Page 188 of Scarred

I do have this win.

Because no matter what happens in the next twenty minutes…

I’ve already won everything that matters.

Laughing, I lean back on the sofa at Breakaway and pull Luna onto my lap. The game ended a couple of hours ago, and the team is celebrating our win tonight.

Mae texted when she got home, and Scarlett was asleep before she even left Bayside. With Savi’s parents watching Beckett, we got a rare night where we’re all together.

Stone checks his phone and looks at McCormick.

“She’s almost here,” he says, throwing his arm over Savi, who’s curled next to his side.

“Who is almost here?” he asks, taking a sip of his bourbon.

“Don’t tell me you already forgot,” Stone chuckles. “Remember, Jo? The woman I told you about, who I’ve been talking to about running the homes? She just got into town today, and I invited her to meet us tonight. We can get introductions out of the way, and you can get a feel for her.”

“Fuck, I forgot that was tonight. You sure she’s the right person for the job? We need someone who understands what these kids need.”

“From what I can tell, she’s just what we are looking for. I have a good feeling about her.”

“What are they talking about?” Luna asks in my ear as McCormick and Stone get into a deep discussion about how they want things to operate.

“Stone runs The Grace Foundation,” I say, turning my attention to Luna. “It’s a charity he started a few years back in honor of his mother. It helps underprivileged kids in foster care and families that can’t afford or don’t have access to playing hockey, going to camps…equipment.”

“That’s nice,” she smiles.

“It is,” I agree. “We all help with the camps each summer and pitch in when needed. Stone and McCormick have been talking about expanding the foundation to include funding group homes with better access to sports and a safer environment so no kids get lost in the system.”

“I can’t imagine a child not feeling safe,” Luna says sadly.

“Unfortunately, it happens way more than it should. Both Knox and Thane know that better than anyone. Thane learned firsthand,” I sigh. “He grew up in foster care, and from what little he has wanted to tell us, it was not a good experience.”

“That’s so sad,” she says, quietly, watching McCormick.

I think of Scarlett being all alone and scared, and it destroys me.

“Yeah, it is,” I agree softly. “They seem to have a good plan in place to buy a few houses and turn them into safe havens for kids who really need it. They’ve been looking for the right person to help run it for them who knows the ins and outs of how the system works. Hopefully, this person Knox has been talking to is who they need.”

“Whoa,” Hayes says, sitting forward on the couch and looking behind us. “I think I’m in love.”

We all turn to where he’s looking and see a raven-haired woman dressed to kill in a black dress with thigh-high boots, walking toward us. She has a couple of tattoos on her left arm, and her lips are painted a bright cherry red.

She stops dead in her tracks when she nears us.

Her midnight blue eyes widen as all the blood drains from her face.

“Josie?” I hear McCormick’s voice crack behind me.

“Thane,” she whispers, clearly shaken, before something shifts in her eyes, shutting down the part of her that shows emotion.

“You two know each other,” Knox asks, looking at McCormick as we all turn our heads to where he’s seated.

His grey eyes are locked on her, and I can tell by his body language that he’s just as shaken as she is.

Pain mixed with grief that I instantly recognize because it’s the same look I carried for years, flashes briefly across his features before they turn to steel.

“Yeah, we do,” he slowly grounds out.