BLAZE: Enemies to Lovers College Hockey Romance by Eddie Cleveland (ebook reader macos .txt) 📕

it that way, just focus on your breath. Try to only notice your breathing. Nothing else. Just how it feels filling your lungs and then slowly letting it back out, like you’re breathing through a straw.” Blaze guides her like some Zen Master.

Mom keeps her eyes shut, but she starts frowning, “What happens when random thoughts happen?”

“It takes practise, but you’re supposed to notice them and let them go by.”

“So, is the idea to get your mind down to one thought?”

“Basically, yeah. It helps you focus on one task and stay in the present. You know, like all those hashtag cliches you find on Instagram posts. Except, it really does work,” Blaze answers.

Mom opens her eyes and stops sitting like a Kindergartener on a rug at circle time. “Oh, jeez,” she moans. “I can’t sit like that anymore, oof.” She moves over to the couch with her beer and takes a seat. “Thanks for showing me that, Blaze. It sounds like mindfulness would be really helpful in a lot of situations.” Mom looks over at me, “You should get him to harness that. You know, like, clitorially speaking.”

Blaze almost spits out the last swig of beer he was finishing. He chokes a bit as he manages not to spit it out on the carpet.

Mom gives me a look that just makes the blood rush to my face faster. Once again, she sails over my boundaries like an Olympic high jumper.

“Mom, seriously?”

“What? It’s true, isn’t it?”

“Alright, I think that’s enough pizza and beer for me.” I stand up. “Blaze, how about we go for a walk.

Blaze has gotten his coughing under control. I don’t know if that’s why he’s so pink or if my mother has actually made him blush. “Sounds good.” He gets up, and we head to the door.

“It was nice seeing you again, Blaze,” Mom calls out.

“You too,” he answers.

“Let’s go.” I lead him to the front hall and put my winter gear on in a hurry. It’s not until we step outside, and I leave my mother and her embarrassing comments behind me, that my face finally stops burning.

24

Busted for Bustin’ Blaze

“I’m sorry about my mother. She can be a bit much.” Prissy walks beside me down the sidewalk about a half pace quicker than me, like she’s trying to put space between her and the embarrassment.

I grab her hand and slow her down until we’re side-by-side. “That’s better.” I smile. “Don’t worry about your Mom. I think she’s cool.” I try to reassure her.

“She is. It’s just… she’s one of a kind.” Prissy sighs like she’s letting it go. The stress or whatever is eating at her, she breathes it out.

“That just makes her more interesting.” I shrug. “I think it’s great that you two are so tight. I haven’t seen that many parents who are so open with their kids. Most of them have a hard time accepting that we’re grown.”

“Yeah, that’s true. She’s never been that mom who tries to keep her kid a baby forever, that’s for sure. I just wish she’d take more of an interest in her own life, though. Maybe if she would go out on some dates she could meet someone who matches her kind of crazy.” Prissy laughs.

“You need to get her hooked up on Tinder,” I agree.

“Eww.” Prissy crinkles her nose.

“Yeah, you’re right. Besides, she sounds like she’s been out of the dating scene for a while. Putting her on Tinder would basically be throwing her to the wolves.”

“Oh, I don’t know. I’m sure there’s good guys on there.” She squints half her face like she’s not sure of that at all.

“Ever meet any?” I look over at her.

“Well, that’s where I met Damon.”

“Don’t you mean Harry Douche-Nozzle?”

“The third,” she states in an exaggerated stuffy British voice and giggles. I can’t help but smile when she does.

“Yeah, he’s exactly the kind of wolves I’m talking about.”

“Fair enough.” She nods.

It’s a nice night, but we seem to be the only ones crazy enough to go out walking in it. I guess it is a bit on the cold side, but it’s got nothing on the Witch’s Tit. That place has grizzled me against the arctic temperatures.

We walk up around the block. The houses are all nice but pretty much identical. The brick constructions have very few differences between them. The only things that really stand out are the brightly colored front doors. They cry out for attention, telling me everything I need to know about the individuals who live inside.

It’s so much of the same thing with each house that my eye is caught by the little building down the road we turn onto next. Well, not so much the building as what’s behind it.

“Are you kidding me?” I point over at the empty, darkened ice rink. The flood lights surrounding it are all out. The wood board walls cast shadows making the ice look black.

“What?” She looks over. “Oh.”

“You grew up one block away from a rink, and you never learned to skate?”

We walk up toward the community center building. With no lights on and no cars in the parking lot, it’s clear that no one is around. The rink beside it is a good size. And it’s completely empty.

“We didn’t always live here. We started out in a bachelor apartment, and Mom worked her ass off to move us up to this. Money was really tight when I was a kid. Like powdered milk and groceries from the fifty percent off section type of poor. So, she couldn’t afford to put me in sports or activities that cost a lot or that I’d outgrow every year.”

“Oh, I didn’t know. The fact that your mom pulled that off is pretty fucking incredible. You must be proud of her.”

“I am.” She beams. Her eyes shine under the moonlight. “It wasn’t like it was all bad either. I spent a lot of time at parks and doing hikes in nature, all that