This would happen to me, Sean, Kyle, and Ryan from time to time and it was fine. We were the close-knit inner circle of our friend group and enjoyed j...st passing the time with one another and a few beers.This had the side affect of inducing Ryan to complain about his off-campus girlfriend again. She was some girl he's known growing up and had gotten with since moving away to college. From everything he told us, she seemed like a total bitch. But that night, his topic of complaint was. ”Liz grinned.“Word for word,” she confirmed. “I’m glad you’re taking this so well.”“You told me it would be this way,” I said. “I’m going to assess the worth of the person making the statement before I give it any credence. I’m OK if some Nashville fat cat thinks I’m a nobody if he’s OK with me thinking he’s a peckerhead.”“He’s totally a peckerhead,” Jill said. “Wait until you see him. He thinks he’s Col. Parker or something.”I saw smiles around the room and decided I shouldn’t ask who Col.. Thick hair the color of chocolate curled below his collar and hung in his eyes. He could do with some time in a barber’s chair.She’d cook him a meal and be on her way. She had no time for overbearing strangers. There was a lot of land out there for the taking, and she could find another parcel to set her stake.“Any luck?”She stiffened and tried not to show her surprise as she cussed herself for her inattention. “One more and you’ll have enough for breakfast tomorrow.” Something twitched her. "That guy was moving like a freight train. Brody went down like a ton of bricks. Shit." Lara rubbed her shoulder. "Relax, Ry. He'll be okay. Sometimes they just get the wind knocked out of them, you know that. Brody's a tough guy." Ryan covered her eyes and took a deep breath. When she looked up, she stole glances at her friends, all of whom looked concerned since Brody was still lying on the ice. She watched the TV as they showed a replay. In slow motion, Brody went after the puck. Knowing.