The Girl With Hearts (Midtown Brotherhood #1) (15 page)

“You would do that?”

A gush of relief fell out of him. “Again. A little insulted by the shock in your voice.”

“I’m not shocked, Henrik, it’s just—we barely know each other.”

“You’ve known me since you were eighteen.”

“Yeah, but how much of that time did we actually spend getting to know each other, or even spending time together? We hated each other, remember?”

“No. You hated me. I was under strict instructions to stay the hell away from you.”

“That still doesn’t mean this is a good idea.”

“You’re right,” he breathed, unwilling to recall all the times he had to force himself to turn and walk the other direction when he saw her coming. “I may not know your favorite color yet, or even how you take your coffee, but there are some things I’m certain about when it comes to you.” He checked the door again, just to be safe. “I know you’re an amazingly loyal friend, because you and I both know Drew doesn’t trust easily. You’re supportive and caring, because I’ve watched you cheer on your brother too long. I know I’ve never felt comfortable enough to talk about my mother with anyone else.”

The sound of shocked silence was deafening.

“I’m not asking for some kind of commitment in stone, Leila,” he continued. “I’m just saying it’s obvious that both of us are harboring some more-than-friend type feelings about one another that we don’t know what to do with right now. We owe it to ourselves to have time to figure it out.”

Silence. Dead, suffering silence.

“I don’t know.”

“I don’t want you hooking up with anyone,” he blurted out. “The thought bothers me to an extent that is embarrassing. On occasion, you’ve implied that you feel the same about me. I mean, honestly, do you want me bringing girls back to my apartment? You running into them in the hallway in the morning?”

There was a pause, and then an audible, annoyed huff. “No,” she said stiffly, “I would prefer not to have that happen.”

“Then we have an understanding.”

She let out sigh, obviously overwhelmed. “This is crazy.”

It was more than crazy. It was real.

“Maybe, but if it helps us sleep at night…”

She scoffed. “I highly doubt you were losing any sleep over whether or not I’ve been hooking up with random guys since I’ve been here.”

“You’d be surprised.” It had crossed his mind more than a few times. “Check my game stats for that night you gave your ticket to Drew’s friend. Zero points. Zero hits. All I could do was sit there and think about whether or not you were out with some random guy.”

“I spent the evening in my pajamas combing through ads for a job,” she said, chuckling.

“Now you tell me.”

She laughed again, her voice dropping to a whisper. “Well, if it makes you feel any better, you’re still the only one.”

Something tightened in his chest.

“It does, actually,” he confessed, knowing it was difficult for her to admit anything to him, especially when it involved her feelings. “And I was being honest when I said I haven’t been with anyone since you.”

She made an almost hysterical laughing sound. “Okay, so that’s settled. Neither of us will be hooking up with anyone else.”

“Just to clarify,” he smiled into the phone, “that includes no hooking up with each other, right?”

“Yes, Henrik. That includes each other.”

“Okay,” he breathed, probably for the first time since they started the conversation. “Good. I can totally handle that.”

And he could.

“I trust you.”

The emotion those three simple words evoked was astonishing. It shocked him. “Thank you.”

He smiled like an idiot and was grateful she couldn’t see the inevitably goofy look on his face.

“Just one other thing,” he added, since she was being agreeable for the first time in her life.

“There’s more? Maybe we should write this down. Get lawyers involved.”

“You’re cute, Blakely. Real cute. I’m trying to be serious right now, remember?”

She cleared her throat. “Okay.”

“Since we have this new understanding, I’m going to need you to be available next weekend,” he told her, his voice a little more chipper than he meant it to be.

“For what?”

“To be my date for the Hockey Pays Forward Charity event the organization hosts every year. I’m required to go, and everyone brings a date.”

“Henrik. I’m sorry, but—”

“We can go as friends if you want. Just don’t make me show up alone.”

