Accidentally Checked By My Brother’s Best Friend (Accidentally In Sports #3)

15. Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Thirteen

Duncan

I feel like an idiot sitting in Ava's Beemer. Driving my SUV would’ve been smart, but I didn’t think it was safe for Ava to be in the car alone. We will be taking my Acadia from now on.

We .

That one little word has my gut clenching and my heart jumping around like a Mexican jumping bean. ‘We’ is never a word I thought would apply to me and Ava. Now that it does, at least until everything with Nathan blows over, I feel…Anxious? Excited?

Yes, yes, and yes to all of those and more. But it’s the more that concerns me.

I’ve dated on and off over the last ten years, but none of those relationships went anywhere. Not because I didn’t want a relationship; I did, and I do. There just wasn’t a connection. And with Ava sitting next to me as my ‘girlfriend,’ I now know why.

Ava parks in front of David’s house, and the engine goes silent. She fiddles with the keys, not making any attempt to get out of the car. Turning her body to face me, her hesitant gaze meets mine. “Are you sure you want to do this? The two of us together will cause a massive stir, and the press will be out of control.”

Her blue eyes hold a myriad of emotions. Uncertainty? Relief? Hope?

Hope? No. That can’t be right. I need to be careful about letting myself read into anything where ‘we’ are concerned. This entire situation is fabricated. Ava needs to be protected, and I’m the man for the job.

End of story. Finito. Nothing else to see here, folks.

“I deal with the press frequently; it’s part of being a professional athlete and isn’t foreign to me. Besides, do you really think there would be any chance I would let you handle this by yourself?”

She pulls in her bottom lip, drawing my eyes to it. My heart stops, and all the air feels sucked from the vehicle. I slowly drag my gaze to Ava’s, only to be startled by a loud banging noise from the car window.

“Ouch,” I grumble, rubbing my head after slamming it into the top of her car.

“Are you okay?” She asks with a chuckle, placing her hand on top of my head and rubbing gently. When her hand touches me, I freeze—a strong current moves down my body.

“Uncle Dunky! I thought you said you weren’t coming to dinner.” Scarlett pulls open the door and drags me out of the car, causing me to bang my head again.

Did I say how much I hate small cars?

When she grins at me and lifts her arms so I can pick her up, a grin slides across my face. As per usual she smothers me by squeezing my neck too tight, and I love every minute of it. There is nothing I love more than her little arms wrapped around me.

Done with the hug, she starts squirming and I put her down. The next thing I know, she’s grabbing my hand and dragging me to the house.

“Did you bring the treat dough? What are you doing here? I’m so glad to see you! Aunt Ava, are you coming?!” I turn my head toward Ava and see her just outside the car door watching us, the corner of her lips lifted.

“Yeah, Aunt Ava,” I tease, raising a brow. “Are you coming?”

Ava’s brows lift before she gives me a smile that makes my heart stutter. That stuttering heart immediately slams to a halt when I remember I need to tell David and Scarlett that Ava and I are in a ‘relationship.’

“Did you just say you’re a couple?” David’s hands stop mid-air as he grabs a chicken breast from the plate in front of him, his mouth nearly hitting the table.

“Yay!” Scarlett cheers. David narrows his eyes at his daughter. She sends him an innocent look. “What? I think it’s great. My favorite aunt and uncle are finally together.”

“We’re pretending to be together, Scarlett,” Ava says calmly. She takes the serving dish from David and looks from his eyes to the serving fork and back. He plates the chicken breast and hands the serving fork to her. Plating a chicken breast for herself, she puts the dish with the chicken back in the middle of the table and picks up the salad bowl. “Just until this whole thing with Nathan gets under control.”

Scarlett puts on her special ‘That’s not cool’ face, and I can’t help but smirk.

“Wait, what?” David asks, beyond confused, if the look on his face means anything.

Ava and I share a glance, and I nod my head toward her, letting her know to take the lead.

Ava tells David what happened today—starting with both of our agents suggesting that we take advantage of the gossip surrounding the two of us from last night’s game, and Nathan showing up at my house unhinged.

“You’re okay with this, Dunc?” David turns his gaze to me, his eyes full of concern. We’ve never talked about my feelings for Ava but I am pretty sure he knew how I felt.

“After what I saw today, yes.” I lift a shoulder to my ear. He stares at me hard, like he’s trying to find answers to questions he’d rather be asking in private. He’s not the only one asking those questions. I am, too. But the one thing I’m sure of is that helping Ava is the right thing to do.

As if seeing what he wanted, he nods, looks at Ava, and then back at me. “So what do Scarlett and I need to do?”

