ログインChapter 30The shop door bell jingled again, and Lily stood in the doorway wearing her pink backpack and her new white sneakers with hearts, and Mrs Kowalski stood behind her holding her hand. I was still holding Rook's letter, and Rook was still down on one knee with the little box open, and Lily looked at us and said that she knew what Daddy was doing.Rook looked at Lily, and he said that you were supposed to be at school, and Lily said that Mrs Kowalski said that some things were more important than school and that this was one of them. Mrs Kowalski smiled and said that she told the school that Lily had a family emergency, and that this was a family emergency of the best kind.Lily walked into the shop, and she looked at the dusty floors and the big windows, and she said that this shop was pretty and that it would be prettier with cookies. She looked at Rook down on one knee, and she looked at me standing with the letter in my hand, and she said Daddy, are you asking Mara to marry
Chapter 29The text from the real estate agent was still glowing on Rook's phone, and Lily was still asleep in her room with her new sneakers by her bed and our family photo on her desk. I read the name Vanessa Cole twice because I thought I misread it, and then I handed the phone back to Rook and said that we should talk about it in the morning.Rook said that we should talk about it now because Vanessa did not get to ruin another good day, and I told him that she was not ruining anything and that a cash offer was just business. He said that it was not just business and that it was personal because Vanessa knew exactly what that little shop meant to me, and that she made the offer because she heard about it from Tara.I asked how Tara knew about the shop, and he said that Tara told everyone that he bought a bakery for his girlfriend because she was excited, and that Vanessa must have heard it at the arena. He said that he was sorry and that he should have kept it quiet, and I told hi
Chapter 28The email about the dress being ready was still glowing on my phone screen, and Rook was already half asleep with his hand in mine and Lily snoring softly between us. I told him that the boutique said my dress was ready and that there was a surprise from a secret admirer, and he opened one eye and said that he had no idea what I was talking about, but his smile said that he was lying.He said that secret admirers were mysterious and that I should go find out who it was, and I told him that I knew exactly who it was and that he was terrible at keeping secrets. He laughed and said that he was good at keeping secrets when they mattered, and that this secret was worth keeping until morning. I told him to go to sleep because we had to be at the courthouse at eight, and he said that he would sleep if I would sleep, and we both closed our eyes.Lily woke us up at six thirty by sitting up and saying that she was hungry and that she wanted pancakes, and Rook said that we were havi
Chapter 27The knock on my hotel room door was soft and careful, and Lily's small voice on the other side said it is me and that she could not sleep without the bear story. I opened the door fast because I thought she was alone, and she was not alone, and Rook was standing behind her in the hallway holding her pink backpack and looking tired and apologetic and hopeful all at once.Rook said that he was sorry for coming so late and that he tried everything to get her to stay in bed, but she had a bad dream and she asked for me and she cried until Mrs Kowalski told him to bring her over. He said that Mrs Kowalski said that it was better to bend a rule than to let a child cry all night, and I told him that Mrs Kowalski was always right and that he should listen to her. He smiled and said that he was learning to listen to the women in his life.Lily ran to me and hugged my legs, and she was wearing her pajamas with the little bunnies on them and her hair was messy from sleep. I knelt d
Chapter 26The garment bag was hanging in my hotel closet by the time I came downstairs, and the front desk woman smiled at me like she knew a secret. She said that a very nice older woman dropped it off an hour ago and that she paid for it to be steamed, and I knew immediately that it was my mom because only my mom would pay extra to have a dress steamed.I took the bag upstairs and hung it on the bathroom door, and I opened the zipper slowly because I was afraid to look. Inside was a dress, and it was not pink and sparkly like Lily would have picked, and it was deep blue like midnight, and it was soft and simple and it had thin straps. Underneath it was a note from my mom in her handwriting, and it said that she saw this dress in a window and thought of me, and that every girl needed a dress that made her feel beautiful, and that she loved me.I tried the dress on, and it fit perfectly, which meant that my mom must have called Mrs Kowalski to get my size, and I looked in the mirror
Chapter 25The bakery box was still on the counter with the red string hanging off the side, and my mom's voice on the phone told me to look under the parchment paper because she hid something else. I told her that she was terrible at surprises because she always told me about them right after she hid them, and she laughed and said that she was not terrible and that she just wanted to make sure I found it.Rook lifted the parchment paper for me, and underneath it was another small velvet pouch that was exactly like the first one, and it was dark blue instead of black. He handed it to me, and he said that your mom really went all out tonight, and I told him that my mom went all out every night and that this was normal for her. I opened the pouch, and inside was a pair of small silver earrings shaped like tiny hearts, and they matched the rolling pin necklace perfectly.My mom said through the phone that she had them made when I was born and that she was saving them for when I found
JAX POV "It's been... four games without Jax causing trouble. Congrats, buddy, that's a season record!" Knox flips the number on the locker room wall from three to four, looking irritatingly pleased with himself. He steps back to admire his creation. It has been 4 days since our last incident, the
JAX'S POV The game against Winnipeg is a shutout. Three periods, zero goals allowed. The Bay Blades win 3-0, and the crowd is electric. I feel the buzz under my skin, the familiar rush of adrenaline that made me fall in love with this sport in the first place. After the final buzzer, I skate off
MILA'S POV I've spent the last twenty-four hours trying to convince myself it's not really fucking hot that Jax called me "sunshine."It's a sarcastic nickname. Probably intended to irritate me. So why does it make my pulse skip every time I think about it?Tonight is the Bay Blades' first game si
MILA'S POV "Are you actually trying to murder me?" Spencer, my desk neighbor and work rival stares at the box on his desk as if it contains live rattlesnakes. Which it really doesn't. I look down at my handiwork. Eight beautiful lilac cupcakes sit in two neat rows. The frosting is swirled ju







