Page 26

Drake

After the game, I take a shower and find my dad waiting for me outside the locker room. He’s leaning against the wall, his thick arms crossed over his chest. Even at his age, he’s still in game-ready shape.

“Drake,” he says, raising his hand to beckon me with his finger. I rush over to him, and he slaps me hard on the back, then he pulls me into a hug that could crack a rib. “Good game, buddy.” He sighs, holding me for what feels like a long time before he releases me from his death grip.

“Everything okay, Dad?”

He sighs again. “Yeah, just wanted to check on you. After what Preston did…” His voice trails off as he shakes his head in disappointment.

“His career is over. Alex will have to pull a lot of strings to get anyone to look at him after that stunt he pulled. What was the fight about? It looked personal.”

“Preston said he kept getting in his face, so he laid his ass out.”

“My name might go a long way, but it won’t dig you out of a hole that size. Promise me you won’t make the same mistake as Preston. We have too much riding on your future.”

My entire life has been a series of events leading up to a professional hockey career. I’ve never planned for another future. Hockey is it for me, plain and simple.

“I wouldn’t think of it,” I admit.

“I’m proud of you.” He pins me down with his intense gaze. “You looked good out there. The Senators won because of your last save.”

I roll my shoulders. “We did it as a team.”

The corners of his mouth stretch into a wide grin.

He wouldn’t be happy with me if he knew the shit I’ve done over the last few years at school.

Getting called out by The Queen for dick pics wasn’t my finest moment.

Almost losing Taylor over it—that was an all-time low.

The thought of disappointing my dad hits me like a punch to the gut.

My dad’s here because he worries about me.

Seeing Preston throw his career down the drain must have kicked his parental fear into top gear.

He cups my shoulder with his big hand and squeezes hard. “If you need to talk about what happened tonight, you know you can come to me, right?”

I nod. “Yeah, I know.”

“Your mom really likes Taylor. So does Chloe. She invited her to the house for Easter dinner.” He drops his hand to his side.

“She seems like a nice girl. So does her friend. From what I overheard of their conversation, Bex is the reason Preston started that fight. Don’t let women interfere with your career. ”

“My game has improved since I met her.”

“You’re still in the honeymoon period with her. Once real life kicks in, all of that will change.”

“It didn’t for you and mom,” I challenge.

He stuffs his hands into his pockets and shrugs. “Your mom is different. She turned my life around.”

“Taylor has done the same thing for me,” I confess.

“Do you love her?”

“Yes,” I say without hesitation.

“Love makes you do stupid things. Look at what Preston just did for Bex.”

“How do you know it was for her? Lehane is a dick. He’s always been an asshole to Preston because he’s the best in the league.”

“Was the best,” my dad growls. “And I know what I heard. So did your mother and Chloe. That fight was over Bex. Just ask Preston.”

Confused, I cock an eyebrow at him.

Now, it all makes sense. Preston would do anything for Bex. Every time he was on the ice with Lehane, the two were going at it. But what does Bex have to do with Lehane?

Does she know him?

“Don’t worry, Dad. I’m not planning to start any fights over Taylor.”

She wouldn’t need me to defend her, anyway. My girl can kick some serious ass. She’s better trained than every guy on my team put together.

“We better get over to the hospital and see how Preston’s doing,” he says.

While the rest of us stayed behind to shower, the team doctor drove Preston to the closest hospital. His hand looked broken, covered in blood and a bone popping out of the side.

“I’m gonna ride over with the team. I’ll meet you guys there.”

My dad hugs me again, this time harder than the last before he takes a step back from me. “I miss having you around the house. There’s too much estrogen with your mom and Chloe. I want you to come by sometime this week to hang out.”

“I don’t miss walking in on you and Mom making out in the kitchen,” I joke, though I mean every word.

They’re so damn lovey-dovey it drives me crazy. No kid wants to see their parents tearing off each other’s clothes regularly.

He laughs. “It will just be you and me. Promise.”

I say goodbye to my dad and take out my phone to text Taylor telling her I will meet her at the hospital. I need to see her. It’s only been a few days, and I miss her so fucking much.

My parents insisted I bring Taylor to their house in South Jersey for Easter dinner.

We both stayed on campus for the quick break, so it was easy to convince Taylor to come home with me.

But now we’re here, and she’s in complete shock over the sheer size of my family’s estate, I’m wondering if I should have told Taylor about this place sooner.

