Chapter Nineteen
Gabe
The young woman at the host stand greeted me with a smile despite my appearance better suiting a workout at the gym than a nice restaurant on Rittenhouse Square.
“We don’t open for another few minutes, but do you have a reservation?” she asked. “I can grab you a water while you wait.”
“I’m actually here to drop off something for Jase,” I said, pulling the ticket envelope from my gym bag. “I think he knows I’m stopping by.”
“I’ll go check.” She set aside the menus she was sorting and headed for the back of the restaurant.
It was a cool space. Lots of colors and plants that reminded me a little of Aubrey’s apartment but with a fancier touch. Crystal chandeliers instead of stained glass lamps, and marble countertops instead of whatever fake stuff Aubrey’s apartment had in the kitchen.
I could see her here, cooking day in and day out.
Could see why it would feel like home. Why she’d miss it.
I wished I could do more to help her find whatever was missing from her catering setup to make it feel the same, but I didn’t think it came down to any one thing.
It seemed more mental to me, like getting psyched out by an opponent in the ring.
There was only so much your coach or team could do before it was ultimately up to you to push through whatever barrier was in your way.
Aubrey was the strongest person I knew, boxer or not. She’d find her way through.
“Gabe. Hey, man.” A dark-haired white guy in a chef jacket rounded the bar with the hostess and offered his hand for me to clasp. He pulled me into a loose hug, slapping me once on the back. “It’s nice to finally put a face to the name.”
“Same,” I said, reciprocating the hug. “Wish it could have been sooner. Sorry I couldn’t make it to Thanksgiving.”
He waved the apology away. “I heard you’re opening a boxing gym nearby?”
“That’s the plan. Need to win a few fights first—which, speaking of, here are these.” I handed him the envelope with the last of my tickets. “Thanks for taking these. It really helps me out.”
“Happy to. A friend of mine is big into boxing, and my brother’s a huge sports fan. We’re excited to check it out.”
“You should check out the gym, too, when it’s open. I’ll give you guys a discount as a thanks.”
He clasped my hand again, then pointed at me as he strode for the kitchen. “You hungry? I can make you something quick before the rush starts.”
“I’m good, thanks. But another time, for sure.”
He gave me a nod, then tossed another over my shoulder. “Hey, Evan.”
My shoulders tensed. I turned, and sure enough, there was my brother, walking into the restaurant.
His eyes swung past me to Jase. “Hey, man.”
“You putting in an order with Neela?” Jase asked.
“Yeah, to go.”
Jase pointed at the beer tap. “Try the Maibock while you wait. We just got it in, and I think it’s your style.”
My brother flashed his signature grin. “That good, huh?”
“It doesn’t even need the dimples,” said the South Asian bartender I assumed was Neela as Jase disappeared into the back. She smirked at Evan. “The usual for you and your old man?”
“And a Maibock while I wait, apparently.”
Neela turned her attention to the computer screen behind the bar, her long dark braid hanging down her back, leaving Evan and me standing in silence.
I readjusted the strap of my gym bag on my shoulder. “You grabbing dinner for Dad?”
Hands in his pockets, he nodded. His eyes focused everywhere but on me. “You sell your tickets?”
“Jase just bought the rest.”
He nodded again.
This was the least hostile he’d been toward me since I’d gotten home, and for the life of me, I couldn’t think of a single thing to say. Maybe if I knew why he wasn’t being hostile. Was he starting to forgive me? Or did he not give enough of a shit to care anymore?
I nearly jumped to attention when he cleared his throat.
“So that guy Christian who Aubrey used to work with was bugging her at the tasting event yesterday.”
The fucker from our night out? “What’d he do?” My voice was as tight as my grip on my bag.
“Followed her to the parking lot and rubbed some shitty blog review in her face.”
I’d tie him up by his ankles and use him as a punching bag.
“Aubrey promised to be careful around him, but I thought you’d want to know.” His eyes met mine for the first time, and it was there in his gaze.
He knew.
And somehow, he wasn’t screaming in my face to stay the fuck away from her or swinging at my head. Those would have been my first two guesses at his reaction to finding out I was sleeping with his best friend.
I liked this option way better.
“Thank you,” I said sincerely.
His jaw flexed and stare sharpened with words he clearly wanted to say. Probably along the lines of how thoroughly he’d kill me if I hurt her in any way.
But he didn’t say them. Not for my sake, I was sure, but for Aubrey’s. This was him respecting her choice. Not respecting me, but not getting in my way either.
I met his glare head-on, communicating as much as I could with my own gaze.
That I wouldn’t be careless with her.
That I’d do everything I could to protect her.
That if I hurt her, I’d wrap his fists for my beating myself.
“What’s that guy’s deal anyway?” I asked. Christian’s grudge against Aubrey felt beyond your typical work rivals.
Evan scoffed. “Aubrey’s a better chef, and he’s never been able to handle it. He tried to take it out on her personally, and the more his attempts rolled off her shoulders, the pissier he got.”
“I don’t trust him around her,” I said, recalling the way he’d moved in front of her at the restaurant.
“Me either,” Evan said.
Our agreement hung between us like an olive branch. A single thread of connection among a pile of frayed string.
Maybe the rest could be tied back together. Or even just some. They’d never be as seamless or as strong as they were before, but that wouldn’t matter. Not if it meant I could still have a little piece of my brother.
“Hey, is one of you guys swinging by the catering kitchen after this?” Jase asked as he stepped out of the kitchen again. He held up a white postage envelope. “This got mailed here by mistake, but it’s for Arden Catering.”
I glanced at Evan, giving him the choice. He nodded toward the bar. “I have dinner to take home.”
My chest expanded in recognition of what he was giving me. Not his full trust, but a step toward it. A chance.
