Let's Be Crazy (Oh Captain, My Captain Book 4)
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Authors: Lindsay Paige,Mary Smith
Let's Be Crazy
An Oh Captain, My Captain Novel
by Lindsay Paige and Mary Smith
Let's Be Crazy
Copyright 2015 by Lindsay Paige and Mary Smith
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This book is a work of fiction. Any resemblance to any person, living or dead, is purely coincidental. Any actual places, products, or events mentioned are used in a purely fictitious manner.
Cover Designed by:
Bailey Ardisone
Edited by:
Shannon Page
Table of Contents
Lexie
If I see one more email in my inbox, I may shoot the computer. I’ve spent the last hour answering as many as I could, and it still looks like I haven’t touched them. I hate them with a passion, but it’s the way most of our clients communicate with us. Unless they’re calling to scream at me for some stupid reason, like the ice sculpture isn’t as big as it should be.
I realize that it’s getting later, and I need to get to the school. This is one person I’m never late for. I quickly grab my purse, phone, and keys, before heading towards my car.
The air has a small chill in the air because October is upon us. Soon the snow will come and I hate that more than anything. I shouldn’t be complaining since I’ve lived in Utah all my life, and I should be used to it by now. But, I’m not.
I follow the line of high-end cars into the school’s parking lot. I hate all those pretentious millionaires, but this is the best school in Salt Lake City, and my baby girl will only have the best. That’s why I moved to this side of town, to make sure we were in this school district.
Right there in front of the building with her Hello Kitty backpack and curly strawberry blonde hair is the one person who makes my life complete.
My daughter, Sadie.
“Mommy!” she yells for me, sprinting to me.
“How’s my girl?”
“Good.” She climbs up into the back and buckles into her carseat. “I had the greatest day ever.”
“You did?”
“Yes, I met a boy.”
I sigh deeply. Of course she did. My daughter is always meeting boys. “Well, go ahead and tell me all about your friend.”
“His name is Reed, and guess what? He loves SpongeBob too. Can you believe it?”
I laugh. “That’s amazing. I’m so glad that you’re making friends. What did you learn today?”
Sadie throws her head back. “Addition. There are so many numbers, Mommy.”
Oh, the woes of a six-year-old. My smile deepens as I continue to drive towards my parents’ house.
“Are you going to Grammy and Pops house?”
“Yes. I’m going out with Aunt Tiff tonight.”
“Okay.” Sadie looks out the window.
I hate that I leave her, but she’s still too young to take to the Utah Bears hockey game. However, I can’t wait until I can. I want my daughter to love hockey as much as I do.
When I pull into the driveway, Sadie is bouncing in her seat. She loves her grandparents, and they spoil her rotten. She unbuckles and bolts for the front door. I grab her bags and follow her in.
“Grammy, where are you?” Sadie shouts as she’s racing through the house.
“There’s my baby,” Mom says, coming from around the corner.
Her rich brown hair has faded with age, and the gray is peeking through the crown of her head. She picks up my daughter with ease, and I wonder how she never looks tired.
“Where’s my princess?” Dad yells from the kitchen. “I have cookies.”
Sadie squeals with delight and leaps from Mom’s arms towards the kitchen.
“How was work?” Mom gives me a peck on the cheek.
“Long.” I sit down on the couch. “Thanks for watching her.”
Mom waves her hand like it’s not a big deal. I don’t know what I would do without my parents. They have been my strength for the past six years.
“Mommy, look.” Sadie comes back into the living room with a large cookie in her hand.
“You haven’t had dinner yet.”
“But Pops gave it to me,” she whines, pouting her lip.
“Fine.” There’s no point in arguing. “I have to go. Give me a kiss.”
Sadie quickly smacks her lips against my cheek and takes off back to the kitchen. I hug Mom and yell ‘bye’ to Dad. I go back to my car and drive the few blocks to my house. Sadie is my pride and joy, but my house is the second. I’ve saved for the last six years and cried the day we closed. My parents offered numerous times for me to live with them, so I could save faster, but I couldn’t do that to them.
Sadie and I lived in a small apartment until this past summer. I had grown up in the neighborhood, and I knew that it was safe. On top of that, I wanted Sadie to be able to go to the best school.
I walk into my ranch-style, single-story home; it still has a small hint of fresh-paint smell in the air. I drop my keys and purse onto the table near the door and head to the bedroom to change. Excitement fills me, thinking that hockey season is about to start. There is one major problem that faces me, though.