“No. It’s not that. I would love to be your date, but I promised Austin I’d go with him. Apparently, since his favorite wingman has been blowing him off, his datebook has suffered. However, I suspect it’s his passive aggressive way of keeping me from going with you.”

He flopped back on the bed. “Austin knows me too well.”

And he did. Austin knew he’d ask her. He’d been trying to corner him for weeks, and now he’d won. He would have to talk to him. That meant he would have to admit things. Things Austin already knew. It would be ugly, and painful.

“I’ll take care of it,” he finally decided.

Leila laughed into the phone. “Good luck with that.”

“Thanks,” he sighed, slumping down on the bed.

He would need it. He silently wondered if he should wear his new face guard.

Chapter 19

HENRIK’S CONVERSATION

The team was on the way back to Manhattan, a three-hour flight ahead of them. Henrik sat in the back of the team’s private jet with Austin, Sam, and one of their other teammates, Callen, playing a game of cards to pass the time. They were halfway through their first game when Austin finally looked over at him and nudged him with his knee. “So, how long are we going to sit here and act like you didn’t ask my sister out on a date?”

Sam’s panic-stricken gaze immediately shot up to him. Henrik remained calm. At least, calm on the outside. His insides took a dive to hell and back. He studied the cards in his hands. “So, you talked to her?”

“This morning. Mentioned something about going to buy a dress for the charity event, and then asked if I’d talked to you yet.”

“Yeah, about that…” He finally looked up and gave Austin a sympathetic slap on the back. Very casual and very calm. “You’re going to need to make other arrangements.”

Austin paused, staring daggers across the small space at him. “Excuse me?”

“I’m taking Leila,” he asserted with a small smile, his foot bouncing wildly beneath the table. “She’s my date.”

Austin threw his cards down on the makeshift table between them, leaning forward to glare into his eyes with a fury Henrik had never witnessed from his best friend—at least, not directed at him. “Are you trying to fuck my sister, Rylander?”

Shit, he felt guilty. Hurt-his-soul guilty.

“Because I’m pretty sure we’ve had a conversation about this before,” Austin continued. “You know my feelings on the subject.”

“Trust me, I know everyone’s feelings on the subject.”

Austin shoved his shoulder gingerly to get his attention. “The difference between me and Drew is I’m asking you, Henrik.” He dropped his voice to a deadly register. “I expect an honest answer, or I’ll make you give me one.”

Austin studied him, his fierce features cool and distant. Henrik worried that he looked as guilty as he felt, even though, technically, it wasn’t a lie. He wanted to sleep with Leila. Again. And again. However, he wasn’t trying to at the present time, but he couldn’t exactly explain their arrangement to Austin.

“No,” he stated with total honesty. “I’m not trying to sleep with your sister.”

Austin’s eyes remained locked on him, his assessment thorough. Finally, he fell back in his seat, dissatisfied, as if he’d actually looked forward to kicking Henrik’s ass, and picked up his cards again. “Whose turn is it?”

“Wait,” Sam breathed, glancing back and forth between the two of them, his nerves obviously shot. “That’s it?”

“What the hell, Sam?” Henrik interjected, shooting him a dubious look.

“Yeah, Sam,” Austin answered. “Is there something else I need to know?”

Sam swallowed loudly. “No,” he lied. Austin looked at Sam harder, and he started to panic. “I didn’t think finding out Henrik is trying to date your sister would go over so smoothly, is all.”

“Again, Sam. What the hell?” Henrik growled, glaring daggers at his confidant.

“Look,” Austin half laughed. “This isn’t the first time this has happened. Henrik tried this shit back in college, and I’ll admit I was a bit of a hard-ass about it back then.”

“A bit?” Henrik challenged, his tone reflecting the outright shock at his friend’s admission.

“I saved you from yourself.”

Henrik rolled his eyes. “You and I both know it had nothing to do with saving me. Leila was only eighteen.”

