Total pages in book: 125
Estimated words: 119680 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 598(@200wpm)___ 479(@250wpm)___ 399(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 119680 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 598(@200wpm)___ 479(@250wpm)___ 399(@300wpm)
“Hello, second family! Rose and I are here to pick up our favorite hockey player!” Lovey calls.
They come traipsing down the hall and stop abruptly when they see the four of us gathered around the island. Lovey bites her lip, and Rose makes a face.
“I feel like we just walked in on something,” Rose says.
“We’re sorting out living arrangements for the fall,” I tell them. I turn back to my parents. “I don’t see what the big deal is. We’ll have separate rooms. Winter swapping with someone from River’s house isn’t going to change anything. Lavender and Kody had the same setup last year, and you gotta know that one of their rooms was always empty.”
“Are you talking about Kody Bowman? First-round pick for Philly?” Winter asks.
“Yeah. He’s dating my cousin. They’ve been in love with each other since…forever,” I explain. “Kody lived in the same house with Lavender for a while.”
“Because your kitchen caught on fire. And that was for three weeks,” Dad says.
Mom gives me a look. “Lavender and Kody have a very long history, and not all of it was smooth, as you well know. And I’m very aware of what this”—she motions between me and Winter—“will look like when you’re away from home and living on your own. However, there’s merit in you two living in separate houses. It’ll give you some space to navigate this new path you’re on, and you don’t want to make it awkward for Quinn.”
Rose crosses her arms. “I feel like we’re missing something.”
“That’s because you are,” I say.
“I fell asleep in BJ’s room last night, and his mom walked in on us this morning. You can fill in the blanks on your own.” Winter’s face grows redder with every word.
My dad looks like he’s trying not to laugh. I really love my parents.
I don’t know what my expression is, but Winter huffs and rolls her eyes. “They were going to find out anyway. And since it’s the house they’re living in that we’re talking about, we might as well not beat around the bush.” She addresses my mom. “I don’t disagree with you about the living in separate houses. It’s smart. But I don’t think it’s fair to anyone else to have to switch houses because of me. So as kind as the offer is, if living in one of the team houses would cause less disruption, I’d rather do that.”
Lovey raises her hand. “I could live with BJ and Quinn.”
Rose pulls Lovey’s hand back down to her side. “I’ll swap. I volunteer as tribute. I’ll live with BJ and Quinn, and Winter can have my room at the Waters’ house.”
“That’s kind of you, Rose, but we’ll need to check with your parents first,” Dad says.
“I’m seeing Vi, Char, and Sunny for lunch today,” Mom says. “I’ll talk to them, and we can work it out from there.”
Those are my mom’s friends. Vi is my half-aunt, Charlene is Rose’s mom, and Sunny is Lovey’s mom. They’re part of our extended hockey family.
“I’m texting my mom.” Rose thumb-types on her phone.
I glance at Winter, who looks like she has no idea what’s going on. This is reasonable considering what happened this morning and the way my friends and family are basically taking over her life. It’s a problem I’m partly responsible for. “Hey!” I whistle shrilly. “So I realize I suggested Winter move into Kody’s room, and I appreciate that we’re a family of problem solvers who like to solve problems, but this is Winter’s decision, and maybe we shouldn’t turn it into a family dilemma where everyone gets to say their piece and argue their side.”
Rose’s phone rings. “Uh, hey, Mom,” she answers. “Yeah. I’m at the Ballistics’ with Lovey. There have been some developments, but I might need to put a pin in my request, because I think we’re actually steamrolling our friend.” She pauses. “Hold on a second.” She covers the phone and turns to Winter. “I’m just going to explain because not explaining is going to lead to a lot of unnecessary texting. Okay?”
Winter shrugs. “Okay?”
“I’ll be quick.” Rose goes back to her phone. “Long story short, you know that new player on the women’s team that everyone is freaking out over? The one I work with at Boones?” Another pause. “Yeah, Winter Marks. That’s the one. She’s got a scholarship for hockey at Monarch, which is super cool, and we’re trying to work out the living arrangements. She has the option to live with some of her teammates, but BJ and Quinn still have an open room at their place. BJ and Winter are a thing, though, and living together and dating in college isn’t the easiest, so we were throwing out ideas, and I suggested I take Kody’s old room at BJ’s place and Winter take Lavender’s old room. But that’s when BJ pointed out that we’re steamrolling Winter, which isn’t cool. So we can put a pin in this for now.”