Page 66 of Shiver

“So wah mek yuh choose hockey?” he asks.

A small smile turns my lips. “To tell you the truth, I just wanted to do whatever my older brother was doing when I was a kid but ended up really loving hockey and stuck with it.”

“Do you have any kids?” Camila asks me, and I see Samara tense up from my periphery.

“Yeah, I have a daughter. Her name is Giavanna.” I smile, pulling my phone out of my back pocket to show everyone photos of her.

They smile and tell me how cute she is, but her father’s brows are pulled taut as he eyes me quizzically. “Shi nuh fayvah yuh, shi a even six months hul yet. How lang ave yuh an har madda bin separated?”1

I go to open my mouth, but Samara stops me, squeezing my hand on her thigh. “Dad, that’s not a conversation for now, and it isn’t any of your business. They’re co-parenting beautifully, and it’s really wonderful to see, especially in my line of work.” Her approval, even if disingenuous, warms me to my core. I’m always so worried that I’m messing everything up with Gia because I have no idea what I’m doing.

He puts his hands up in surrender, smiling brightly at me. “Aright, aright. Eff yuh get di stamp ah approval fram mi hard-ass dawta, mi will mind mi owna biznizz.”

Camila cuts in before I can say anything. “How’d you two meet?”

Samara groans beside me. “He was my client.”

That’s all she says. Nothing more. No further explanation.

Her family all look at her expectantly, so I wrap an arm around her, pulling her close. “I was her client, and as much as she tried to deny our chemistry…” I pause, pressing a kiss to her temple. “I fought tooth and nail for her attention, and finally, I won,” I tell them with a wink at Samara.

“Mi dawta let yuh win something?” Her dad laughs. “Dat nuh soun like ar at alla.”2

Samara rolls her eyes. “Maybe Iwantedhim to win," she says.If only that were true.

The waitress came by and took our orders, and I couldn’t help but notice that Samara was staring at her mother the entire time she ordered. Her shoulders relaxed when the server finally left.

Overall, lunch went pretty well, but I’m excited to get back to our room for a little downtime. I can absolutely understand what she’d been talking about with her family being a little exhausting in large doses.

As we’re all standing to leave, everyone starts chattering about what they plan to do with the rest of the day. Camila turns to Samara and me, asking, “You two going to join us at the main pool?”

I immediately cut in, hoping to give Samara an out if she wants it. “I was actually going to get my daughter on a video call for a little while, and I know Samara loves seeing Gia, so I was hoping she’d join me,” I say, turning my full attention to Samara.

She gives me a warm smile, and her eyes crinkle in the corners. “That sounds great,” she tells me before turning back to her mom. “You okay if we go out on our own for a while and meet you all for dinner later?”

Camila’s eyes bounce back and forth between us but finally settle on Samara. “Not at all. You two have fun. I look forward to seeing more pictures of your daughter at dinner tonight,” she tells me with a bright smile before heading back into the crowd of her family.

Samara and I walk in the opposite direction as her family, and I can’t help but slip my hand into hers. It isn’t too dainty, so it doesn’t feel like I’ll break her. She fits just right in the palm of my hand, my fingers entwined with hers as she surprisingly lets me lead her back toward our room.

The moment we’re inside, she pulls out of my grip. “Thanks for that,” she says, and her eyes look a little glassy.

“Anytime, princess. What would you like to do now that we’ve gotten away from your family?”

She flops down on the bed, tossing her forearm over her face. “I just want to read and lie by the pool.” She groans.

“Well then, let’s do that,” I say, confused as to what all the groaning is about.

“If I go outside, they’ll find me,” she says, sounding so damn dramatic it makes a laugh burst out of me.

She squints at me, trying to hold onto her frustration, but when her eyes meet mine, I swear I see her soften.

I look over to the private pool on our patio, and unfortunately, she’s right. It’s fucking gorgeous, but the gate surrounding us doesn’t provide a lot of privacy, and it’s overlooking one of the main pools.

She deserves to enjoy this vacation. As much as I know she’s going to have to balance being around her family with having time to herself, I don’t want her to have to spend it hiding inside this room, no matter how gorgeous it is in here. I’ll figure it out just as soon as I check in on baby Gi.I’m trying out new nicknames, so sue me.

“Alrighty then, I’m gonna call Cici and see if she and Gia are free to chat for a bit.”

She nods, so I pull out my cell and try for Cici, who finally answers after several rings. Her pink cheeks and blonde bun fill the screen, the sun shining overheard making it difficult to make out where she is. “Luca, hey! Do you mind if we call you back in a bit? We just got to the park by my house, and I don’t want to take my eyes off her.”

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