“Come on,” Jasper says as he wraps an arm around my shoulders. “If you were pregnant, your tits would be bigger anyway.”
“Asshole,” I mutter under my breath while I try not to laugh.
“Just saying what we were all thinking,” he admits with an honest to God smile.
“Nope. Pretty sure that was just you, big brother.” Leave it to Waverly to actually say what we were all thinking.
“You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?” I ask as he ushers the three of us ahead of him into the arena.
“A little,” he smirks.
“Watch and learn, Langley.”
I stop and slip off my jacket, handing it to Jasper, then walk in front of the press with as blindingly brilliant a smile as I have to give. “Thank you all so much for coming to the first game of the season. It should be an amazing game between my two favorite teams.” I manage to get out to the cacophony of shouts and cameras flashing that I can only imagine means my outfit is working. Short tailored navy-blue shorts, navy-blue Louboutins, and my husband’s baby-blue Nobles jersey doesn’t look half bad on me. And when I wave my hand, making sure to wiggle my fingers, especiallythatfinger, the beautiful diamond does just what it’s supposed to and catches the light, creating a quick prism of color and an even quicker reaction from the crowd. “I’d like to officially say Logan Adler has no comment on the status of his marriage. And as for me...” I turn around for them to get a look at my jersey, then peek over my shoulder. “Go, Nobles.”
So many voices yell at once that I lose track of who’s who. Not that it matters. I don’t answer any of them. Instead, I link my arm with Serena’s—my soul sister, who’s wearing our cousinCohen’s Revolution jersey—and head for the elevators that will take us to the visiting owner’s box.
When we get to the top of the concourse, I stop Jasper and Waverly. “Would you guys like to meet my family?”
“No,” Jasper groans at the same time as Waverly grins. “Sure.”
“Cheer up, Jasper. They’re not that bad.” Serena smiles. “I mean, my mom’s not. But I guess my dad and Liv’s mom are.”
Yeah . . . Understatement.
“Remind me why your whole family is here?” Waverly asks, actually interested as we make our way down the hall.
“Okay, quick rundown.” Serena smiles. “My dad and Olivia’s mom run King Corp., our family’s company. King Corp. owns the Philadelphia Revolution and the Philadelphia Kings. My dad runs the Revolution, Scarlet?—”
“My mom,” I add.
“Scarlet runs the Kings,” Serena tells Waves and Jasper. “And because we’re not above nepotism, I think we have what...”—she looks at me like she’s counting cousins in her head— “what do we have now? Four cousins who play for the team?”
“Three, but who’s counting? And is it really nepotism, though, if they were good enough to be drafted?” I ask, and Jasper laughs.
“Good enough or have the right last name?” Jasper argues. “Two completely different things.”
I drop my hand to my brother-in-law’s chest and grin. “If you can honestly say they’re not good enough by the end of the game tonight, I’ll feed the cows for a week.”
“Game on, Adler. Those shiny new boots of yours are about to get dirty.” Jasper stares at me, waiting for a comeback that never comes. “Olivia?”
“I think you broke her,” Waverly stage-whispers, and I blink. “You okay, Liv?”
“You just called meAdler...” I answer, still clearly in shock.
Jasper shoves his hands in the pockets of his jeans and looks away. “It’s your last name, isn’t it?”
“You know what... ?” Emotion fills my chest and clogs my throat. “It is.”
“Okay, you two,” Serena pushes us along. “I’d like to see the puck drop, and we’ve already missed warm-ups, so let’s move.”
“What’s up with this? You get nicer and blondie gets bitchy?” Jasper asks, and I shove him ahead. “Is this likeThe Twilight Zone?”
“No, you ass,” Serena snaps. Something she’s been on the edge of doing all day leading up to now. “Now move.”
“Yes, ma’am,” he snarks, and she shakes her head.
My phone vibrates in my pocket as I follow her down the concourse, and I pull it out to check.
