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Jake’s eyes narrow and he looks at Andi again. “What do you mean? What’s going on?”
“I mean what I said,” Andi snaps.
Carter chuckles and does an impersonation of a cowboy striding into a raging gunfight, fingers holstered in his jean pockets. “Now, now, gentlemen. Let’s not turn a kids’ hockey game into a soap opera. We’re all friends here. Some of us are… friendlier than others. Some of us may have very ungentlemanly ideas about others who happen to be present here. But this isn’t 1984. You can’t police our thoughts, Jake.”
“Wow,” Maddox says, staring at Carter and then at me. “I didn’t know he read books.”
“Eighth grade,” Carter says, winking. “My English teacher was so hot. I read the book just so I could impress her when I answered all the questions. Didn’t work, but you know what they say. You miss eighty percent of the shots you don’t take.”
“Uh, a hundred percent,” Maddox says.
Carter tips his imaginary hat to Maddox. “Thanks for the support, bro.”
Maddox looks like he’s about to explain he was just correcting Carter, then gives up with a sigh.
“I’m done here,” Jake says, storming inside.
Andi looks after him and sighs. For a moment, she seems upset. But she straightens and smiles with a shrug. “Let him go. It’s fine.”
“You okay?” I ask.
“I’m great. Wonderful,” Andi bounces on her tiptoes. “You guys want to see if Uncle Nolan is done with those squishy potatoes?”
“Can we please not start calling him Uncle Nolan?” I ask as we all head inside.
“Can I be an uncle?” Carter asks. His eyes go distant and starry as he spreads his hands in front of his face, picturing it. “Uncle Joker. That’s cool, right?”
“No. Definitely not,” I laugh.
“Shit. I forgot my nickname,” Maddox says.
“I never gave you one,” Andi says. “But I can. Hmm.” Everyone stops inside by the counter. Cade goes off to the bathroom and Meemee flops down on the couch and yawns a huge, “I’m about to pass out” kind of yawn.
“Voodoo. Do you like that?”
“Ohh hell yeah,” Maddox says. He wiggles his fingers at Carter. “Voodoo. You like that, bitch?”
“Watch your language, man,” Carter says. “Impressionable kids and all that.”
“Yeah,” I agree.
“Sorry, sorry. What’s your nickname, Jesse?” Maddox asks. “Twisted panties?”
Carter spurts with laughter and Andi smiles.
“Captain,” Andi says.
“Lammmee,” Carter complains.
We eat dinner, which involves a sleepy Meemee having a pre-dinner treat that she can barely stay awake for and a post dinner treat–a homemade cookie prepared by Nolan and Mia. The guys are all light spirited and laughing. Mia does a good job of fitting in with the group as well, and I can tell I’m not the only one trying to puzzle out whether she’s really just here for the cooking club or if it’s all about Nolan. Andi seems carefree as she jokes with the guys, eats her food, and teases the kids. Jake joins us a little later and apparently has managed to pry his head out of his ass, because he’s pleasant with everybody and hardly even glares at me. Nobody seems to know where Liam is, which means he’s likely found some love interest around town and is out with her tonight.
After dinner, everybody splits off and goes their own way. Carter and Maddox head into town. Jake goes to his room. Nolan claims he’s giving Mia a ride back to her place. Other than the threat of Jake emerging from his room, it leaves me mostly alone with Andi and the kids in the cabin.
Meemee is falling asleep for little two to three minute power naps, waking up and burning off whatever energy she generated in short bursts, and then falling asleep again. Right now, she’s curled into a ball beneath the kitchen table, snoring. Cade is practicing his shot inside on a little blow-up goal with a squishy puck and plastic stick the guys had for goofing around. Ever since our match, he has been too busy working on his shot to cause trouble.
“That wasn’t so bad,” Andi says. She moves beside me where I’m cleaning dishes in the kitchen. She gets close enough that I smell that shampoo of hers again and feel my body go rigid all over.
“Yeah,” I agree.