I’d fucking take it.
When I got to the prep kitchen, the lights were off, but I checked the door anyway. Locked. I texted Aubrey.
Me: You finish work early?
Unless she had an event on Friday, she was usually here pretty late prepping for the weekend.
Aubrey: Stayed home. Sick day.
I frowned at my phone.
Me: You need anything?
Aubrey: I’ll be okay, but thanks.
Knowing her, she’d be too sick to lift her head from her pillow and would still say she didn’t need help. I pocketed my phone and headed for the subway.
A half hour later, I was at her building with a plastic shopping bag full of seltzer, Gatorade, and boxed noodle soup in hand.
Me: Buzz me up?
Aubrey: Door code is 5167
I punched it into the keypad and climbed the stairs to her place. The door to her apartment was already unlocked, and I wondered if Evan and I needed to add door locking to our list of safety concerns.
“Aubs?” I set my gym bag by her front closet and the grocery bag on her kitchen counter, then made my way into her bedroom.
Tucked into a mountain of pillows, Aubrey lay in the center of her bed, curled under a mess of blankets.
Her lights were off, but the setting sun cast enough of a glow through her window for me to make out her messy bun, baggy sweatshirt, and miserable expression.
As much as I hated to see that last one, I couldn’t help but find her adorable.
“Hey,” I said softly as I approached the bed. “You down for the count?”
She made a face and groaned. “Period cramps. I’ll survive.” She squeezed a pillow to her belly. “It’s usually only one day of wanting to rip out my uterus before it eases up.”
A pinch of discomfort creased her brow, and my urge to go to her won. I kicked off my shoes and crawled into the bed behind her. “Anything I can do to help?” I asked as she settled against my chest. “I brought Gatorade and soup, but maybe you don’t need those.”
“No, but this is nice.” She shifted the pillow in front of her to make room for my hand on her stomach. “I could have gone to work,” she admitted. “Normally, I’d pop three Advil and deal with the cramps, but my next event isn’t until next week, and I wasn’t up for another disappointing day.”
I made tiny circles against her sweatshirt with my thumb. “Evan told me about the blog review. Christian said some stuff?”
“Yeah.” Her voice was flat. Void of its usual color.
“Nothing that matters. It’s not the kind of thing that would bug me this much if I wasn’t so stuck.
” All the frustration and sadness she worked to hide clung to that one word.
Her body sagged as if it had taken her strength with it. “I hate not knowing how to change it.”
I’d been right there after every bad match. Nothing was more frustrating than feeling like all your efforts added up to nothing.
“Taking care of yourself is a good place to start.” I kissed the side of her neck. “Letting me take care of you is even better.”
From this angle, I could make out the edge of her smile. A small one, almost too small to see, but still there.
“Is that why you came?” she asked.
“Mostly.” I trailed my hand up her forearm to play with her fingers. “Jase gave me a piece of your mail that got sent to the restaurant by mistake, but I would have dropped it in the mailbox if you were out with Evan or something.”
“You said you talked to him?”
“Yeah.” I flexed my hand over hers. “He knows about us.”
“I know. He asked me yesterday, and I admitted it.” She craned her neck to look at me. “I’m sorry. I should have told you. I know I was the one who wanted to keep it a secret, but it didn’t feel right lying to him directly like that.”
“No need to be sorry.” I whispered against her ear, “It’s whatever you want, remember?”
She nodded and squeezed my hand. I shifted to rearrange the blankets so I could get closer, and as she adjusted her hips to help, my hand brushed her chest. She hissed through her teeth.
“Shit, sorry.” I moved my hand away.
“No, it didn’t hurt,” she said quickly. “They’re just…” She motioned in the general direction of her breasts, her hard nipples visible through her sweatshirt. “Really sensitive right now. Touching them almost relieves the ache.”
“Yeah?” I resettled behind her and let my hand find her breast. It was heavier than usual. When my thumb brushed her nipple, she made a noise into her pillow that sounded encouraging, so I fit the pebbled tip between two fingers and gave a gentle tug.
That got a moan.
She twisted her torso enough to grant me access to her other breast, and I moved my hand to give it the same attention. I alternated between both breasts, lightly squeezing and pulling, tweaking her nipples and massaging with various pressures.
Her sounds got louder with every touch, and soon her hand was on mine, urging my grip tighter as she worked her ass against my crotch.
Even dulled by the blankets, the sensation was enough to get me hard. Mainly because I could tell how good this felt for her.
Wanting to give her more, I pulled away and rolled her to her back, tugging down the comforter enough to remove her sweatshirt and straddle her hips. She let me do both without complaint, arching her back as I lowered my head to take the tip of one breast into my mouth.
Her long sigh filled my ears. “That feels so good. Suck on it?”
She groaned as I did.
I switched to her other breast, taking the nipple between my teeth as my fingers took over the one I just left, still wet from my tongue. I pulled on them both.
The noise she made this time was deep and guttural. Her eyes were heavy in a haze of pleasure, her head tipped back, hips rocking between my knees in nothing but a pair of plain black panties, searching for something more.
“Can you come from just this?” I asked, then swirled my tongue over her nipple. An orgasm would help with her cramps, maybe better than Advil would.
“I don’t know,” she said, breathless. “I never have before, but…maybe?” Another soft moan. “Oh, more of that.”
I sucked on her breast again, holding the suction while my tongue circled the tip, and her eyes fell closed with a sigh. I switched to her other side before drawing my mouth away.
She blinked up at me, confused as to why I’d stopped.
I dropped a kiss on her lips. “Wait right here.”
As close as she was to the edge, I couldn’t hold her there without knowing I could get her over the line. She needed to come, and I knew a surefire way to do it.