Page 50 of Deking
Lyla Wayne is one hell of a woman. I have got to figure out a way to make her fall in love with me before it’s too late.
Who am I kidding? It’s already too late.
thirteen
Iset the pan on the rack to dry and shut off the water. Turning, I take in the counter full of Tupperware and wince. I might have gone a little overboard. Still, I wanted to do something nice for Wyatt. Something he wouldn’t expect.
Pushing off the counter, I head to the other side of the kitchen and start placing the containers into bags so they are easy to carry. Despite the amount of food, it only takes me a minute to do.
I look around the kitchen to make sure I have everything I need.
Two plates are set to the side so both Dad and Will can have breakfast. The bacon, sausage, pancakes, and hash browns are in the bag. I even have a container of eggs in case they don’t have any at the hockey house.
Okay. This is it. I think I have everything.
The house is still silent, both Dad and Will still sleeping. Just hearing my dad snoring down the hall makes me smile. Without thinking about it, I look up at the ceiling, toward Will’s room. For a split second, I contemplate waking him up to tell him I’m leaving.
No, I told him last night. He knows I won’t be here.
Taking a deep breath, I gather the bags and head toward the door. Quietly, I slip outside and lock the door behind me.
“Brr.” I shiver as I walk toward the hockey house.
The seasons are definitely changing. We will be covered in snow before we know it, but until that happens, I’m going to enjoy being able to walk wherever I want to go without worrying about freezing to death.
I can’t help but smile as I look around and take in the silence.
It’s still early enough that classes haven’t started yet, so the road is quiet. There are a few lights on in homes as I pass by, but for the most part they are still dark. The grass is covered with frost from the drop in temperature overnight.
It’s peaceful.
A few minutes later, I walk up the front steps of the hockey house and knock on the door. I wait for a beat for someone to answer, and when they don’t, I knock again.
Right when I start to second-guess this entire idea, Jason answers the door, looking like he’s still asleep.
“Lyla?” he asks as he rubs his eyes.
“Good morning,” I say softly.
“What time is it? Did you get locked out?” he mumbles.
I have to bite my lip to stop myself from laughing. The poor kid is definitely not a morning person.
“It’s early, go back to bed,” I say quietly.
Jason grunts as he turns around, stumbling back toward his room. I can’t help but laugh under my breath as I watch him.Slipping inside, I shut the door behind me and head to the kitchen where I drop the bags.
Then I make my way silently up the stairs and head to Wyatt’s room. I can’t help but smile when I see that he’s lying on his stomach, blankets pushed down around his hips, facing my way. He looks so peaceful that I almost don’t want to wake him up.
On silent feet, I walk over to his bed and sit down on the edge of it.
“Wyatt…” I murmur.
When he doesn’t respond, I say his name again. Only this time, I brush hair away from his face.
His eyes flutter open but fall shut.
“Wyatt, wake up.” I laugh quietly.