“Maybe, but she’s always been able to handle your wild stallion ass, no doubt about that.” Austin’s expression smoothed out. Softened. “Your mother hadn’t even been gone a year at that point. You were damn determined to sabotage any relationship where a woman showed you any kind of affection. It wasn’t the right time. So, yeah—I intervened.”

Henrik gaped at him. “You say that like making her hate me for four years was a favor?”

“It was. You’re welcome.”

Henrik rubbed his hand down his face, frustrated. Austin smiled, returning the pat on the back Henrik had given him earlier. “Look, it’s obvious your thoughts about my sister haven’t changed, so let’s stop pretending like the decline in your social calendar is because you’re all of a sudden Mr. Responsible.”

He looked at his best friend through his fingers. “I’m trying to be both.” He sighed. “You’ve heard the rumors. Naming me captain won’t keep them from trading me. I have to do my part. I need to be Mr. Responsible.”

Austin cocked a surprised brow. “Color me impressed.”

“So, does this mean you’re giving Henrik permission to date your sister?” Sam asked, still a little surprised.

“Have you met my sister? Trust me, my permission is the least of his worries.” He laughed, turning to look Henrik in the eye. “Just keep in mind, though, we’re roommates. I know what your ass does twenty-four hours a day. If you screw up, she will know about it. You got that?”

He nodded quickly. “Understood.”

“And if you try and pull some Derek Deroty bullshit on her,” he added, his face showcasing that deadly stare again, “you’ll have more than a broken nose to worry about.”

Again, he nodded. He would never be Derek, but that look in Austin’s eyes still made him nervous. If there was ever a guy to steer clear of, it was his best friend when he was pissed.

“Now, whose turn is it?” Austin inquired gruffly.

Sam continued to stare blankly at them as if still in shock. “What?” They both asked him in unison, though Henrik mouthed curse words at Sam.

Austin let him off easy about the date, but there was a big difference between a fancy team function and a bathroom wall. He was an asshole, not an idiot.

“Nothing,” Sam asserted, waving them back to their card game, “just minding my own business.”

Austin let it pass, and Henrik fell back in his seat with a thud. That was close. Too close.

***

The week seemed to rush by in a blur, but that tended to happen during the middle of the season. Henrik had back-to-back games on Tuesday and Wednesday, which left little time between sleeping and practice to do anything else. However, he made sure of one thing, and that was that Leila knew she was on his mind. They’d been texting each other regularly all week, and to his complete delight, she seemed to have finally relaxed. She was actually semi-flirtatious with him. Compared to the resting bitch face he was accustomed to seeing, it was a grand improvement.

Henrik: Found a dress yet?

Practice just ended, which meant he was free and clear with nothing on his calendar until after the event Saturday night. He left his phone sitting on the shelf in his locker, waiting eagerly for her reply as he changed clothes.

Leila: Maybe. Why so interested?

Henrik: Why so secretive?

Leila: Not secretive. Just curious why you’re so interested in dresses all of a sudden.

Henrik: Because there are only two types of dresses. Conservative and not conservative. A guy needs to be prepared.

Leila: Prepared how, exactly?

Henrik: If you choose a not conservative dress, it might be wise for a guy to wear briefs instead of boxers so he doesn’t embarrass himself.

Leila: You. Are. Ridiculous.

Henrik: The word you’re looking for is HONEST. So, what’s the verdict?

It took longer for her to answer, but when she did, he couldn’t help but laugh.

Leila: I’d go with the briefs.

Austin gave his head a shove from the locker next to him, knocking him off balance. “Stop fucking smiling so much. You look like an ass.”

“How is that different from how he normally looks?” Callen said with a laugh from across the room.

Henrik fell on top of his gym bag before grabbing a glove and chucking it back at Austin’s head. Then he shot Callen the finger. Callen laughed, disappearing into the shower. Austin held his hand out and helped him up. “So, can I assume you’re not joining us tonight?” Henrik smiled, and Austin smiled back. “Good boy.”

