I sigh heavily and stretch out my arms, imitating her movements. I spin on the spot, snow covering my face and hair, until a heartfelt laugh explodes from my lungs.Shit, she’s right. I haven’t done this since I was a kid, and it feels amazing.
When the laugh subsides, I lower my head and look over at Bunny as she carries a breathtaking smile on her lips. I take a step toward her and wrap my arm around her waist, pulling her against my chest while she pants with that same smile still on her face.
“It’s getting late, we should go. We have a big day tomorrow,” I tell her softly as I brush her hair out of her face.
“Okay,” she murmurs.
I release her waist and take her hand in mine, guiding her over toward the passenger side. Then I wait until she’s seated and buckled in before closing the door and heading to the driver’s side.
Twenty-five minutes later, we’re pulling up the driveway to my parents’ two-story colonial house. It was the first purchase I made when I hit my first million with the NHL. Aubrey and I grew up in a three-bedroom broken-down apartment with my dad working two jobs and my mom working night shifts at the hospital.
We weren’t dirt poor and never really missed out on anything, but our parents made big sacrifices for us and our education. I know hockey is the reason they had to work so much and give up on family vacations and a decent home, so it only made sense that I paid them back in some way.
Emma takes Gracie in her arms while I collect our bags from the trunk. When we arrive by the entrance door, it swings open, and Aubrey waits for us on the other side. She came up two days earlier to spend more time with my parents.
“What took you guys so long?” she asks as she takes Gracie from Emma’s arms, giving us room to remove our coats.
“Sorry, Greyson was having fun twirling in the snow at the airport. I tried to get him to stop and get in the car, but he wouldn’t. He even forced me to join him,” Em tells her, the lie falling from her lips so gracefully that if I didn’t know the truth, I’d believe her.
My jaw drops open, then shuts tight as I glare at her. She giggles and looks away.Oh, you’ll pay for that later, Bunny.
“I would have loved to see that.” Brey laughs quietly. “The rooms are all set for you guys. Dad put up a crib in your room for little Gracie, and Em, you’re right next door.”
“Are Mom and Dad still up?” I ask her, looking around for any sign of them.
“No, they went to bed about an hour ago. Mom wanted to wait up, but with all the cooking preparations we did today, she was exhausted.”
I nod and carry our luggage up the stairs. First to my room, where Aubrey lays Gracie down in her bed, then wishes us goodnight while I bring Emma’s suitcase to her room. I place it by the foot of the bed and turn back to find Em looking at the room with a smile. It’s small compared to her room at home.
“I hope this is okay?”
“Of course it is. It’s homey, I love it.” She turns to me and gazes my way with affection. “Thank you for inviting me, Greyson.”
“No need to thank me. It’s the least I could do after being the reason your Christmas plans were canceled.” I offer a sad smile.
I feel a bit guilty for the trouble I’ve caused with her family, but Emma just seems relieved she doesn’t have to deal with thatanymore. Although I do know she’s talked with her dad earlier this week as well as this morning, so I’m happy to see I didn’t entirely ruin things for her.
I decide to change the subject. “Are you hungry? We could grab something quick downstairs.”
When we got home from our Christmas brunch, we changed and had a quick dinner before heading to the airport. But for some reason, I’m always starving after a plane ride.Actually, I’m always starving. I guess that’s just normal for an athlete.
“A little, yeah.”
“Okay, let me just set up the baby monitor, and we’ll head down.” We go back to my room, plug in the monitor, and grab the parent unit before quietly making our way downstairs.
Once in the kitchen, I go through everything—the pantry, fridge, cabinets—in search of what we could have. “How about hot chocolate and ice cream? Unless you want an actual meal, then I can make you a sandwich or something.”
“No, hot chocolate and ice cream sounds perfect!” She grins excitedly and quietly claps her hands together.
I grab the milk from the fridge and collect the chocolate powder from the pantry, then wander over to the cabinet that contains the mugs and take two down. As I’m filling them with milk and placing them in the microwave, the realization that Emma hasn’t surprised me with a special mug this week hits me.
I’m a little disappointed by it. Even if I fake annoyance every time I receive one, I like seeing what she comes up with.Maybe I should stop pretending I don’t like them so that she can keep getting me some.
Once I’ve finished with the hot chocolate, I take out two bowls and dump in a hefty amount ofRoloice cream. We stand with our backs to the counter, munching away and sipping our mugs. Emma takes a big spoonful of ice cream and moans with her eyes closed as she wraps her lips around the spoon.
Taking advantage of her distraction, I gather some ice cream and hold my spoon up facing her. Placing my finger over the tip, I pull the spoon back and fling the chunk directly at her, hitting her right in the cheek.
She gasps loudly as her eyes fly open. Collecting another spoonful, I reposition myself, waiting for her to turn my way.