“Don’t act surprised when we do ‘couple’ things,” Ava responds, an adorable hint of pink staining her cheeks.

“Like kiss?” Scarlett asks, a bit too excitedly. All of us whip our heads in her direction.

I narrow my eyes at her, and she gives me an impish grin. I bite the inside of my lip to keep from grinning at her. I swear, this niece of mine is too much.

“What? You and Mom used to kiss all the time,” she says, pointing her fork at David and then back and forth between Ava and me. “Why wouldn’t they?”

Heat creeps up my neck as her words sink in, and I swallow hard. Glancing at Ava, I find her looking down at her plate and pushing her food around.

With all the thoughts I had about saying yes to this ‘fake dating’, I didn’t think about the kissing aspect. In fact, I’ve been doing everything in my power to not think about kissing Ava. Which of course, isn’t working.

As if feeling my eyes on her, Ava's gaze lifts to mine, and my gut clenches.

“You’re right, Scarlett,” I say, not breaking eye contact with the woman across from me. “Couples kiss.”

Ava’s eyes darken and I can see her swallow hard.

“Just like in the movies,” she says before glancing at Scarlett. “And what do I say about movies and kisses?”

“That they’re fake.” Scarlett’s shoulders droop, and her excited smile falls.

“Exactly,” Ava says, not meeting my gaze. “Uncle Duncan and I are playing a part. You need to remember that, okay?”

Scarlett looks at Ava and then back to me. “Uncle Duncan, you aren’t an actor. How will you feel about fake kissing?”

My eyes pop open at her question, and my mouth goes dry.

“Okay, that’s enough questions, Scarlett,” David says, pushing his chair back and getting up from the table. “Time to get ready for bed. Grab your plate and put it in the sink, please.”

David gives me one last glance before he heads to the kitchen. Ava picks up her plate and the salad bowl, following David and Scarlett.

“Scarlett, do you want help getting ready for bed?” Ava asks. “I can braid your hair for you.”

“Yes, please!” The brightest smile crosses Scarlett’s face as she skips toward Ava.

I can hear their banter as they walk down the hallway from the kitchen toward Scarlett’s room.

Picking up my plate and one of the others on the table, I push my chair back and head to the kitchen, feeling heaviness in my chest.

“Uncle Duncan and I are only playing a part.”

The way Ava explained our situation to Scarlett was perfect and true. But it was like a punch to the gut that had me gasping for air.

Crossing the threshold into the kitchen, I’m greeted by the sound of running water and the sight of David washing the dishes. I put my plates on the counter next to him and turn to clear what’s left on the table.

“Duncan?” David calls, turning off the water, drying his hands, and watching me closely. “Are you really okay with this?”

“Ava asked me the same thing multiple times,” I growl. “And my answer hasn’t changed.”

I know David is worried, but right now, I can’t think about what I agreed to. And I can’t think about how it may affect me. I don’t have that luxury.

“Are you going to be okay with fake kisses?” He asks the same question his daughter did.

“You didn’t see her when Nathan called or when he showed up at my house. She’s terrified of him.” I scrub my face before running my hand through my hair and blowing out a frustrated breath. “I guess I’ll have to be.”

“There has to be something else we can do, Dunc. Other ideas. Options—”

“I already told Nathan we’re dating.”

David’s brows shoot up, and he lets out a soft whistle, “Oh.”

“Yeah,” I sigh. “It will be all over the internet by tomorrow, if it’s not already, and Nathan will do everything to portray Ava as the villain.”

“She’s stronger than she looks, Duncan.” His voice is gentle.

Meeting his stare, I can see he really believes what he says. But here’s the thing: Ava only pretends to be emotionally tough. She’s really not. I’ve always known this. David, as close as he and Ava are, never saw that side of her because she didn’t let him or Fiona. She didn’t want them to worry about her.

Honestly, she didn’t want me to see either—I just did.

“She’s really not, though,” I say firmly. “I know this isn’t the smartest thing I could do, but I can’t let her go through this alone.”

“Are you still in love with her?” My stomach drops at his question. He pins me with his gaze, saying the quiet part out loud. “Don’t pretend you weren’t. Anyone who paid attention could see it written all over your face.”

Blowing a heavy breath, I shove my hands into my pockets and stare at the ground. “Let’s hope not,” I whisper.

David walks past me, patting my shoulder as he heads back to the table. “Just be careful, okay?”

Meeting his concerned blue eyes, I nod.

Where I am now is way beyond the point of being careful. Careful would’ve been keeping my distance from Ava the moment I found out she was coming to Maple Ridge.

I am officially in the danger zone.