Page 28 of Rookie Move
Now Leo leapt to his feet, too. “Really? Why?”
“Bayer isn’t going to play tonight. They want to give his shoulder one more night’s rest.”
“Wow. Okay.” Leo held Georgia’s eyes, and there was so much warmth and happiness in that gaze that Georgia could barely breathe. “Guess I’d better go then.”
“Get on down there,” she whispered. His whole life he’d been working toward this moment. Skating in the NHL. How amazing that it was finally happening, and she was actually going to witness it.
Leo gave her one more smile, and it was so full of joy that her heart skipped a beat. Then he turned around and strode off, his long legs eating up the distance toward the elevator bank around the bend.
“Come back to me, George,” Becca said. “Don’t go toward the light.”
“What?”
“Exactly.” Becca snapped her fingers. “Stay with me, babe. Don’t let the hottie who stole your virginity send you into zombieland.”
“Becca!” Georgia shout-whispered. “Lower your voice!”
Becca gave her a Cheshire cat smile. “He did, didn’t he? Aw! You guys are so cute.”
“Shhhh!” Georgia chided. All she needed was a reporter overhearing this fun little conversation. “Stop.”
“Only if you give me juicy details at home later. Because memories are all the action that you or I are getting lately.”
“Sad but true.”
“So, you have to promise not to freak out, but there’s a cover-up at work here.”
“What?” Georgia asked, trying to shake the Leo-fog out of her head.
“The doctors cleared Bayer’s shoulder. But they think he sprained a toe during the soccer warm-up.”
“Oh, hell,” Georgia swore. “That can’t get out, or we’ll look like idiots. Big Strong Hockey Player Kicks Soccer Ball Too Hard, Misses Game.”
“Be that as it may,” Becca said with a grin, “your ex is having his big-league debut, in spite of the fact that your father hates him.” She put her hand on Georgia’s arm and tugged her toward the owner’s box. “Why is that, anyway? Is it because Leo popped your cherry?”
Yikes. “Not really. You’d never believe it now, but they used to be pretty close. Dad used to give Leo one-on-one sessions at the rink, just for fun. I think Dad kind of looked the other way, you know? Plausible deniability.”
Becca laughed. “I guess if you were a dad, you’d have to.”
“Right. But then after I was raped, I think Dad just couldn’t deal with the idea that I wasn’t a little girl he could protect anymore. The blinders came off. And since Leo was a man...”
“Leo was dangerous, or something.”
“Or something,” Georgia said. “And it wasn’t just Leo that Dad treated differently. You know how he calls me Princess now?”
“Yes, and I’m thinking of calling you that, too.”
Georgia poked her in the ribs. “Not if you want to live. Well, he never called me that when I was little. I was Killer to him.”
Becca barked out a laugh. “Oh my god. I have to say—Killer suits you better than Princess. I like that nickname for you.”
“I’d prefer to have no nickname at all. But apparently that’s not an option.”
Becca clapped her hands. “Can I tell Page Six that your nickname is Killer?”
“No!”
She giggled. “Ah well. I would have liked to see that in print.”
