Game Changer by Kelly Jamieson Page 0,12
guess she knows this stuff since she was engaged to another player.
Molly leans across the small table. “That girl is eye-fucking you.”
I shake my head.
“Over there. The blonde.”
I roll my eyes. “I’m not looking.”
“Why not? You’re single. She’s hot.”
“I’m a little occupied at the moment.”
“Damn. I’m cramping your style, aren’t I? You’d probably buy her a drink if I wasn’t with you.” She slumps back in her chair.
It’s a possibility. Passing the time in an airport with a hot blonde is never a bad thing. But I have a cute little strawberry blonde sitting with me, so that’s not happening. And I don’t really care.
“I love people watching in airports.” Molly leans back in her chair to look around. “That couple over there?” She moves her head. “Sugar daddy and his sugar baby.”
I follow her gesture and study the couple. Yeah, the guy’s older, well-dressed, neat gray hair. The woman wearing high heels, tight, skinny black jeans and an expensive looking silk blouse has her hand on his arm, laughing at something he just said. “Nah. That’s a father and daughter.”
“Are you kidding? They’re flirting like crazy!”
“I don’t see it. And look—they have the same eyes and nose.”
Molly squints across the room. “I don’t think so.”
I grin. I have no idea and don’t really care but she seems into this. We start making up stories about everyone else in the lounge.
“That guy’s a Russian oligarch,” I tell her, motioning to a man sitting alone.
“Ooh! That’s good. I think you’re right. He’s probably en route to Washington to meet with a scammy politician.”
We finish our drinks and stroll out to our gate. It’s nearly boarding time.
“I need to use the ladies’ room,” Molly says. “I hate using the bathroom on airplanes.”
She disappears and I pull out my phone to pass a few minutes. Things have died down about the wedding, it seems. Or maybe not. Rico sent me a link to a gossip blog that has a whole thing about Chucky being left at the altar. Ugh. I won’t tell Molly about that.
We’re first to board and settle into our seats. Molly’s all smiles checking out the space we have and the little menu. “We get food!” she whispers to me.
“And booze,” I add.
“We can drink our way across the country.”
“Don’t get too carried away. I have a party to go to tonight.”
“What? A party?”
“My cousin JP just got engaged. My aunt and uncle are throwing a party for him.”
“Oh, nice!”
“They don’t know I’m coming.”
“You didn’t tell them?”
“I told them I was coming, just not exactly when. They planned this party the same day I arrive, so I’m just going to surprise everyone.”
“Fun! Okay, now tell me about your family and why you and your grandpa don’t get along and why you don’t trust his wife.”
“It’s long and complicated.”
“We have about four and a half hours,” she says, fastening her seatbelt.
I laugh. “True.” I fasten my own seatbelt as people file past us, filling the aircraft. “Okay. You know my grandpa is Bob Wynn.”
“King of hockey.”
“Yeah. My grandma—his first wife—died a few years before I was born. She came from a wealthy family in Toronto.”
Molly nods, shifting a bit to face me, leaning her elbow on the small table between us.
“Grandpa remarried about two years after Grandma died. His new wife is a lot younger than him. He was living in Los Angeles then, and my dad and my uncle both thought this woman married him for his money.”
“Ooh. Is she young and beautiful?”
“Yeah,” I admit. “I mean, she’s a lot younger than Grandpa. It caused bad feelings between all of them. They never liked Chelsea, and that pissed off Grandpa. Then Grandpa and Chelsea had a bunch of kids, which was around the same time I was born. And my sister and cousins. So it’s kind of weird that we have an aunt and uncles who are basically the same age as us. Dad and Uncle Matthew didn’t like that, either.”
“I’m kind of feeling sorry for your grandpa and Chelsea.”
“Huh. Really?”
“Yeah.” She gives a firm nod.
“Well, I grew up with my parents and Uncle Matt and Aunt Aline all telling me that Chelsea was the devil and Grandpa was stupid for falling for her conniving, money-grubbing scheme.” Another reason why marriage is for suckers.
“Oh my God.”
“And then there’s the money part.”
“This is like a soap opera.”
“Yeah.” I grimace.
I pause the story while announcements are made and we taxi out onto the runway for takeoff. I watch Molly’s fingers clench together