Page 163 of Twisted Needs

My entire body is shaking in pure shock and disbelief.

“I’m so proud of you,” Anders says against my shoulder. “I love you, Pet’ka.”

“Mmmm. Baby,” I hum.

“Petchka!” My mom is already shaking her head at me when I turn. She knows exactly what she’s looking at, even if she pretends she doesn’t. “You lost the puck at the end,” she mutters in Russian first, like she can’t help herself. Then she looks at Anders, then back at me. “You did very well,” she adds, which from her is practically a standing ovation.

Jeremy claps me on the back. “I’m so proud of you, son,” he says. “Incredible pass out there. Almost thought you were gonna screw it up for a minute.”

“He almost did,” Anders laughs.

My mom studies us for a moment before giving me a terrifying look of recognition. “You take care of him,” she murmurs to me, quieter now. “Like life, Petchka.” But she says it in English.

“Like life,” I promise, pulling Anders back in for another hug. “Thank you, Mama.” It’s a simple response, but something unspoken lingers beneath the surface.

“You love him?” She asks Anders, almost in a way that feels like a continuation of a conversation they were previously having. Like Anders had somehow slipped it to my mom that we’re partners in the middle of this packed arena.

Anders nods insistently. “So much, Yevushka. He’s everything.”

“Good.” She nods once. “Nothing else matters.”

And then she turns to me and speaks in Russian, “You have to marry him.”

“I will,” I tell her in English. “When he’s ready.”

CHAPTER 47

THE DOCK AND THE LAKE

ANDERS

My phone buzzes, but I don’t need to check it to figure out who’s calling. He’s been calling both of us all day, persistent in a way that makes me increasingly nervous. We’ve both been ignoring him since the game.

The Stanley Cup parade feels like it happened years ago instead of two weeks. Since then, neither of us has said the words out loud, but we’ve both been hiding inside this strange little pocket of time where everything is perfect and nobody is asking questions.

The weird thing is that Luca hasn’t actually brought anything up yet. Knowing exactly how my brother moves, if he knows, then he’s waiting until the perfect moment to confront us. And somehow that’s worse than him immediately bringing it up.

The rustic lake house sits behind us, all wood and stone. From here I can see the massive windows reflecting off the water. In two hours it’ll be full of people. My family. My Aunt Jen’s family. Questions neither of us can avoid forever…

But right now it’s just us. Just the dock and the lake. Just a few more stolen hours before we have to step back into the version of the world where we’re careful.

I silence the call and drop my phone onto the towel beside me, deciding to enjoy the rest of this time we have before everything goes to shit.

A gentle breeze rolls off the lake, carrying the scent of pine trees and sun-warmed wood from the dock beneath us. Waves lap lightly against the shoreline.

“Hey,” Parker grabs my attention. He taps me on my back. “You need more sunscreen.”

“Heathen.” I give him the world’s biggest eye roll. “We reapplied five minutes ago.”

“You can never be too safe,” he murmurs, grabbing a bottle of tanning oil and grinning like a wolf. “Especially that ass…fuck, baby, I think we’re gonna have to squeeze in a fourth round.”

“Lovie, that’s not sunscreen.”

But it’s too late. I feel his oil slicked fingers trail gently down my back. He lets out a deeply dramatic sigh. “You can’t be walking around in this speedo when your family gets here.”

I chuckle. “Retirement has made you into a barbarian, Pet’ka.”

Ever since the night of my graduation, Parker has been on some sort of high. I think I’ve been bent over every single surface in our house. And Parker’s car. My car. The airport bathroom at three in the morning…