Page 39 of Puck King
Alison gasped. “The Seven Sisters constellation has always been one of my favorites.”
“You know your astronomy.” I was surprised. None of the women I’d ever dated could pick out one constellation, let alone have a favorite.
“Kind of.” She shrugged. “When I was young, we used to take the horses for trail rides. We would sleep on the banks of the creek behind the farm and stare at the sky. I never realized how much I missed seeing the open sky.”
“Why the Seven Sisters?” I asked.
“I always wanted a sister. It’s nothing deeper than that. Why Orion?”
“I wish I could say I had a profound reason. I mean, I like the mythology. But to me, it’s just the constellation that stands out the most – more than the Big Dipper.”
Alison smiled. “I think that’s a great reason. A big, shining star would obviously love big, shiny stars.”
My cheeks burned with the compliment. “I just work hard.” I deflected with a classic hockey answer.
“Don’t do that.” Her voice was stern. “Don’t you dare sell yourself short. You’re Colton King, hockey’s biggest star.”
“That sounds a bit…”
“Obnoxious?” She raised her eyebrows.
“I was going to say cocky, but obnoxious works too.”
“Perfect.” She clapped her hands together loud enough that I could hear it through the headset. “You’re both of those things.”
Normally I liked it when women asked me about hockey, but as I looked at the beautiful woman beside me, still wrapped in her heavy coat, I wanted to know more about her. “You don’t have a sister? What about a brother? And tell me about your horses. And farm.” I rattled off some of the things about her that had surprised me.
She turned to face me. “I have one brother. Stu. He’s younger and…”
Her words trailed off like she didn't want to talk about him. The cabin of the helicopter went as silent as a helicopter can get. The only sound was the rotors, clapping through the cold air above us. After a couple seconds of silence, I decided it was best to change the subject away from her brother. “Did you have a favorite horse growing up?”
Her shoulders relaxed, and when she turned to face me she had a smile on her face. “Of course. His name is Wolfie. He’s strong, smart, and a little bit wild. Was Roger your favorite?”
“Still is. See? We’ve got a lot in common.”
“What else?”
I thought about it, but couldn’t think of anything. “Well, we’re both scared of my sister.” I laughed.
“Horses and a scary sister. It’s a good start.” Alison laughed. “Does she have a softer side?”
“Roger is a he.”
“I meant your sister.” She swatted my arm. “She can’t be all salt and no sweet.”
Alison was right, but Everleigh would kill me if she knew that I had spoken about her soft side behind her back. She prided herself on that tough-as-ice exterior. As much as I wanted to tell Alison some of the things that could actually make Everleigh a likable person, like her anonymous charity work, a horse rescue, and her undying loyalty to anyone with the last name King – I couldn’t.
“She’s a lot of salt.”
“Salt can melt ice.”
“True.” Maybe one day Alison would see Everleigh’s good qualities, but it was going to have to be Ever who showed them, not me.
“Wolfie.” I chuckled. “That's an awesome name. Roger’s real name is Rambling Rex Regum.”
“Roger.” She laughed. “I can picture him now. Is he big and a little dopey?”
Not at all, he was a $500,000 thoroughbred. “Not far off. He’s big, supersmart, and he's beautiful.”
