Center Ice Read Online Free PDF Page B

to do in the city. This is probably boring, eh?”
    “No. It’s not boring. It’s really nice.” She seemed to mean it, and I took her at her word. I checked in a few times through the day, making sure she wasn’t ready to leave, but she always seemed totally content to stay there. We just hung out, swimming and lying in the sun and talking about stupid stuff. I got a lot better at knowing when she was about to get uncomfortable, and she started to loosen up a little, like she was trusting me to not push in somewhere that was none of my business.
    Finally, though, I looked at my watch and said, “You probably need to get home for dinner?” It wasn’t that I wanted to leave, but I didn’t want to start creeping her out again.
    Karen didn’t answer, but I could hear her stomach growl, and we both grinned. I got dressed, and she pulled her sandals on, and we walked slowly back to the truck. I was warm and relaxed from the sun and the swimming, but it was more than just that. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d spent a whole afternoon with someone where hockey hadn’t been mentioned a single time.
    We didn’t talk as we drove back to town, but it was a comfortable silence. We were both tired, and there wasn’t anything that needed to be said until I had to ask, “Where am I taking you?”
    She paused before giving me the address, and I worried that she was back to the old he’s-a-psycho thing, but she finally coughed it up and asked, “Do you know where that is?”
    “I know the street. You can point out the house when we get there.”
    When we turned the corner onto her street she said, “It’s the yellow brick one with the pillars, halfway down on the right.” We got a little closer, and I could feel her tensing up as she said, “The one with all the people out front.”
    I recognized a few of the faces and had a sudden urge to keep driving. We could just keep going, maybe circle around and go back to the lake. We could live on wild strawberries and fish, and maybe sleep in the truck, or build a shack on the beach…
    But Karen already thought I was psycho; I didn’t need to give her further evidence. So I pulled up to the curb and watched as everyone turned to look at us. I saw the recognition, and forced myself to stare straight ahead. I didn’t know what Karen was doing, living with these people, but I knew that at least one of them would really prefer that I drop dead.
    I didn’t think I’d mention that to Karen.

Chapter Five
    - Karen -
    When we pulled up to the curb, the heads of the perfect family all swiveled in our direction. The grandperfects were there, dressed as if they’d been playing golf, and as I watched, Matt pulled a set of clubs out of the back of their SUV. Of course—the twins had been bonding with Grandma and Grandpa. How sweet.
    I should clarify that these were Natalie’s parents, not my father’s, and after that I probably don’t have to go into a lot of detail about their expressions as they looked over and saw the evidence of their daughter’s humiliation sitting there in a pickup truck. Honestly, it was a disgrace that I was even allowed to walk around and be seen with civilized human beings.
    “You live here?” Tyler asked. “With the Beacons?”
    I really wasn’t up to explaining. “Shining Beacons of hope,” I said earnestly. “We can only pray that they’ll be able to reach a sinner like me.” I opened my door and slid out before he could say anything more. My dress was still a bit damp and it stuck to the seat and dragged out behind me; I think my lack of mortification about that makes it clear just how awkward the situation already was. Flashing my ass at a cute boy was the least of my worries. “Thanks,” I said quickly as I shut the door. “Fun afternoon,” I added through the window, and then I turned toward the house. I would have liked to just slink around the back and find my way in through the kitchen door, but one look at the crowd made