CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX #3
“Do you think you can drop it now?” he asked quietly, keeping his gaze locked on hers.
Her lower lip quivered but she let it fall to the floor. It bounced silently on the carpet and Tom kicked it away.
Tanner carefully wrapped his arms around Darla. “I’m sorry things have been so tough for you,” he said quietly and he meant every word of it. “But I think maybe you need some help.”
Leif held his breath as Tanner hugged Darla. She was crying now, shoulder-shaking sobs that wracked her whole body.
“I just want them to love me,” she wailed.
“I know.” Tanner leaned in and said something quietly, too soft for Leif to hear. “You think you can do that?”
“I’ll—I’ll try.”
“Okay. Now we’re going to get you some help, okay?” Tanner pulled back, his hands still on her upper arms.
Jesse darted forward and grabbed Darla’s wrists gently.
“Hey,” he said in a soothing tone when she struggled against him. “We don’t want you to hurt yourself, okay? Just trying to keep you safe.”
She glowered at him but didn’t fight anymore.
The lounge doors opened and Connor strode into the hall, bellowing for a security guard. One appeared and then another and there was a flurry of action as they put zip ties on Darla’s wrists, someone barking into a walkie-talkie about calling the police.
The moment she was restrained, Leif darted forward and pulled Tanner into a bone-crushing hug. “What the fuck?” he muttered, his heart thumping so hard he could feel it in his ears. “What were you thinking?”
Tanner let out a shaky laugh and clung to him. “Uhh, not so sure I was. I just … I felt really bad for her, you know?”
“You felt bad for her?” Leif asked, pulling away to look him in the face. Tanner’s hair was still damp from his shower, a little frizzy, and for once he wasn’t smiling.
“Well yeah, I mean I know she was kinda … messed up but she was really sad and hurting too.” Tanner frowned.
“And you had to be the one to fix that?”
“Well, I wanted to help Tom and Krista!”
“Did it never occur to you that this Darla woman could hurt you?”
“Uhh,” Tanner said. “I mean, not really.”
“She could have stabbed you!”
“I mean, maybe, but—”
“No maybe! She had a knife.”
“It wasn’t that big.”
“It wasn’t that big,” Leif muttered under his breath. “Oh my God you are insane. Certifiably insane.”
“Besides, I’m pretty sure it was 3D printed!” Tanner pointed out. “How much damage can a plastic knife really do anyway?”
“Plenty!” Leif snapped. “She managed to cut her wrist with it.” He pointed at the small drops of blood on the carpet. “Seriously. What were you thinking?”
Tanner shrugged. “It worked out in the end, didn’t it?”
“Yeah, because you were lucky.”
“Actually, he handled that pretty good,” one of the security guards still standing nearby said with a shrug. “He got her to drop the weapon before she could hurt herself or anyone else. That’s some impressive de-escalation stuff there.”
Leif glared at the guy. “Don’t encourage him!”
“You’re no fun,” Tanner scoffed.
“It’s more fun if you’re alive, you dummy!” Leif’s hands were shaking as he cupped Tanner’s cheeks. “Seriously. I know you have a big heart and want to help people, but I want you to stay alive, okay?”
“Hey.” Tanner frowned. “You were really worried.”
“No shit!” Leif said, still holding him in place. “I love you.”
“Aww,” someone said in the background, and it hit Leif that he’d kinda … outed their relationship.
Fuck. He closed his eyes and leaned his forehead against Tanner’s to give himself a minute. This was not good. This was not good at all.
Tanner reached up, gripping the back of Leif’s shirt. “I love you too, Princess. And I’m sorry I scared you.”
Leif sighed. Finally. Maybe the apology meant that he wouldn’t do something so reckless and stupid again. Of course, it was Tanner. This was pretty much what Leif had signed up for.
For the rest of his life. If he was lucky.
Leif brushed their lips together, then drew back, taking a moment to study Tanner’s face.
It was the same face he’d looked at almost a year ago in the alley in Chicago. And yet, he felt so different when he looked at it now. It filled him with worry at the moment, yes, but there was love and tenderness now.
Leif dropped his hands and turned to face the people in the room, but before anyone said anything, Tanner took his hand and said, “So yeah, Leif and me are together.”
“What the fuck?” Connor said. “Since when?”
“My money’s on the North Atlantic tournament,” Jesse said. He narrowed his eyes. “Unless something happened last summer?”
Tanner grinned. “Right to both!”
“How the fuck does he know that?” Leif whispered.
“Goalies are weird and magical?” Tanner said with a shrug.
“Oh my God! Sorry!” Mandy said breathlessly as she stepped into the room, with a gaggle of SAPs trailing behind her. “We took forever taking pics and then the elevator was super slow.”
She glanced around the room. Darla was gone, thankfully, although a couple of security guards still stood there and Tom had his arms wrapped tightly around a trembling Krista.
“Uhh, guys?” Mandy said with a tilt of her head. “What the hell did we just miss?”