Page 64 of Beauty
“I’m good and he’s fine.” Millie waves him off. “Just extra hungry for dessert. It’s all he wants.”
Gavin chuckles. “Oh, that’s whathewants?”
She lifts her chin. “Yup.” She pops thep. “Oreo brownie sundae, to be exact. He’s very demanding.”
“I’ll make sure someone from concessions brings one up.” He presses another kiss to her cheek, then turns to me. “You ready for your first night on the job?”
I laugh awkwardly. “I don’t have the first clue what I’m supposed to be doing, but sure.”
“Half the job for any of us is being seen in public and making a good impression. Gotta keep the family name spotless, you know.”
I fight back a wince. The family name isn’t anywhere near spotless after my giant mistake. But I have too much to worry about to allow those intrusive thoughts into my mind tonight.
“Just enjoy yourself,” Gavin says, giving me a sympathetic smile. “Watch the game. Eat a sundae or two with my wife. We’ll get down to the real business tomorrow.”
I shrug, trying my hardest to affect an easygoing attitude I haven’t felt in months. “Whatever you say.”
Vivi talks Gavin into taking her over to the bench so she can say hi to the guys, and instantly, she charms them all. One by one, they skate to the boards and give her fist bumps before heading off to continue warming up. When Brooks sees me, he pulls off his helmet and blows me a kiss. Aiden practically hauls himself over the boards and then bangs on the glass to say hello.
“Always the dramatic one,” I mutter to my sister-in-law. “So who else will be upstairs?”
“Lennox, maybe. She sometimes sits down here. She’ll deny it, but she loves when Aiden acts a fool for her.” Millie rolls her eyes, but there’s no hiding her smile. “With Sara out onmaternity leave, she’ll probably be in the suite. Hannah is bringing Mav and her nephew tonight, I think.”
I met Hannah at Brooks’s wedding. And since then, she married Millie’s twin brother. From the sound of things, she’s close to my brothers’ wives, and if I remember correctly, she used to handle PR for the Revs. Though since she had her little boy, I’m not sure she’s still on staff.
If she’s married to Daniel Hall, then she doesn’t need to work to live a comfortable life, but if she’s as close to my sisters-in-law as it seems, then she’s probably just as independent and strong as they are.
Every one of these women is married to a man who makes boatloads of money, yet every one of them has a career of her own.
A thread of sadness dampens my mood. I used to have that kind of passion. God, I miss it. With any luck, this new job will give me some semblance of that.
“Ava and the kids may be here as well. Though if Brayden has a game, she may be watching him tonight.” Ava married Tyler Warren, the team’s captain. Their story is one I know. Most people are familiar with it after the media circus surrounding them two years ago. They got married so Tyler could adopt the children in his care. Fortunately, the drama died down, and as far as I know, the adoptions have been finalized. And now they have another child as well.
“Okay, so Lex, Hannah, Sara, and maybe Ava. Plus their kids?”
She laughs. “I know it seems like a lot, but you’ll love the girls. When Gavin and I reconnected, they welcomed me into their little circle and seriously changed my life. They’re all incredible. You should come to brunch with us on Sunday. It’s our thing.”
“Your thing?”
She breaks into a grin. “You’ll get it when you come.”
Before I can respond, movement on the ice catches my attention. All the guys on the team are on their hands and knees and…
I blink. Are they?—
Yes, every one of them is thrusting their hips.
“What in the hell is happening over there?”
Thank god Aiden and Brooks are chatting with Vivi. That means none of the men out there share DNA with me. Because what they’re doing is not appropriate for a sister to be watching. It almost feels inappropriate to watch, no matterwhothe men are.
“They’re, like, humping the ice.”
Millie nods, her lip caught between her teeth. “It’s hot, right? Don’t tell your brother I said this, but 69 out there”—she juts her chin—“is my favorite. Look at the hip action on that one.”
My mouth goes dry. Holy shit. The way he rolls his knees in circles and thrusts his hips toward the ice iserotic.
The move is weirdly familiar.
