.”
“Hey, Zach,” Riles says. “Do you know who Kareem Abdul-Jabar is?”
He looks up from his screen and shrugs.
She picks up her glass, sips her Cosmo once more, and mumbles, “I rest my case.”
“You rest nothing, love. No one born this century knows who Kareem is.”
“But someone ‘who knows their shit’ would, and clearly, Riles knows her shit.”
Ben snaps his head to me. “Whose side are you on?”
“Hers.” I drape my arm over the back of Riles’s chair, purposely cementing my choice.
He scoffs. “Yeah. I can see why.”
“Okay,” Hugo announces, clapping his hands together. “Let’s change the subject.”
“Yes. Let’s do that.” Kathy massages her temple. “All this talk of basketball gives me a headache.”
“I’m hungry,” Zach whines.
