Page 78 of Hard Hitter
“I called Queen Lauren and asked her to go to Ottawa in my place.”
“She’d never agree to that, right?” Georgia asked. “She hates traveling with the team.”
“Iknow, but she hates failing Nathan more. I really didn’t want to owe her a favor, because she’ll lord it over me. But I didn’t want my sister to miss her test. So I told Lauren why I was in a bind. Since Lauren is getting a business degree at night school, I knew she’d understand about the test.”
“Wait, really?” Georgia squeaked. “She’s getting a degree while she works for Nathan? Where does she find the time?”
“I know, right?” Becca shook her head and the stud in her eyebrow flashed. “She clearly is not as caught up on the trashy TV shows as we are. But she understood my issue, although her solution was not what I predicted.”
“What was it?” Georgia asked. “Let me guess—she hired some fancy nanny service to come and stay with Matthew?”
“Nope!” Becca sang. “Lauren is in my apartment right now taking care of the baby herself.”
For a couple of seconds, Ari and Georgia just stared at her. “Seriously?” Georgia’s voice had a hushed tone. “You left your nephew in the care of Queen Lauren?”
“I did. He looked very happy, though. They were cooing at each other.”
Georgia cleared her throat. “Do you have a photo? I can’t reconcile the idea of Lauren in her Chanel suit holding a drooly baby. And no offense but...”
“...He drools like a fire hose. Trust me, I know. And, yeah. I think she likes babies. After they’d bonded for a moment she looked up at me with that Lauren face and basically dismissed me.”
“Whoa,” Georgia said. “Fascinating.”
“I know! My sister is going to come home in an hour and say, ‘who the hell are you?’ So now I’ll owe Laurenandmy sister. What a week.”
Leo shifted in his seat. “Nate is freaked about our play-offs chances? Great.” He thumped his head back against the wall of the car. “So am I, then. Coach switched up the lines again last night. I wondered if Nate was pressuring him.”
“Dad wouldn’t take coaching tips from Nate,” Georgia pointed out. “That’s just weird.”
“I hear you,” Becca said. “But Nate has this way of arguing a point until you’re either won over or ready to kill him.”
“Nate’s not so bad,” Georgia said. “I like the guy. I can never tell what he thinks of me, but my gut says he’s a good man.”
“He is a good man,” Becca agreed. “As long as you like ’em wildly opinionated, stubborn as a mule, and really smug. Even as I’m saying this, I’m pretty sure I’d lay down in the road for him. The thing about Nate is that he understands where everyone’s boundaries lie. It’s like—he has godlike abilities but he understands that it’s special, and he can come down to your level and work with you anyway.”
Ari rubbed her temple, wishing she had the godlike ability to make a headache disappear. “Don’t sell yourself short, Bec. The way you handle tequila is rather extraordinary.”
“If only it were a marketable skill,” she sighed. “I could really use some extra cash right now.”
Couldn’t we all, Ari agreed privately. Maybe when her head stopped aching she would look at her schedule and try to find a sliver of time for some moonlighting.
***
They got to the airport in plenty of time. Some of the players were already gathered in the little waiting area in the charter terminal.
“Hey, Ari.” Patrick waved at her. “How are you?”
It was a friendly greeting, but not overly familiar. He wasrespectful of her need to appear professional, and she really appreciated it. “Afternoon, Patrick,” she replied. “I’d like to say that I’m fine, but my head is killing me.”
His blue eyes twinkled. “Did you go out drinking last night, Miss Bettini?”
“I did. And I learned my lesson.”
He patted his pocket. “Want an aspirin? I always carry them.”
“I have some with me,” she said. “But can I leave my carry-on with you for a second? I need to refill my water bottle.”
“Of course.”
