I palm her whole freaking adorable face, “What is wrong with you!”
“So, AK finally made his move,” Paul chuckles.
“No,” I shake my head. “You do not get to talk about me like that, especially now.”
He laughs, the whole belly kind, and Savannah mimics him, which of course makes us all laugh.
Then Paul holds up his hand, and we all go quiet, even Savannah. “A history lesson, about the hen house and how one hen, and two little chicks, are responsible for this whole thing.”
“Before you start, remember puck drop is in like thirty minutes,” I remind him.
The story he tells is beautiful, a complete full circle, and my father, our father? He didn’t flesh that out as he had before. I assume Claudia had spoken to him about what Dad told her, and Paul, he’s clearly giving him grace, which he deserves since Marcy had lied to him, but Paul also has every right to be angry, for the hurt it caused his Patsy and him too.
The girls freaked the hell out, as expected. Nalani and Noelle kept looking for and finding physical attributes that we shared, that they should have never missed, which is insane, but they have fun with it. We have the same eye shape, so does Savannah, all the same as Dad.
Paul sits down beside me, and clamps his big paw on my knee. “So, you’re a big deal now, huh?”
“Oh, please, I’ve always been a big deal.”
“Sassy ass.” He chuckles.
“Always been that too,” I grin.
He takes my hand and holds it up, gripping my little finger, “And you wrap fool’s hearts around this the minute you let them in.” He winks. “You have to be careful with a weapon like that. You end up leaving a string of broken hearts behind you.”
“I’m not going to break his heart.” I shake my head.
“Wasn’t talking about AK, you and he are solid. I’m talking aboutMatteo. That man loves you enough to come knocking and bring me receipts, to mend fences for you. You gotta let him off that hook, Sassy. He loves you, too.”
My eyes heat up, “He lied to me.”
“Nah, he just didn’t tell you stories, like I do.” He nods to Claudia, “he was missing a chapter.”
“Does that mean you and Dad can maybe be civil?”
He scrubs a hand over his face, “For you and my little chicks, I can.”
He smirks and shakes his head, “Spill it.”
“He remembers me when he’s in a different place in his life; he’s going to hate me.”
“And that makes you … happy?”
“Wouldn’t say happy, just, Karma you know?”
“I hate that I understand that, feels like I’m betraying him, and saying that to you makes me feel like I’m betraying you.”
“Promise me something?” he asks, and I nod. “Don’t ever think I feel betrayed by you. You didn’t ask for any of it,” he sighs heavily. “None of us did, but I wouldn’t change it for the world.”
I shouldn’t be watching this game the way I am.
Chicago flashes blue across the screen, Aleks cutting through the ice like he owns it, and all I can think about is the way his body felt against mine last night. His weight, his heat. The way sleep came easy once his arm settled around my waist like that was where it had always belonged.
My thighs press together, and I shift, immediately annoyed with myself.
Focus.
I reach for my tablet and busy myself. Emails first. Numbers. Contracts. Employee files. Something solid. Something boring.
