Page 35 of The Rebound Plan

Harper, Ani, and Becca promptly follow suit.

“Us,” I confirm. Then I turn to Russ. “Do you have a wine cellar here in this palatial cottage?”

“Yeah, there’s the start of one, anyway. Through the kitchen pantry.”

“Good. We’re going to destroy it. Girls, let's go. Leave them to their kissing games or whatever they want to talk about. We have Emery Granger to get to know better.”

The woman of honour claps her hands together and squeals, and Russ gives me a slow nod of approval. Finally, I feel like for the first time all day, I've done something actually right, because Russ looks happy with me.

Emery must read his expression differently, because she stops and gives him a reassuring pat on the cheek.

“It’s okay, buttercup,” she says sweetly. “I can handle the WAG gauntlet. My mom and sisters-in-law were all WAGs. I’ve trained for this.”

“She makes us sound so menacing,” I say in a stage whisper to Kiley.

“Not us,” she whispers back. “Her brother’s wives, though, might be monsters.”

Emery tips her head back and laughs. “Definitely not the wives that were the problem. But that’s a story for after we find the wine.”

It doesn’t take long to affirm that my decision to bring her deeper into our circle to ward off whatever that weird energy was with Russ was definitely the right call.

Emery Granger is a fucking delight. First, she finds us a bottle of white wine and expertly opens it, pouring us each a glass before saying, “What do you need to know about me?”

Straight and to the point.

I go first. “How long have you known Russell?”

Her gaze flicks to my face, curiosity and bald assessment equally present. Maybe this grilling with go both ways.

She thinks about for a second. “Almost seven years?”

Kiley and Harper exchange a look, clearly doing math on her age and Russ’s age.

I clear my throat delicately. “And was it…a crush from the start, maybe?”

Emery snorts. “God, no.”

We all laugh.

Then she blushes. “I mean, for a very long time, Russ was just…Rusty. On some levels, he’s still that guy.” She glances my way. “And old, no offence.”

“None taken,” I say dryly. “Although to be clear, I’m not as old as he is.”

Her pink cheeks turn scarlet. “I didn’t mean that.”

“It’s fine.” I wave my hand. “So when did it change?”

“Very recently.” She presses her lips together. “Very, very recently. And we’re not, like…exclusive.” She looks at me for a long second, as if she needs to make sure I don’t judge her for that. “We live in totally different countries, you know? If the right person comes along and sweeps him off his feet, I’ll be happy for them. I’m not a jealous human being.”

I laugh lightly to cover up the wave of relief I feel that Russ isn’t a hot second away from requesting a trade to be closer to his girlfriend. “Got it. That’s cool.”

She smiles brightly. “So we were friends first, and that feels like a better foundation for a relationship than anything else I tried in the past.”

Kiley lifts her glass in the air. “Cheers to that.”

Great. Even Russ’s week-old relationship is healthier than mine. “Now that we’re not getting interrupted,” I say dryly. “Is there anything you want to know from us? Anything Highlanders specific?”

“All the hockey stuff is pretty familiar to me. Ummm…” She takes a long sip of wine. “Look, we don’t need to…” She wiggles her fingers back and forth. “I know the score. You guys are genuinely lovely. But the sorority of WAGs only exists as long as the hockey player boyfriend or husband in question decrees it to be so, and Russ and I are still pretty new and pretty casual. You won’t need to add me to a group chat, you know?”

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