Page 152 of Desperate Pucker
I squint at him. “Says the guy who ate double that.”
His mouth slants up in a smile. Nick and Anna laugh.
“We’re impressed you could eat that many cabbage rolls, Madeline,” Scott says.
“I’m just tickled that you liked them so much,” Shannon says.
“This was honestly one of the best meals I’ve ever had in my life,” I say.
Shannon beams. “I’m going to pack up some for you to take home with you.”
“Oh, you don’t have to do that. I don’t want to take all your leftovers,” I say.
She waves a hand. “I cook these in big batches at a time. I have a hundred of them sitting in my freezer in the garage. You’d be doing me a favor by taking some off my hands.”
Ryker stands up and starts to clear the empty plates from the table with his dad.
“You’re helping too,” Ryker says to his little brother.
Nick grumbles, but he stands up and grabs the serving dishes from the table.
“My boys are so helpful,” Shannon beams as she watches her sons and husband. “While the men clean up, the ladies will have drinks in the living room.”
I grab my wine glass and follow her and Anna to the couch. They ask me about my job with the Bashers, and Shannon talksabout how busy she’s been at the accounting firm where she works.
“Sweetheart, how are classes going?” Shannon asks Anna.
“Busy. My life is lab work, studying, and writing papers.” Anna groans.
Shannon turns to me. “My daughter is so smart. She’s planning to go to medical school after she graduates.”
“Hopefully,” Anna says. “If I can get a decent score on the MCAT.”
“Oh, you will, sweetheart. Shannon pats her daughter’s hand, a proud look in her eyes. “She was valedictorian of her high school class.”
I look at Anna. “Wow, that’s incredible.”
Anna’s smile is shy. “College is harder than high school, though. I’m definitely not going to be the top of my class when I graduate.”
“Anna, you’ve got a perfect GPA. You’re doing amazing,” Shannon says, her heart in her eyes as she looks at her daughter. She looks over at Ryker and Nick doing dishes at the sink. “All my kids are wonderful. My hockey boys and my genius girl.”
It’s so sweet how proud Shannon is of her kids. She reminds me of my mom, how she gushes to her friends about me. It used to embarrass me as a kid, but now that I’m older, I think it’s sweet.
Anna asks her mom how the landscaping in the yard is going.
“Your house is beautiful,” I say.
“Thank you. It’s quite a jump up from the house we raised the kids in.” Shannon looks at Anna. “Remember how tiny that was?”
Anna laughs. “So small. And only one bathroom.”
“This place is so much more spacious,” Shannon says. “It was an anniversary gift from Ryker.”
My insides go soft. “Really?”
She nods. “He had just finished playing his second year in the NHL and told us he wanted to buy us a new home. We told him no, but he wouldn’t hear of it.”
Warmth flashes in her eyes when she looks over at Ryker helping his dad put away pots and pans.
