Easy (Chicago Blaze 6)

Vi finishes packing her lunch and scoops her neon pink encased cellphone off the counter. Her words about me not being able to keep track of her every second of the day ringing in my ears, I hold my hand out to her.

“Give me your phone.”

“Why?”

“You’re grounded from using it.”

“Why?” she demands, louder this time.

“Because right now, I don’t trust you with it.”

“You can’t just take my phone.”

I swipe it from her hand and say, “Actually, I can.”

“When are you giving it back?”

Not until Jenna is far from Greentree Falls, but I don’t say that.

“I don’t know, Vi.”

“Mom will just buy me a new one anyway.”

I want to tell her that supporting her children and helping with their expenses isn’t my sister’s style, but I stay silent. Vi is just a kid caught in a sad situation.

“We’re a family,” I say softly. “Me, you, Hazel and Max. We always have been. I’m not just giving a member of my family away.”

“But she’s our mom,” Vi implores. “Just because I want to live with her doesn’t mean I don’t love you.”

“I know. I really do. I’m just trying to do what I think is best for you guys. Your mom…” I try to think of the best way to phrase it without badmouthing her. “She’s never had children at home to care for. It’s not always easy, and it’s expensive. She’s never lived in one place for even a full year since she left Greentree Falls. I don’t want you traveling around with her, crashing on the couches of people you don’t even know. You need to be in school.”

“What if I just go for the summer and see how it goes?”

The hope in her eyes breaks my heart. “I don’t know.”

“Will you think about it? Please?”

I nod. “I promise I will. And will you promise not to do anything rash like run off without permission?”

“If you let Mom come back and stay with us.”

“No!” Hazel protests.

“Vi, that’s not working out very well,” I say.

“Can I go stay with her, then?”

“No.”

My phone dings with a text and I walk over to the table to check it.

Erik: Good morning, gorgeous. Thinking about you.

I smile and write back.

Me: If I can figure out how to break my hip, will you move in with me for a month?

Erik: Don’t do that. A broken hip would put a dent in our sex life…if you wanted to move in together, you’d just need to ask.

My heart pounds hard at the thought. It would be my dream come true, but also the end of his hockey career. And he’s worked so hard to succeed in the NHL.

I looked up when NHL players typically retire and found out some play past the age of forty. Others, depending on injuries, retire close to Erik’s age But he’s only thirty.

I don’t see how life in Greentree Falls would compare to the excitement of the NHL. And I’m anchored to this town by the kids. Our dilemma is the same, even ten years later.

Me: Want to come have lunch with me at work later?

Erik: Yes, what time?

Me: 12:30. I’ll meet you at the snack bar.

Erik: See you then. Have a good morning.

Me: You too.

“So what’s up with the two of you?” Vi asks me.

“What? Who?” I put my phone on the table facedown, feigning ignorance.

“You and Erik. Or Easy, whatever his name is.” Vi arches her brows. “Did you know he makes like three million a year? I looked him up.”

I cut a glare her way. “I don’t know how much he makes and I don’t care. It shouldn’t matter in the first place.”

“It’s so romantic that you guys fell in love when he played high school hockey. And now he’s in the pros.”

“He worked hard to get there.”

“So are you back together?”

“No.”

“But you guys might get back together, right?” Hazel asks.

I wish something would interrupt this conversation. I don’t even know what’s going on between me and Erik, let alone how to explain it to the girls. I certainly can’t tell them we hooked up after drinking too much.

“Things are complicated with us,” I say.

“Maybe you could explain it while you drive us to school?” Vi asks.

“Can’t Max take you?”

“He finished school already because he didn’t have to take finals. I can’t wait to be an upperclassman.”

I sigh and say, “Okay. I’ll take you because it’s the last day. But there’s nothing to explain, really.”

The girls shoulder their backpacks and I pull my hair into a bun at the nape of my neck. I grab my purse and keys and we head out to the car.

“Let’s do something tonight to celebrate the last day of school,” I suggest. “Maybe pizza and a movie?”

“We’re both invited to a party,” Vi says.

“It’s my turn to ride shotgun,” Hazel says when Vi goes for the front passenger door.