Mikah texted his parents as they landed. “Co-worker’s coming with me.”
He got a thumbs-up.
Mikah and Piper split from Liam at baggage claim and picked up their rented SUV. Mikah drove. Piper rode in the front passenger seat beside him, periodically exclaiming over the winter whiteness compared to Austin. On the drive, they mostly jammed to music, but he threw out a few team stories, and she matched them with rowdy Tudor tales. If she decided to be a teacher, she’d be a good one, she had a gift for delivery and fun facts.
Halfway there, the landmarks grew more familiar. The snow, the trees, and the light all screamed home, twisting his insides with that mix of nostalgia, expectation, and tension.
“May I get an autograph favor?”
“Mine?” Mikah tightened his grip on the wheel. “Dad’s?” He didn’t say his brother’s name. Her asking for Zee’s signature would imply she had piss-poor taste, and he didn’t believe that.
“A souvenir for Calista. From Ronan Stromkin.” Piper stretched her arms overhead. “She loves the jersey I got her so much. I should have thought to ask him to sign it. I don’t really know him though.”
“No problem, I’ll make that happen.” Mikah kept his voice easygoing.
“What’s your family like?”
Why? Well, they were headed there. “My sister’s the best. Lily. She’s sweet, you’ll like her.”
“And your brothers?”
“Less sweet. They won’t be there.”
“You have three?”
“Zee. You met him, he plays for the Geels.” She had to know that from the sports’ channel’s flipping comparison chart they threw up every week. Which Czerski brother scored the most, had the most assists. It was like his childhood all over again, but this time blasted on international sportscasts. And they were always neck and neck with Mikah getting more assists, Zee more goals. Or, as Dad would say, Zee seizing the glory, Mikah giving it away. “The twins are in their senior year.” His tone lightened, but he could see them getting stuck on the same newscast in the future. The Czerski brothers’ shootout.
“And your brother’s fiancée, have they been together long?”
“Francesca and Zee? Since freshman year of college. Dad thinks Zee should focus on his game, while Mom couldn’t approve more.” He could have said more, but how to word, every girl he ever dated got compared to med-school-Francesca. She smelled like a hospital to him. But whatever floated Zee’s hockey stick.
“Any family lore I should know?”
“Like what?”
“I don’t know, what’s your name mean? Why are there so many ski’s and cki’s in ice hockey? What’s your mom like? Five kids, yikes. Does your sister play hockey?”
He took the easy first question. “Cki and Ski are the same. Means ‘of’ like where our family came from in Poland.”
“Interesting, where were they from?”
“We have no idea.”
“Fair enough.”
These were logical questions because they were heading to his family’s lake house, but still. It was like the press, always prying and poking. Or the women who said they wanted casual, then talked about the fortune Dad made, and wondered if he had held on to all those millions. One freak had even asked if his dad would be dividing shit evenly by five kids in the will.
Mikah spared a quick glance at Piper. Was she imagining Dad’s bank account? His? She wouldn’t be the first. He rubbed the side of his jaw with his shoulder and moved his attention back to the road. The miles were zooming by. They’d be there in no time.
* * *
Piper stretched as Mikah pulled onto the circular driveway of his family’s lake house. For a second home, heck, for a first home, the house was huge. All cedar and triangular roof, not the way they shaped houses in Texas.
There was always a weird energy when checking out someone’s home, but this was interesting too. Piper wanted to know more about Mikah. This overnight would help. The trip had already shown her a new side of him. Mikah had a weird vibe going on today, his jaw a bit tighter, his eyes alert. Going home could be complicated for some people.
Mikah parked behind a large SUV centered to the front walkway. He bit out a curse.
“Everything okay?”