Read Online The Mighty Quinns: Thom by Kate Hoffmann - Free Book Online
Authors: Kate Hoffmann
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to. I will. I do it for a bunch of the other guys. If they don’t send me something, I just make something up and post it. It’s always something positive, so it’s a good thing.”
“What difference would it make?” Thom asked.
“You’d be surprised,” Malin said. “It’s the best way to communicate with your fans. Jeff Stromhall has almost a million followers. And he can talk to each and every one of them just by typing in a short little message every day.”
Thom rolled over and peered down at the screen of Malin’s iPad. “Show me how it works,” he said.
Malin quickly prepared a Twitter page for him, copying photos from the Blizzard site and answering bio questions for him. “Here’s your name. Thomquinn3. And your picture from the team site. And here’s your banner picture—the overtime goal that you scored against Chicago.”
“Nice,” he said.
“All right, now you have to say something. It should be short and pithy. You only have one hundred forty characters.”
“Pithy,” he said. “I’m not sure I’ve ever said anything pithy.”
“Then something inspiring. Or interesting. Or witty.”
Thom groaned and ran his fingers through his hair. “This is a lot of pressure. I don’t want to sound stupid.”
“Anything.”
He flopped back into the pillows and covered his eyes with his arm. Malin watched him, surprised that a guy unafraid to start a brawl on the ice was so scared to say something about himself.
“All right,” he said. “How about this? ‘Nothing better than a lazy afternoon—’”
Malin held up her hand to stop him while she typed in the first part of the message. She nodded for him to continue.
“‘In bed with a very beautiful and very naked woman.’”
Malin stopped typing and looked up at him. “You can’t say that.”
“But it’s true.”
“Some things should be kept private.”
“All right, you make something up.’
“Fine. How about, ‘Lazy afternoon watching my favorite movie.’ What’s your favorite movie?”
“The Wizard of Oz.”
“You like The Wizard of Oz ?” Malin shook her head. She really knew nothing about this man at all. “Tommy the Beast’s favorite movie is The Wizard of Oz .”
“I like the flying monkeys. And the lion. And the Munchkins. It’s been my favorite movie since I was a little kid. What’s wrong with it?”
Malin smiled. “Nothing. It’s perfect.” She keyed in the tweet. “‘Lazy afternoon watching my favorite movie, The Wizard of Oz. There’s no place like home.’” She showed it to him and he nodded. “Click Send,” she urged him.
He sent the tweet. “All right, I’ll go get the DVD. I haven’t watched it in years. We always used to watch it around Christmas.”
“We haven’t talked much about your family,” Malin said. Beyond what he’d said about why he’d started stealing, Thom had avoided mentioning his family. He’d mentioned his two brothers, Tristan and James. From what she’d made out, his parents hadn’t played much of a role in raising them, but his grandmother had.
“I don’t want to tell you more sad stories,” he said. “That’s all part of the past.”
“It’s part of who you are,” she said.
Thom shook his head. “No, it’s not.” He turned away, his gaze fixed on a stream of sunshine coming through the bedroom curtains. “Yes, it is. You’re right. But some of it is just so...pitiful. I never wanted people to pity me. I think that’s why I was okay with the whole Tommy the Beast image. My past made me tough. Not...wounded.”
“Are you wounded?” Malin tried to keep the tremor out of her voice, but it was nearly impossible. Just looking at his expression, tinged with torment, brought forth a surge of emotion. She didn’t want to cry. It would only confirm the worst of his fears.
“My father died when I was a kid. I’ve been told that he was a great guy—funny, the life of the party. My parents were just eighteen when they got married,
“What difference would it make?” Thom asked.
“You’d be surprised,” Malin said. “It’s the best way to communicate with your fans. Jeff Stromhall has almost a million followers. And he can talk to each and every one of them just by typing in a short little message every day.”
Thom rolled over and peered down at the screen of Malin’s iPad. “Show me how it works,” he said.
Malin quickly prepared a Twitter page for him, copying photos from the Blizzard site and answering bio questions for him. “Here’s your name. Thomquinn3. And your picture from the team site. And here’s your banner picture—the overtime goal that you scored against Chicago.”
“Nice,” he said.
“All right, now you have to say something. It should be short and pithy. You only have one hundred forty characters.”
“Pithy,” he said. “I’m not sure I’ve ever said anything pithy.”
“Then something inspiring. Or interesting. Or witty.”
Thom groaned and ran his fingers through his hair. “This is a lot of pressure. I don’t want to sound stupid.”
“Anything.”
He flopped back into the pillows and covered his eyes with his arm. Malin watched him, surprised that a guy unafraid to start a brawl on the ice was so scared to say something about himself.
“All right,” he said. “How about this? ‘Nothing better than a lazy afternoon—’”
Malin held up her hand to stop him while she typed in the first part of the message. She nodded for him to continue.
“‘In bed with a very beautiful and very naked woman.’”
Malin stopped typing and looked up at him. “You can’t say that.”
“But it’s true.”
“Some things should be kept private.”
“All right, you make something up.’
“Fine. How about, ‘Lazy afternoon watching my favorite movie.’ What’s your favorite movie?”
“The Wizard of Oz.”
“You like The Wizard of Oz ?” Malin shook her head. She really knew nothing about this man at all. “Tommy the Beast’s favorite movie is The Wizard of Oz .”
“I like the flying monkeys. And the lion. And the Munchkins. It’s been my favorite movie since I was a little kid. What’s wrong with it?”
Malin smiled. “Nothing. It’s perfect.” She keyed in the tweet. “‘Lazy afternoon watching my favorite movie, The Wizard of Oz. There’s no place like home.’” She showed it to him and he nodded. “Click Send,” she urged him.
He sent the tweet. “All right, I’ll go get the DVD. I haven’t watched it in years. We always used to watch it around Christmas.”
“We haven’t talked much about your family,” Malin said. Beyond what he’d said about why he’d started stealing, Thom had avoided mentioning his family. He’d mentioned his two brothers, Tristan and James. From what she’d made out, his parents hadn’t played much of a role in raising them, but his grandmother had.
“I don’t want to tell you more sad stories,” he said. “That’s all part of the past.”
“It’s part of who you are,” she said.
Thom shook his head. “No, it’s not.” He turned away, his gaze fixed on a stream of sunshine coming through the bedroom curtains. “Yes, it is. You’re right. But some of it is just so...pitiful. I never wanted people to pity me. I think that’s why I was okay with the whole Tommy the Beast image. My past made me tough. Not...wounded.”
“Are you wounded?” Malin tried to keep the tremor out of her voice, but it was nearly impossible. Just looking at his expression, tinged with torment, brought forth a surge of emotion. She didn’t want to cry. It would only confirm the worst of his fears.
“My father died when I was a kid. I’ve been told that he was a great guy—funny, the life of the party. My parents were just eighteen when they got married,
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