I hate the Utah Bears.
Every last one of them.
I’m a Las Vegas Gamblers fan, but I’ve never been there to see a game. I’ve had to wait for them to come here for me to see them.
And that is tonight.
My phone rings from the other room. I quickly slip on my jersey of my favorite player and the greatest captain in the league, Jax Godwin.
“Hey, what time are you going to be here?” I ask Tiffany when I answer the phone.
“I’m dying.”
“What?” I hear her coughing loudly into the phone. “Are you okay?”
“No, I think I have the flu or the plague. It doesn’t matter because I can’t go.”
“Oh no. Do you need me to get you something?”
“I need a huge favor.” Tiffany’s sickly voice makes my heart ache. “I need you to go to the meet and greet.”
I laugh loudly. “No freaking way.”
“Lexie, please. I’m dying here, and I’ve been wanting Ashton Campbell’s autograph my whole life.”
“Stop being so melodramatic. He’s been the captain for the last three seasons, and he’s younger than us.” I roll my eyes at her.
“Lexie, you’re my best friend. This is the only chance that I’ll ever get for him to sign my jersey. Please, I’m begging. I’ll do anything.”
I perk up at her offer. “Even if I ask you to help me with the Steinbergs’ sweet-sixteen party?”
They were becoming our unruly clients. They wanted everything and anything for their daughter’s birthday, including celebrities, which is impossible.
“Fine,” she groans. “You have a deal.”
“I’ll be over in a few to grab the jersey.”
~ ~ ~
Walking into the arena makes my heart flutter. I love it more than anything. The bright lights gleaming on the fresh sheet of ice. Everyone is buzzing with excitement. Even if I hate the Utah Bears, it’s still hockey, and I love it. I love it more when the Gamblers take the ice. I search for number eighty-seven. He’s my favorite player. I watch him skate around. His black hair, slightly long, hanging from the back of his helmet. If anyone can be called the best hockey player, it’s him.
I watch as Ashton and Jax take center ice, and my heart thumps hard against my chest. When the puck drops, the crowd cheers.
The season has begun.
Ashton
One thing about having Jax Godwin as my best friend is that us playing against each other always brings a fun game. We know each other too well for it to be anything other than entertaining. We’re both so competitive, too.
“Stop being such a pussy and play like a man,” Jax grunts as he slams into me, stealing the puck.
I want to laugh, but I chase after him with determination instead. His team won the last time we played, so it’s time for a little payback. Plus, my son is at home watching, hoping that his dad will beat his Uncle Jax. With thoughts of Reed in my head, I push my legs harder and faster to capture the puck once more. Jax and his team play tough, but it’s not enough tonight.
A win is always good, but especially when there is a meet and greet afterwards. Before I head into the room where it’s being held, I call Brooke, Reed’s mother. She was supposed to let him stay up late tonight to watch the game since it was both Jax and me playing.
“Sorry, Ashton,” she answers. “He was knocked out halfway through the third.”
For a moment, my shoulders sag; he didn’t see my late goal. He needs sleep instead, so he can focus in school. I don’t know where he got it from, but the boy loves going to school. “Well, I’ll call him tomorrow and tell him all the details then,” I tell her. “I should go, though.”
“Okay, call me later. We need to go over some kinks in the schedule for when Reed is with you.”
If there is one thing I hate about my job, it’s that I’m away from him. He’s my world and I’m lucky that Brooke is his mother. We’ve always been close friends, but after a night of drinking entirely too much, we slept together. Soon after, she learned she was pregnant. I love her, she’s one of my best friends, and I couldn’t have asked for a better person to raise my son with.
With a smile on my face from the good thoughts, I head to the meet and greet. There’s a small gathering of people, clustered around the other players already here. My eyes are immediately drawn to a woman across the room. I’m not sure if it’s because this gorgeous redhead doesn’t look even remotely happy about being here or if it’s because she’s out of place with her Gamblers’ jersey. Jax’s jersey, if I’m not mistaken. I’m pretty sure there’s a C peeking out from beneath the hair hanging around her shoulders.
Her green eyes look around until she’s staring right at me. They harden into a glare. Why is she here? Doesn’t she realize her team isn’t in this room? Maybe she’s lost or something. I travel through the people until I’m standing in front of her. Her beautiful mouth flattens, her jaw locking with distaste.