“Holy shit,” Taylor says as I drive through the gates that lead to the main house on the compound. “Is this a mini version of the White House? Jeez, Drake.” Her mouth falls open as she stares out the window in awe. “I knew you were rich but damn…”

“It’s not my money.”

She shifts in her seat to look at me. “Did you get lost in here when you were a kid? I mean, in all seriousness, does this place come with a tour guide or a map?”

Pulling into one of the six covered garages, I laugh at her silliness. Yeah, we’re mega-rich, but I couldn’t care less about the money. None of it belongs to me.

“How about I give you a tour of my bedroom?” I lean across the center console to give her a quick kiss. “I have an enormous bed you should check out.”

“Your bedroom must be more like an apartment than an actual room,” she quips.

“Nah, there’s only a bathroom, kitchen, and a butler who tucks me into bed.”

Her eyebrows rise, and then she shakes her head.

“I’m joking, you know. A few other rooms that are mine…”

She smiles so wide it reaches up to her clear blue eyes. “But you don’t have a butler?”

“No, we have one. His name is Francis. If you’re lucky, he’ll let you call him Frank. He’s kinda old- fashioned.”

She leans back against the leather chair and chuckles. “You’re serious?”

I nod, stripping off my seatbelt. “Yep. My mom grew up with live-in staff. She doesn’t know how to do normal mom stuff.”

“Okay,” she says, dragging out her words. “Now, be a gentleman and come open my door for me. Or do you expect Francis to do that for you?”

Laughing, I shake my head and slide out of my Escalade. “No, that’s all me. You beat me to it.”

After my mom and Chloe give Taylor a tour of the house, they enter the living room where I wait with my dad. My mom and sister love Taylor.

Before Taylor stumbled into my life, that was the plan. I never thought I would find anyone I could confide in like I did with her. Most women would have laughed when I confessed my secret.

Taylor plops down on the couch next to me, and I slide my arm across the back of her neck.

She cuddles up next to me, the heat from her body spreading warmth down my thigh.

Because it’s Easter, Taylor insisted she dress up for the occasion.

Wearing a long yellow sundress that scoops low enough for me to see down her top, and I can’t stop staring at her.

“Drake,” Chloe says, snapping me out of my Taylor induced haze. “Do you mind if we use your love life for inspiration for our next book?”

“Huh?” Confused, I snap my head in her direction. “What? No… What are you talking about?”

Chloe gathers her dark hair in her hands and rakes her fingers through it. “Taylor told us about how you guys met. Mom wants to use your story in one of our books.”

What the fuck? I can’t believe Taylor told her about how we met.

“Enemies to lovers romances are super hot,” she adds.

“We were never enemies,” I counter.

“You weren’t exactly friends either,” Chloe points out.

“She just didn’t like me all that much at first,” I admit.

“Can you blame her?” Chloe snorts. “You were such a bonehead.”

“What did you tell them?” I whisper the words against Taylor’s earlobe, and she squirms in my arms.

“Nothing major,” she says in a hushed tone. “Don’t worry.”

“But at least you redeemed yourself,” Chloe says with a smile. “You’re not a total lost cause.”

“My baby knows how to treat a woman,” my mom interjects. “He learned it from me.”

“You mean from me,” my dad says.

She turns to look at my dad, facing off with him. They share an intense moment before she turns to look at me. “Your father is a good cookie. I suppose some of his qualities rubbed off on you.”

My dad hugs her hard against his chest. She’s tiny compared to him, his large body covering most of hers until he releases her from one of his death grips.

“Your mother likes to use real-life inspiration for her books,” my dad says. “But she’s not prying into either of your lives to do it.”

Mom scrunches her nose at him.

She tried to do the same thing to my dad when they were dating. He eventually caved and let her use some of his life in her books. Years into their relationship, he even let her write a book about his dark past in a biography, which helped many people who were struggling with similar issues.

Chloe sits up straight and sips from her iced tea glass. No one ever challenges my dad. This is his house. What he says goes. And in this case, it benefits me.

After we eat dinner, I give Taylor a private tour of the house.

We end up in my bedroom on the second floor, in the corner of the east wing.

Chloe’s room is on the first floor, but she went out for the night.

With my parents occupying the west wing, Taylor and I have this side of the house to ourselves.

“I still can’t believe you live here,” she mutters, staring up at the high ceiling. “Are those stars?”