Total pages in book: 90
Estimated words: 84802 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 424(@200wpm)___ 339(@250wpm)___ 283(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 84802 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 424(@200wpm)___ 339(@250wpm)___ 283(@300wpm)
“Well, if isn’t my favorite nephew,” I tell him as he giggles, waiting for me to lean in and kiss him. I cover his face with kisses as he giggles and pretends to tell me to stop.
Finally opening the front passenger seat, I get in and turn to Aly. “Well, if it isn’t my favorite sister-in-law,” I tell her, leaning in to kiss her cheek as she laughs and waits for me to buckle in.
“You look amazing,” she says as she pulls out of the parking lot.
“Is that where you and Daddy fell in love?” Michael asks, pointing at the loft building.
“It is,” Aly answers.
He returns his attention to the movie playing in front of him. “Are we excited to see Daddy play?” I ask, turning around, and that sets off Alex.
“Dada, dada, dada.” She smiles, looking out the window for him.
“There she goes,” Aly says. We make it to the arena in record time and park in the players’ parking lot. The valet guy comes to get the keys.
“Mrs. Horton.” He smiles at her.
“Ricardo,” she says, “so nice to see you. How is the family?”
I get out and open the back door, unbuckling Alex.
“Hi, beautiful.” She waves her hands in the air as I pick her up, propping her on my hip while I lean in and grab her diaper bag.
She is wearing little jeans and a Horton jersey, her blond hair in pigtails, curling down.
Allison walks around the car to come join us while she holds Michael’s hand, and I see he’s dressed in jeans also with a Horton jersey. “Let’s go,” Allison says. When we walk in, she smiles at everyone she knows, and I wave to the ones I’ve come to know over the years. While I take Alex and go roaming around the arena, I hear my name being yelled.
“Dr. Denise.” I turn to see Jack and Sarah. Jack is dressed in jeans and a team jersey. A team beanie hat covers his head as he pulls Sarah’s hand toward me.
“Hello, handsome,” I say to him as approaches me, and I bend to hug him. “Are you here to watch the game?” I ask him, smiling.
“Yeah, Daddy plays defense,” he tells me, and then he put his hands up. “He’s the biggest.”
“Is he now?” I ask him and then turn to smile at Sarah. “Is this your first hockey game?” I ask her, and she nods.
“I’m excited to see what all the fuss is about.” I throw my head back and laugh.
“You haven’t seen a hockey game? It really is the best sport there is,” I tell her and then hear Jack shout with glee.
“Michael is here,” he says, and Michael runs to us, and they jump up together while Allison makes her way to us. Alex finally leans out of my arms for her mother.
“Sarah,” I say, turning to look at Allison, “this is my sister-in-law, Allison. This is Jack’s nurse.”
“So nice to meet you,” she says and then looks around. “I think I’m going to head up to the lodge so I can put her down and let her explore a bit.” She looks at Michael. “Do you want to come with me?”
“Can Jack come with us?” he asks his mother, and Allison just smiles at him.
“Of course, he can.” She tilts her head to the side. “Come on, let’s go.”
“We can have pizza.” I hear Michael tell him while they walk, and then Jack turns around, looking for me, holding out his hand for me. I look at Sarah, who just smiles. I walk ahead to them, and he grabs my hand as we walk up the stairs to the lodge.
“Come on, and I’ll show you where we can sit,” Michael tells Jack, and I look over at Sarah.
“You can relax a bit. I’ll go and take care of them. Give you a break.”
“Oh, that’s okay,” she tells me, and I just flick my wrist.
Walking to the outside of the lodge where the seats are, Michael and Jack sit down and start pointing at things when the players from Toronto come out, and the fans start booing.
“Do you guys want to go down and see the warm-up?” I ask them. Jack doesn’t know what I’m talking about, so he looks at Michael.
“We get to go see our dads skate and practice,” he says, and Jack looks over at me.
“Can I really go?” he asks, and I have the hardest time not taking his face in my hands and kissing his cheeks. “Momma never let me go down with all the fans because it was too loud.”
“Well, she isn’t here, so let’s go and bang that glass,” I tell them and tell Sarah who is talking to Allison now that I am bringing the boys down to the glass.
They both hold my hand as we walk down the steps to the glass. “That’s my uncle Matthew.” Michael points at him as he skates to the glass and hits it with the blade of his stick, and the boys crack up laughing. Max gets there right after Matthew, and Michael yells his name.