Page 40 of Fake Shot

“Yeah, I just wanted to make sure the game hadn’t started.”

“I promised to tell you if it did,” I remind him. On the TV, the players start leaving the ice. “Oh, you better hurry up. They’re going to do the pre-game stuff soon.” I realize that I don’t even know if there’s a name for the players’ entranceonto the ice, with lights and music, before the national anthem and the puck drop.

The buzzer rings, and I tell him, “And Morgan and Lauren are here.”

“When’s Mom going to be home?” he asks.

“In less than half an hour,” I say as I reach over to buzz my friends into Audrey and Drew’s place.

“I can’t believe she’s missing the beginning of the game.”

“She’s got her dance class, but she’s leaving early so she can be home to watch some of the game with us before you go to bed. Better go get your pajamas on, oryou’regoing to miss the beginning of the game.”

Audrey’s weekly Wednesday night dance class used to be a guaranteed time each week that I got to spend hanging out with my nephew. I didn’t realize how much I’d miss that now that they live with Drew, and I only need to watch him when Drew is traveling. And once the playoffs are over, Drew will be home all the time, so I’m going to have to be even more intentional about scheduling time to see Graham.

Morgan and Lauren enter with a wide array of snacks and drinks and start setting them out on the kitchen island as we listen to the sportscasters talking about how Boston won the first game of the series two nights ago and speculate whether Florida can bring home a win on home ice tonight, before the series moves to Boston for Friday night’s game.

“Where’s Graham?” Morgan asks.

“Getting his PJs on.”

“Okay, so once Audrey’s home and he’s in bed, we havea lotof questions about this whole fake engagement situation,” she says. I’d explained everything to my family on Sunday night at our weekly family dinner, which I’d invited Morganto so that everyone who had to know the truth was there. Except Colt and Drew, who’d already left for Florida. Colt said he’d talk to Drew on the flight down, given that they normally sit together.

“The types of questions we weren’t going to ask in front of Jameson,” Lauren adds. “Because we love you, and him, and don’t want to embarrass you or send him to the grave early.”

This is all fake—it’s not like Colt would ever have feelings for me. So as long as I can keep my own feelings and thoughts under control, everything will be fine. This shouldn’t be a big deal.

“Okay,” I say, dragging the word out tentatively.

Graham comes running down the hall. “Auntie Lauren, why didn’t you bring Iris and Ivy?” That kid loves his little cousins so much. He’s going to be a great big brother someday.

Lauren bends down and kisses Graham on top of his head, reminding him, “Because they’re already in bed. They don’t get to stay up late to watch hockey games.”

“But it’s still light out,” Graham says, clearly not remembering that the sun sets later in the spring. “And it would be more fun if they were here.”

“Trust me, you don’t want overtired three-year-olds around. They’re not very fun.”

The players take the ice and I try not to focus on the way Colt’s moving around the crease, using the edges of his blades to rough up the ice so he doesn’t go sliding across it when he tries to make a save. He’s doing it in time with the music, like he’s dancing, and even though it’s an away game, a segment of the crowd is cheering and clapping along withhis antics. He’s hamming it up for the fans, like he always does, and it’s a good reminder that everything with Colt is for show. Just like our “engagement.”

During one of the commercial breaks, Morgan looks over and says, “Oh, I meant to tell you. I was able to schedule that interview with Rosie. This is going to be so amazing for getting some donors for the mentoring program. We can film it the week after next, but where would you like to do it? On a job site? In the Our House office? Your house?”

Morgan has done amazing things for our social media platforms and website since she took over our marketing six months ago. She seems to have a real knack for what will connect with potential clients.

“I’m fine with whatever makes Rosie feel most comfortable. Did she mention about her face?”

“No, what about it?”

“One side of her face is ...” I don’t know the right words to use here. Rosie refers to her face as “fucked up,” but it’s so much deeper than that. “... permanently damaged because of an abusive situation with her daughter’s father.”

“Oh my gosh,” Lauren says, and I can tell she’s doing that thing she does where she catalogs all the ways she could have had it worse with her late husband. His death uncovered a whole secret life he was leading, but thankfully, it also led her back to my brother.

“Yeah. He’s in jail now, but she wears a permanent reminder of him. She’s such a badass, but she’s secretly really self-conscious about the scars. If we can film it so that we’re focused on her at an angle that doesn’t show that side of her face, that would be perfect.”

“Of course,” Morgan says. “I’ll take some test recordings,too, and show them to her to make sure she’s happy with the setup before we start.”

“Okay. Just let me know where and when, and no matter what else is going on, I’ll make sure I’m there for the recording, too.”

“I didn’t realize you guys were already at the point of looking for donors until you told us what happened at that dinner,” Lauren says.

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