“Sign this,” she states plainly, shoving one of my jerseys at me.
“Sign this what?” I grin. “Kind of rude to demand I do something.”
She rolls her eyes, but explains, “My best friend is your biggest fan, but she’s sick. Would you please sign it to Tiffany? Thanks.”
I uncap my marker, but can’t find it in myself to look away from her yet. “I’m sorry to hear she’s sick. Be sure to tell her get well for me.” I pause, and then add, “I’m going to take a wild guess and say you don’t like me or the Bears.”
The woman points to her own jersey. “I’m a Vegas girl. Maybe if you could put more pucks in the goal then I would be
your
fan. But I don’t see a Cup in your future anytime soon.”
“I had enough pucks in the net tonight. Maybe you should have better taste. Or know your hockey better.” I know it’s dangerous territory to say that to any fan, much less a fan of my rivalry, but I want to push her buttons.
“My hockey knowledge is abundant, and I have much better taste. That’s why I’m a Vegas girl. Now, please sign this, and then I can go.”
“Are you sure you aren’t just playing the hard-to-get tactic? Do you want me to take you out to dinner? Is that what this-” I motion to her Gamblers’ jersey “-is all about?”
She shakes her head in aggravation. “Wow, you actually proved my point. You’re nothing but an arrogant jerk. You will never have a woman like me. Sign it.” Her gaze is pointedly on the not-yet-autographed piece of clothing in my hands.
“Oh, you wound me…what’s your name again?” She hasn’t said it yet, and I have to know. If I never see her again for the rest of my life, I need to know her name.
She avoids my question. “The name for the jersey is Tiffany, she’s my friend.”
“I asked for your name.”
“You don’t need it.” This woman is such a piece of work. It’s fun, though.
“Yes, I do. I need to have a name to go with your face because I won’t be forgetting you anytime soon. So, give me your name, and I’ll give you the signed jersey back.”
“You know, I was taught to respect my elders, and since I’m much older than you, you should remember that. However, I’ll let this interaction go. This time. It’s Lexie. Now, sign it.”
Much older than me? Not a chance in hell that’s true. I grin over the victory of learning her name. “Well, Lexie, that wasn’t so hard, was it?” I finally sign and hand it back to her, not able to let her age go without saying something about it first. “And for the record, there’s no way you’re much older than me, but if you are, then you’re definitely doing something right.” I allow myself the chance to truly appreciate Lexie’s looks. Hell, it doesn’t even matter whose jersey she’s wearing. She’s stunning either way.
When my eyes meet hers again, the glare is back in full force. “Thanks for the autograph. Hope you are able to make through the season, but if not there’s always next year.” Lexie turns on her heels and walks away without a glance back, which is great because I watch her until she disappears through the doors.
~ ~ ~
“Close your mouth while you eat,” I tell Reed. I came over to Brooke’s early this morning for us to have breakfast and because I’m taking him to school today.
“Yes, sir,” he mumbles around a sausage link.
Brooke laughs, shaking her head. Before he can take another bite, I ask him how school is going.
Reed shrugs like nothing new has happened, which is his sign that something new has happened.
“Reed, tell your dad about your new friend,” Brooke urges him.
“Sadie,” my son smiles. “She’s my new best friend.”
“She is? What is she like? Maybe we can invite her to the park next time you go.”
“Dad, she’s so cool. She loves SpongeBob and everything. But she has a really ugly Hello Kitty bag. Girls.” He shakes his head and rolls his eyes.
“That might be her favorite bag, you shouldn’t call it ugly. You wouldn’t want her to say that about yours, would you?”
My comment flies right over his head. “It’s pink and has lots of glitter,” he says, explaining why he’s right. “But I won’t tell her it’s ugly, if you say not to. Could she come to a game?”
I glance at Brooke. This is an iffy subject with us because we’ve had issues before with Reed having more fake friends than genuine friends. “You’ll have to ask your mom that first.”
“We’ll see,” she tells him. “Come on, it’s time for your dad to take you to school.”
We grab his book bag and then we’re on our way. Reed asks me about the game, even apologizes for falling asleep.
“It’s okay, little man. You missed a sweet goal that I made, though. I’ll show you a clip from the internet tonight, if you want.” I go into the play-by-play for him and he high-fives me as we pull into the school. “Have a good day.” I ruffle his hair, causing him to laugh before he quickly reaches up to put it back in place.
With him at school, I head back to Brooke’s.
