“Scott told me that he was cheating on you, and that’s why you came home.”
I chug a large mouthful of water and swallow it quickly. A huge part of me wants to tell him to leave it.
But my subconscious wills the smaller, more open part of me to speak, and when I do, a cathartic feeling inflates my lungs.
“At first, I gave him the benefit of the doubt. It was all rumors and my suspicions and nothing solid. I didn’t want to accuse him of something he hadn’t done and believe the bitches on campus over the trust I originally placed in him. That didn’t seem fair.”
Emmett cocks his head to one side, studying me intently. “How old are you again?”
“Twenty-one. Why?”
He leans forward and steals a fry from my plate, shrugging as he eats it. “That isn’t an attitude typical of a twenty-one-year-old. I wouldn’t have seen it like that when I was your age.”
Seizing the opportunity to be cocky and act exactly my age, Ireach across the table and steal a piece of asparagus from his plate, smiling as I bite the end.
“I guess I’m not like most twenty-one-year-olds.”
Emmett’s steely-gray eyes drop to my mouth, a pink stain creeping across his high cheekbones. Like he’s trying to gather himself, he swipes his glasses from the table and sets them back on his face.
A heavy awkwardness falls between us. We’ve always laughed and joked around, but I’ve never sensed a shift like the one taking hold in this room.
“I’m just saying that Tucker is a dick, is all,” Emmett voices, his tone professional.
I nod and try to keep the conversation light, dropping the asparagus stalk to my plate. “That he is. Trouble is, like my mom said, I can’t control his actions or force him to step up and be a dad. All I can do is try and get through these next few months and then figure out finding a job.”
Emmett balks at me. “You’re not going back to college?”
I want to laugh out loud at the thought. “Tune in to reality, Emmett.” I circle my huge stomach and then point at my face. “As if I can finish my political science degree and then move on to law school while single-handedly raising a child. The only way I could do that would be with a nanny. An expensive nanny.”
“What about your mom?” he suggests. “You could transfer to a local college, and she could help. I know she’d want to.”
“And quit her full-time job as a bank teller?” I retort. “I can just see it now …” My voice turns sarcastic as I mimic her manager. “Sure, sure, Freya. You bring the screaming baby into work with you, and we’ll turn the place into a day care.”
Emmett narrows his eyes at me, fighting not to laugh at my wicked sense of humor. “I take back what I said. You make the perfect twenty-one-year-old.”
I point at his iPhone set on the table, the model being at least three years out of date. “The same could be said for you. Only older people aren’t bothered about the latest technology.”
His lips tip into a smile, and as quickly as the atmosphere turned awkward, normal service between us resumes. A rumble of laughter echoes in Emmett’s chest as he gazes down at his phone.
“I guess I should update the phone no?”
I shrug. “I was only messing with you. I couldn’t give a shit about technology, so long as it works. I’m loving the admission that you’re old though.”
“Brat.”
I point to my face. “Me?”
Emmett’s eyes narrow further. “You know you are, Billie.”
CHAPTER TEN
EMMETT
“Would it be tempting fate if I declared this season as my best yet?” Jack gazes around our group, eyes finally landing on me as we stand at the edge of the practice rink and drink some fluids.
“With two months left in the season, plus playoffs after that, I’d say that’s a brave call to make,” Archer replies, trying to catch his breath like the rest of us.
Coach has gone hard with us today after we picked up a loss in Pittsburg. We should’ve come away with theW, but our game was off the pace, other than Jack, who finds top performances from nowhere.
