Page 130 of Desperate Pucker
“Pretty good so far, as long as you don’t ask me to make you an actual cocktail.”
He cracks a smile.
“What can I get you?”
He holds up a hand. “No alcohol for me tonight, thank you. Just wanted to see how you fellas were enjoying the evening.”
“It’s been nice connecting with fans,” I say.
I’m polite when I speak to him, but I can’t help the dislike I feel for this guy. He’s a cheater and a liar. He denied responsibility for Maddy until after she was born. He wasn’t a good dad to her. He favored his older kids over her. Yeah, he owns the team I play for, but that doesn’t take away from what a piece of shit he is.
A man and woman who look a few years older than me walk up to Greg.
“Preston. Clara. How are you two enjoying the event?”
“It’s been interesting for sure. Thanks for inviting us,” Preston says.
Greg turns to me. “This is Ryker. He’s one of the wingers on the team. Ryker, this is my son and daughter, Preston and Claire.”
These are Maddy’s older half-siblings. They both give me polite smiles. I nod at them.
While the three of them talk, a couple of people come up to me and order beers. I turn away to pour them drinks. I overhear them talk about what sounds like work stuff. They must work for their dad’s companies.
“Madeline. Good to see you,” Preston says, his voice strained.
When I turn around, I see Claire frowning at Maddy’s dress.
“That’s a very interesting color. Quite flashy, don’t you think?” she says.
Anger turns the muscles in my shoulders tense. Are these two for real? Can they at least try not to sound like total assholes?
Maddy starts to turn away as she rolls her eyes. She grabs a maraschino cherry from the glass container on the bartop and a cocktail napkin.
“It’s not a crime to wear a bright color, Claire,” Maddy says.
Claire purses her lips and skims her hand along the black dress she’s wearing.
Greg clears his throat, frowning as he looks between his kids. “We were just chatting about work,” he says to Maddy before turning to Preston and Claire. “Madeline started working for the Bashers a few months ago.”
Preston frowns like he’s annoyed. “Doing what?”
“I’m a skating coach for the players,” she says.
Claire raises an eyebrow. “Interesting.”
Maddy pops the cherry in her mouth, exhaling sharply as she chews.
“Do you think you’ve earned that job?” Preston asks. He sounds like he’s on the verge of laughing. Like the idea of Maddy working as a skating coach is some kind of joke.
Maddy frowns like she’s confused. “What do you mean?”
“I mean, that you don’t have any work experience as a coach, right?”
She pins her half-brother with a hard stare. “You’re right. I don’t. I’ve only just figure skated my entire life and competed at the Winter Olympics twice. And won a bronze medal.”
Preston’s face turns red. I start to chuckle. He looks at me before he turns back to her.
“I just don’t know if you’ve earned the opportunity to have a job like that,” Preston says. “Working for a professional hockey team is a big deal. They only want the best and brightest working for them, you know.”
