Chapter 49 The Langfield Brothers
FORTY-NINE
THE LANGFIELD brOTHERS
Aiden
There’s nothing like the moment I set my eyes on my wife after we’ve been apart. I spend far too much time away from the woman because of our schedules, so when I’m in town and she’s busy like she’s been today, I turn into a caged animal, pacing and waiting for her return.
As Langfield Corp’s events coordinator, Lennox has been immersed in planning Josie’s Gala for weeks. It’s one of our family’s biggest events, so naturally, my wife has been gone all day.
When I spot her, with her pink hair in a pretty updo and the deep magenta fabric of her dress cutting across her curves in a way that leaves my mouth watering, I can do nothing but stare. The woman is a fucking vision.
“Pick up your jaw, Lep.” War waltzes by and snags his wife by the waist, tugging her against him.
I chuckle. As if the man isn’t just as smitten with his as I am with mine.
Though when I realize his wife is free to wander around the event with him, irritation rushes through me. Because mine is still busy.
She winks at me, then turns and walks in the opposite direction, leaving me wishing I could chase after her and beg for a little attention.
It’s tempting, but it would be a fruitless endeavor. So I take a look around the space instead, memorizing every detail so I can tell Lex how proud I am of the event she’s thrown.
Josie’s as healthy as any of the rest of our friends’ kids these days, but after witnessing her battle with lymphoma, our family is dedicated to making sure no child ever suffers through an illness alone the way she did.
The room is bathed in pink light, and each table is topped with bouquets of varying sizes and bright pink candelabras that set the entire room aglow. The tablecloths are a glittering silver, and the chairs are all adorned with pink silk tied in bows.
Almost every woman is wearing some version of pink, and if I had it my way, I’d be in a magenta suit tonight. But when I asked my sister to make me a pink tux, she begged off, claiming she was too busy. So I had to settle for a pink tie to match my wife’s dress.
I tap my foot, letting my knee bounce to music in my head while I continue creating the list of compliments I’ll have for Lennox tonight. I wish it was time to dance. It’s hard to stand in one place for this long.
As I survey the place, I catch sight of my teammates one by one. The more I find, the more obvious it is that all our ties are annoyingly similar.
I huff. I’ll have to pester Sienna about the tux earlier next year. When I spot Brooks and Sara, I head for our table. If I stick close to my wife’s best friend, I have a better chance of attracting my wife. Besides, Sara is entertaining as fuck.
“Thought we were supposed to be wearing pink,” I say by way of greeting as I approach.
Sara grins, twirling in her Bolts blue dress. “It’s got pink beading. Sienna told me that counts.”
I chuckle. My sister designed dresses for all of our wives, and damn, does each one of them look good. She managed to capture each of their personalities perfectly.
Sara, my sister-in-law who dyes her hair blue at the start of every season to support the team, can wear her favorite color while sticking to tonight’s theme.
She’s right about the color. With the pink iridescent beading covering almost every inch of fabric, the dress looks blue from one angle, but from others, it looks pink.
My sister is fucking talented.
Why she agreed to come work at the main office is beyond me. She doesn’t belong there, even if I do love having her around.
When Noah joins us and eases into a chair, I shuffle closer.
“Sorry you got roped into sitting at the family table.”
He shrugs, a content smile on his face. The guy is always so easygoing.
And he’s one hell of a winger. He never fails to set me up for a goal when the time is right, and no one can send a wicked wide shot into the back of the net as smoothly as he can.
He’s truly one of the best snipers the game has ever seen.
I’m bothered by the rumors that we won’t extend his contract, obviously, but I think this whole setting him up with Ezra at our table thing is dumb.
“Appreciate the invite,” he says.
I’m jealous of his Bolts blue tux. I didn’t know that was an option. The vest underneath the jacket is a deep magenta that makes me think he had help picking it out. It’d be weird for a single guy to pick that out on his own, right?
Eh, maybe his sister is behind the outfit.
“Where’s Hannah tonight?” I ask, searching the room for Daniel Hall and his wife.
“They’re somewhere around here, I’m sure.” Noah waves a hand.
“You didn’t ride over together? Maybe get dressed over there?” I eye his vest again.
He laughs. “Nope. It’s shocking, I know, but at thirty-five, I do know how to dress myself—”
He cuts himself off, his eyes going wide and his mouth falling open.
I whip around, following his line of sight. And there, at the doors, my sister stands, her dark hair down in easy waves and a deep magenta dress flowing around her.
