“That was so embarrassing.” My mom brought along one of those giant, beach-bag sized totes filled with my baby pictures. She and Paige ooohed and ahhhed over photos of me in my Power Rangers Halloween costume and pictures of me smashing my face into my first birthday cake.
“And Ted is, like, the nicest guy ever. I don’t see why your dad doesn’t like him. I mean, I haven’t met your dad yet, but—”
“But Dan Briggs isnotthe nicest guy ever. Don’t get me wrong, he’s my dad and I love him, but he’s nothing like Ted. Where Ted is calm and kind of dorky, my dad is—”
“Did you say Dan?”
“Yeah, that’s his name. Why?”
“I think I have met your dad…”
“Wait, what?” I pull into my space at the back of the house and turn to Paige. “When would you have met my dad? He comes to the games, but he leaves right after, unless he’s meeting me for dinner.”
“Is he a couple inches shorter than you, dark hair, knows everything there is to know about hockey?”
“Well, yeah, but that description probably fits a fair amount of guys in Vermont.”
“Does he sit in the student section, by chance?”
“Sometimes, I guess. He sits where he can get the best view of me, and therefore, every mistake I make.”
“Yep. That has to be him. When Emma and I went to your game a couple weeks ago, against Michigan, I couldn’t see because the guy in front of me was so tall. But, lucky for me, he gave a play-by-play of the whole game, and it made a lot more sense than it would have if I’d have been watching by myself.”
The second night of our series against Michigan. Of course. The night he bailed on dinner with me. And then made a big production about how smart I was not to have a girlfriend so I could focus on my game. He knew the whole time and he was playing me. I thread my hands through my hair. “Shit.”
“Is that bad? I mean, he seemed nice enough. We didn’t talk, but he seemed to be having fun with the guys he was sitting around.”
“No, it’s fine. He’s intense, and—”
“I can handle intense,” she says, laughing. “I live with Emma.”
“True.” I smile and lean in for a kiss. The quicker we can move away from the subject of my dad, the better. “Let’s get inside. You’ve got to be freezing.”
“I am.” She places her hands over mine and sure enough, they’re like little blocks of ice.
We head up to my room and cuddle up on the bed. My head is swimming with all of the things I should do—taking two hours out of my day for brunch is not part of my usual schedule—but all I want to do is hold Paige.
“I can’t believe you’re leaving me,” I whine.
She laughs. “Yeah, I’m so terrible for celebrating Thanksgiving. Besides, you have an away game.”
“I know. But I miss coming home to you, even when it’s late.”
“Same. But I am looking forward to seeing Jake. And Sophie broke up with Dr. Dickhead, so I won’t have to deal with him.” She drapes her arm across my chest and I wish we could stay like this forever.
“Good. Guy sounds like a total douche. And I’m sure your parents are looking forward to seeing you, too.”
“Yeah, I think they are.” She laughs. “Things are getting a little better. My last few practice tests with Justin were decent and the last time we talked, my mom hinted that maybe it’s time I had my own car. I mean, they’re probably just sick of driving to the train station to get me, but still.”
“Nice. But if you have a car on campus, does that mean you won’t need me and my mom-mobile anymore?” I fake a pout.
“Never. I have a feeling I’ll always need you, Spence,” she says as she cuddles in next to me, and as crazy as it sounds, I hope she’s right.
21
Paige
Finals are almost here, and you can feel the tension in the air. We have a little less than two weeks before the December break, and everybody’s feeling stressed. Lily came in crying earlier because she lost her highlighters, and two girls in the lobby have been studying for twenty-four hours, I swear. Every time I pass by, they’re in the same place, wearing the same clothes.