“Thanks for the approval, Dad.”

Austin laughed. “We can always go to dinner first. Leila can go too.”

“She’s shopping with Drew,” he said, grabbing his phone and stuffing it deep into his bag, “so I have a feeling she’ll be ready to crash.”

In fact, he knew she would. An all-day shopping trip meant she’d be tired. He still worried about her.

“I’ll catch you afterward then,” Austin said, smiling, “because I fully expect to find you in your bed when I get home. Alone.”

Henrik grabbed a towel and smiled over his shoulder at his best friend. “Naturally.”

***

That evening, Henrik sent Drew a text to tell him he was letting himself in their apartment to wait for them. He eyed Leila’s room from down the hall, assuring himself that snooping would be wrong. She’d tell him eventually. It was probably something minor anyway, which was why she hadn’t brought it up since that night at the pond. She hadn’t had any other episodes since that night, or at least, not that he’d noticed.

He made himself go sit in the living room. He fiddled anxiously with the remote until he heard the key turn in the lock. Leila walked in carrying a white garment bag across her arm. He shot her a smile, recalling their conversation from earlier, and she returned it. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d gotten to know a woman well enough to have an inside joke.

It was kind of fun.

His concern eased.

“So, do I get to see?” he inquired, nodding toward the garment bag.

“Of course,” she smiled, twirling around, “tomorrow.”

“Boo. You’re no fun.”

She shrugged, taking the bag toward her room, leaving him alone with his brother. Drew waited until she was halfway down the hallway to turn around. “Can we talk?” he asked quietly.

There was a redness to his eyes as if he’d been crying. “Sure. What’s wrong?”

“I meant can we talk, privately?” Drew looked back down the hallway again.

“Okay,” he agreed, eyeing his brother suspiciously. “Where?”

“Let’s go to the balcony,” he said, ushering him toward to the door.

They slid silently through the glass doors that led out to the small balcony, and Drew shut them as quietly as possible. “What’s going on? Is something wrong?”

“Maybe.” Drew sighed, worry creasing the lines on his face. “I think Leila might be sick.”

Just hearing the words from Drew’s mouth made his stomach drop. It immediately brought back memories of the Halloween party, her face pale as he helped her off the ice. “What do you mean?”

“Leila hardly ever leaves the apartment. Except, once a week, every Monday morning, she disappears for a couple hours.”

“Maybe she goes shopping, or to the store. She’s allowed to have a life.” He was making excuses, and he knew it.

“She’s always tired,” he continued, his voice becoming more strained by the second. “I know you’ve noticed it too. She has headaches. I thought maybe it was just the stress of everything getting to her, but today I saw her taking medicine at lunch. She tried to hide it from me, but I saw her.”

“People take medicine for all kinds of reasons.” He clenched his hands around the railing. “It could have been birth control, for all you know.”

“Why would she hide it from me?”

And there was the problem. The secrecy. Henrik knew there was something Leila wasn’t telling them. She had already admitted that to him, and as much as he tried to keep it in the back of his mind, he knew Drew would never be able to stop thinking about it. It would be like reliving their last days with their mother all over again.

“It worries me.” He looked like that twelve-year-old kid again, the one who constantly stood by the window, the phone always nearby, waiting and hoping what he knew wasn’t actually true. “I mean, her showing up here all of a sudden, wanting to spend more time with us. What if she’s dying or something?”

Henrik hugged him. He couldn’t stop himself. He felt utterly helpless, but most of all, he shared that same fear. He tried not to show it, or even feel it, but it was still there, just under the surface.

What if he lost Leila too?

“I will talk to her, okay?” he tried, keeping his voice as even as possible. “Just don’t stress yourself out about it. It’s probably nothing.”

Drew nodded, looking away to wipe the single tear from his cheek.

“Hey, where did you go?” Leila called out from inside.

Drew still looked pale, so Henrik did his best to reassure him. “I’ll take care of it.”