The exact magenta as Noah’s vest.
I peer back at my buddy to find he’s frozen in place, still focused on the back of the room.
I wave, then snap my fingers, to no avail. The man is completely entranced.
After several seconds, he blinks rapidly, like he’s coming back online, and breaks into a smile.
Wait. Does Harry have a thing for Sienna?
Brooks
“Are you seeing what I’m seeing?” my younger brother whisper-yells, whacking me in the chest.
Next to me, my wife leans forward, her blue hair cascading over her bare shoulders. “What are we seeing?”
Aiden eyes Noah, who’s seated across from us, then turns to the back of the room.
Sara, who is about as discreet as an elephant hanging around mice, squeals. “Oh my god, I would love that.”
My head has been pounding all day. After another sleepless night with Taylor and an intense morning skate, I had every intention of taking a nap.
But my poor blueberry girl is having trouble with her tummy, so she screamed all afternoon.
It kills me that I can’t do anything to help her, but my fucking head feels like it’s splitting in two right now.
If my brother and my wife don’t stop squealing, I’m going to leave them here and go find somewhere quiet to nap.
“Excuse me.” Noah pushes back from the table.
He’s probably eager to get away from these two as well.
Why the guy got stuck with us is beyond me.
There’s no fucking way management won’t re-sign him.
They’re just playing hardball. Aiden and I leave plenty of space in the cap for the team to draft whomever we want.
He and I would be set for life without pay at all, so we take the minimum. We just want to play the game.
Other than my wife, the Stanley Cup is truly the only thing I chase, and money won’t help me get either.
Sara presses a kiss to my cheek and runs a hand over my hair gently. “Cocktails, dinner, and a little dancing. Then I promise we’ll be out of here, and you’ll be getting lucky, old man.”
Chuckling, I pull her close. “I’m not that old.”
The beautiful woman who has been my obsession for over half a decade bites her lip, her eyes glittering. “Whatever helps you sleep at night.”
I give her a mock glare, though I wince when my head pounds again. “No sleeping lately.”
“Focus, you two,” my brother whines.
“On what?” I grouse. I just want to stare at my pretty wife, have a few drinks, celebrate my best friend’s daughter, and get out of here. If I’m not dead on my feet by then, I might even fool around with my wife in the limo on the way home.
“Sorry.” Sara leans over me, practically bouncing in her chair. “Back to Noah and Sienna. They’d be so hot together. Older. Forbidden. Brother’s best friend and workplace romance? Get it, Sienna.” She shimmies her shoulders.
Noah and Sie—what? “What the hell, crazy girl?”
Leg still bouncing, Aiden angles in close. “So it’s not just me, right? He can’t take his eyes off her. You think Noah likes Sienna?”
Gavin
“Dance with me, Peaches,” I murmur in my wife’s ear, needing a few seconds with her pressed up against me.
All night, she’s flitted around, looking like my literal wet dream, but finally, she’s sitting beside me.
I never could have imagined that the sight of my wife pregnant with my child would have me walking around half hard all fucking day, but here we are.
Millie’s cheeks go my favorite color, a light peach.
And when she licks her bottom lip, the picture of innocence, she knows precisely what it does to me.
To be fair, she’s gorgeous all the time.
In a pair of sweats, with her journal in her hand as she hums a tune and jots down lyrics.
When her dark, curly hair is a mess or when it falls past her shoulders.
Millie Langfield is my obsession. Every version of her.
But tonight? Fuck. My sister outdid herself with Millie’s dress. The peachy pink garment accentuates her tits and her curves and the swell of her stomach where my child currently grows, making her look like an ethereal goddess.
I turn to thank her again. “You outdid yourself. Every woman at this table is gorgeous.”
Sienna, who’s seated between Liv and Noah, wearing a big smile as Liv talks about Beckett’s latest role as T-ball coach for the twins’ team, dips her head in a simple nod of thanks.
“I agree,” Noah says, giving her a look that lasts a second too long. “Every dress is gorgeous.”
My sister’s smile goes softer. “Thank you.”
She holds his gaze, the two of them locked in some kind of silent interaction.
Before I can decipher what’s going on between them, my wife stands and tugs on my arm. “Come on, let’s dance.”
I follow her, eager to get my hands on her again, and the minute her body is pressed to mine, my focus goes back to her, and all other thoughts are forgotten.