We’d given Carina the grand tour the day she’d arrived, and it was the only thing she’d been genuinely shocked over. It was excessive, but it was really the one thing—aside from the property itself—that Jacques and I had spent a lot of money on.
The rest of the ranch was typical of the properties in this valley. She’d barely blinked at the array of buildings and machinery we had, but the rink had stunned her silent. It was the same reaction Jacques had when I showed him the plans after I’d sold my app.
“I still can’t believe you have an ice-skating rink here,” Carina said, catching the tail end of our conversation as she finished stretching. She was dressed like me in a pair of shorts, a T-shirt, and running shoes, and had a broad-brimmed straw hat, water bottle, and sunglasses ready to go.
“Hi, Alec,” she greeted with a smile.
“Mom!” Hux exclaimed and threw his arms around her in an exaggerated hug.
She laughed and rolled her eyes. “Oh my God, you’re as bad as Monroe. He’s calling me Mum too.” Instead of pushing him away, she wrapped her arm around his waist and hugged him side-on.
Hux grinned, his smile warm and a little shy. I’d never heard him mention his parents. He’d spoken about his grandmother a lot, and I knew she’d passed before he was drafted. I wondered whether she’d raised him.
His grin turned shameless, and his eyes lit up with wicked delight. “Aw, there he is,” he said as Jacques walked into the kitchen, wearing compression tights, shorts, and a training jersey.
“Hey, Hux,” he greeted. “Give me a second. I’ll just get a bottle of water.”
“No rush, Dad. I have time.”
Jacques froze mid-step. His eyes widened, and he slowly opened his mouth. It was as if someone had set up a frame-by-frame playback in a movie.
A comedy.
Carina darted her gaze to Jacques and giggled. I held up my hand for Hux to high-five. He was a freaking legend.
“I… don’t… I’m not,” Jacques sputtered, then squeaked, “Fuck.”
“Don’t worry, Dad. I’ll be a great son-in-law. I’ll take good care of your daughter too.”
“You’d bloody better,” Carina said, poking him in the ribs.
Jacques scrubbed his hands over his face and peeked out from between his fingers. “I’m your father-in-law?”
“Yep, my girlfriend’s stepdad.” Hux laughed, and he nudged Carina over to Jacques, walking with his arm still around her shoulders. “Family hug!”
I chuckled and pulled my cell phone out, snapped a photo, and sent it to Travis. He’d get a good laugh out of this.
By the time they pulled apart, Jacques had regained some of the color in his cheeks, and he was laughing.
I asked, “Carina, shall we?”
Jacques murmured something to her, and she answered, “Yes, let’s get going,” in a tone that was brighter and bubblier than I’d expected.
I let Zeus in and showed him his harness. Instead of sitting down like he’d been trained to do, he started jumping around, and I had to wrestle it onto him.
We were in my Jeep, having just turned onto Highland Valley Road, before I asked the question I’d been wanting to know. “What happened back there? You didn’t sound too enthusiastic.”
She sighed. “It’s a secret, but… I hate exercise. With the passion of a thousand suns. I was kind of hoping you’d forgotten, and we could stay and watch Jacques skate.”
“He’s mesmerizing on the ice,” I agreed. “I get it. I don’t hate exercise, but I’m not like Jacques or even Travis.”
“They’re total overachievers,” she groused, and I barked out a laugh. Finally, someone who understood my pain.
I grinned and said, “It hurts to watch them, doesn’t it?”
“Oh my God, yes! Last week when I went horse riding with Trav, it felt like I’d taken a fist up my butt. My ass was killing me for days.”
I choked on my own breath, and tears formed in my eyes as I tried to breathe, laugh, and cough all at the same time. “It gets easier,” I snorted between wheezing laughter.