“So, who is this Sadie? He wanted me to tell him about the game, so we didn’t talk about her.”
“All I know is that she’s new, and they shared their lunches. In the mind of a first-grader, it’s a serious relationship. Maybe we should start planning their wedding.” She laughs.
“It’s good that he can make friends with the new kid. We shouldn’t ruin it by planning a wedding.” I chuckle.
“Well, as far as I know, this is his only friend right now. It has me worried since all his male friends from last year just wanted to meet
you
.” Her voice is more sad than anything else. I hate that Reed has to tip-toe around who his dad is because of that reason. “However,” Brooke brightens her voice, “he’s excited about it and we need to be too.”
“You can be in charge of playdates with her then. I could help out more later on.”
“I haven’t met her mom or anything yet, but I’m good with that. Oh, we need to figure out Friday. What time does your plane get in? Nate and I need to be at the party by eight.”
“I could pick him up from school. What’s been happening with Nate? Sounds like things are going well.” Nate is who Brooke is currently dating. She’s told me a few things about him, but not much yet.
“Well, things are going well. And I was wondering,” she pauses, glancing down at the table for a second, “if Reed might be able to stay the night?”
“You’re planning on staying the night? That sounds like it’s going better than
well
. Should I meet this guy? Don’t you need my stamp of approval?” I tease.
She laughs. “You can meet him later. I don’t need your stamp as of yet. When I’m ready to introduce him to Reed, then I will let you know.” We never introduce anyone to Reed unless there is a serious possibility that they will be a permanent addition to our little family. We don’t want him getting attached to anyone and getting hurt if things end. “What about you? Any special girl I need to meet?”
“Nope. There’s no one that special yet.” Not going to lie, though. Lexie, little Miss Angry, pops into my mind for a moment.
“Ash,” Brooke starts, sounding concerned, “it’s been a while since you’ve dated. What gives? Is there something you need to talk about?”
“You sound like a therapist, Brooke. There’s nothing out of the ordinary going on.” There hasn’t been anyone lately. Well, no one that I could see Reed meeting. I haven’t turned down dates outright, but I haven’t been searching for any either.
“I’m concerned about you. I mean, I’ve never seen you go this long without
someone
in your life. You know, besides Reed and me.”
“No need to be concerned. I’m not, so you shouldn’t be either. I’m not worried about having someone or not. All I need is Reed, and you of course.” Reed is the most important person in my life, and so is Brooke, not only because she’s my friend, but because she’s his mom and he needs her too.
“Ash, I’ve been your friend for almost ten years. I’m not going anywhere. I just want to make sure that you have someone. I want you to be happy.”
“I’m happy. Someone will come along eventually, I’m sure.” I’m not going to worry about it.
“Okay. If you’re happy, then I am too. By the way, don’t get upset,” she warns, “but I already took care of Reed’s tuition this semester.”
“Brooke, why? I’ve told you a million times that I want to do that. At least half of it, if you want to be stubborn.” She does this to me all the time, being sneaky with paying for things instead of letting me take care of it all.
“You were at training camp, and it needed to be paid. I wasn’t about to call and bother you about it. And don’t you dare suggest a joint account again. I don’t want to have to have that argument today.”
“I wasn’t going to suggest it.” Okay, I was. “Was only going to say that maybe I should give you one of my cards instead. Then you won’t have to ‘bother’ me about Reed’s expenses.”
“Ashton, no.” She shakes her head firmly. “I do fine with the check that I get every month. The only reason I told you is because I didn’t want you to send a payment too. If you want, take care of the next semester. Okay?”
“Fine. And if you need more, all you have to do is say the word, you know. Even if it’s for you. I mean, I know you do well without me, but if something happened and you needed it…” Sometimes, I feel like I have to remind her that if she needed me, I would take care of her too.
“Listen to me. I love that you care so much, but you already paid for the house and the car. Reed has every imaginable thing and toy a child could ever want. If I need something that badly, you know I would tell you. But, we’re fine. Now, I have to get to the hospital, and you have practice. Are you coming for dinner?”
“Yeah, text me the time later, and I’ll be here.”
I guess I shouldn’t pester her so much about it. She’s right in a lot of ways and she does work with me and my schedule. She moved away from her family, more than once, just so Reed can be in the same town as me. That’s part of the reason why I want her to let me do as much as I can, but I know that she’ll let me know if she needs me.
For now, I need to go to practice.