Total pages in book: 114
Estimated words: 106346 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 532(@200wpm)___ 425(@250wpm)___ 354(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 106346 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 532(@200wpm)___ 425(@250wpm)___ 354(@300wpm)
“So what’s the story?” Matthew says, looking at me. “He yours?”
I just look at him. “Yeah, pretty much.”
“Holy shit,” Max says the same time Viktor holds out a hand for Evan to pay him money.
“I never thought I would see the day,” Matthew says. “You with a kid.”
“I used to babysit all the time,” I tell them, putting on my skates.
“Yeah, to get the girls to come over and help you,” Max says.
“Shut up,” I tell them.
“How serious is this?” Viktor asks me.
“Very,” I tell them even though we haven’t had any conversations about it.
“She living with you?” Matthew asks me.
“Yeah,” I say, and then I look up while he smirks and crosses his arms over his chest.
“You going to let her leave?” Max then asks.
“Nope,” I say, and now Evan and Max moan.
“He’s a fucking crazy like Matthew,” Max says, shaking his head.
“No one is crazy like Matthew,” Evan says.
“I bet you double or nothing,” Viktor says. “He’s a touch worse.” He points at me.
I’m about to answer him when Michael comes into the room. “Dad, my leg hurts,” he says to him, and I look at him. He’s the same age as Dylan.
“Where?” he asks him.
“Where Alex hit me with the stick,” he says, and Max shakes his head.
“You’ll be fine,” he says. “Go sit on the bench for a bit.”
“What was that?” I ask Max.
“Alex was not happy when she was told it was boys only,” Max says. “She took the hockey stick and slashed Michael with it.”
“Oh my God,” Evan says, putting his hand over his mouth to stop the laughing.
“Don’t laugh,” Max says. “Where do you think it comes from? Those Stone women.”
“Okay, let’s go,” I say, getting up, and Viktor and Evan finally open their bag and get their things on. I walk out to the ice and see that Dylan is skating with MC. They both skate for the puck, and MC is a touch faster because he’s taller.
“Bring the puck back!” my father yells and makes them, and Dylan lifts MC’s stick, and just like that, he’s skating down the ice toward my father.
“That yours?” Matthew asks from beside me, and I nod. “That kid is going to make it.”
“What?” I ask him.
“See the way he skates there?” He points at Dylan who skates as if he’s gliding. “You can’t teach that, and if you do, you get it when you’re fourteen.” He turns and looks back. “Max, check out the kid.”
“Where?” Evan asks. “I have to go one-on-one with him.”
“He’s eight,” I say, and Viktor just laughs. I look at them with their New York shirts.
“You couldn’t just wear Stone Camp shirts?” I ask, and they all shake their heads.
“Assholes,” I say and skate on the ice to my father.
“Hey, Dad,” I say and then look in the corner where Dylan is fighting MC for the puck. He fakes right but then puts his stick between his own legs and knocks it away from MC, who just smirks at him as he shoots it in the net. I’m lucky that we had an empty ice this morning while all the other campers are on the other three rinks.
“That kid is …” my father starts, and Matthew joins us.
“He’s better than you guys were.” He laughs and skates to Dylan, and he starts to tell him and point at him and then to the center of the ice.
“Come on, Dylan,” Evan says, skating on the ice. “Let’s see who’s number one now.”
Dylan smiles and spits out his mouth guard. “Justin is number one.” He skates to me, and I put my hand on his head.
“Let’s show them what we’re made of, kid.” I smile to him and skate to the middle of the ice. “Dylan and me against Evan and Michael.”
“Let’s go, Michael!” Evan yells.
“Uncle Evan, I don’t want to,” he moans, getting off the bench and coming over to us. “It’s summer. Mom said I don’t have to play hockey in the summer.”
“You know Uncle Evan,” MC starts to say. “Uncle Justin did score more points than you last year.” He smirks and stands next to Matthew who just shakes his head. “Stats don’t lie, right?”
“Could be but my numbers are still higher than M&M over there,” he says and looks at me. “We doing this?”
“Yeah,” Dylan says and gets into position. My father comes over and holds the puck in the middle of center ice, and Michael and Dylan both look at him.
He drops the puck, and Dylan is the first on it. He almost runs past Michael, who is skating behind him, and I look as Evan just smiles at him. “Let’s see what you got, kid,” Evan says, skating backward, and he looks at me and then I just nod at him. He tries to take the puck away from Dylan, but he turns his body and then goes around him, and all he can do is watch him skate to the goal and tip it in. The whole bench breaks out in laughter.