Chapter 17 #2
“So,” Keeley began. “I guess you’ve noticed from your Find My Friends stalking that I’ve been over here a lot.”
Kayden rubbed his jaw…and Gio realized they weren’t going to have to explain as much as they’d thought.
“I knew it. Told Aldo something was going on while we were on the trail one night, when neither one of us could sleep. You were over here at two a.m., and when we started walking the next morning at seven, I checked the app and you were still here. So, which one of you is it?”
“Kayden,” Rafe started. “Listen—”
Kayden frowned. “Seriously? Wow. My money was on Gio.”
“Gio?” Rafe asked. “Why him? Why not me?”
Keeley elbowed Rafe. “That’s not really the point, is it? I’m sure he thought it was Gio because you never date anyone. Walk away, remember?”
“I’m just saying, I don’t think I’m that long of a shot.” Rafe wasn’t finished arguing his case.
Keeley rolled her eyes. “You’ve gotta be kidding me. Were you not paying attention last week?”
Rafe scowled. “Keeley, all I’m say—” he started.
Gio snorted. “Jesus. Can we start this over because you two are doing a shitty job. Kayden, Rafe and I are dating your sister. Both of us.”
“Both of you?” Kayden repeated, dumbfounded.
Rafe quickly added, “We don’t want you to think this is a casual affair. Because it’s not. We’ve asked her to move in with us while we work on the inn, and once that’s finished, the three of us are going to buy a house together.”
“Right,” Gio continued. “And at some point, we’re going to figure out the marriage thing, and then we’re gonna make a pile of kids.”
“By the way, you need to redefine pile,” Keeley said. “Because five ain’t happening.”
Gio considered that. “Three?”
She tapped her chin. “I think I could go three.”
“Wait!” Kayden said, raising his hand. “The niece and nephew conversation is one I’ll be happy to revisit with you at some point, but first…the three of you? Like Tony, Jess, and Rhys?”
“And Layla, Finn, and Miguel,” Keeley added. “And Erin, Oliver, and Gavin.”
Kayden took a second to let that soak in. “What the fuck is up with Baltimore?”
Keeley burst out laughing, while Gio and Rafe looked confused. “Liza said the exact same thing. Kayden,” she said, standing up, placing her beer on the coffee table before crossing over to her brother and kneeling in front of him. “I love them.”
He put his beer on the side table and took her hands in his. “I can see that.”
“And they love me.”
Kayden rolled his eyes. “I’m not blind, Kee. I see that too. I think I’ve always seen that. You know there was never a bro-code, right?” he reassured her. “They’re my friends because they’re good guys. Why would I make the best men I know promise to stay away from you?”
“Kayden,” Keeley said, tears in her eyes.
“My biggest fear was you’d end up with one of those yahoos from the dating websites.”
“Does this mean no more stalking me on Find My Friends?”
Kayden laughed. “Don’t get carried away.”
Keeley and her brother stood up and hugged. Then Kayden looked at them. “Were you worried about telling me?”
Gio shrugged. “My family notwithstanding, this isn’t exactly a normal thing. We weren’t sure how you’d feel about it being both of us rather than just one of us.”
“I told you guys the day we moved you in here, Gio. All I wanted for my sister was a man who would love her, take care of her, treat her the way she deserved. I know you guys, know you’re exactly those kinds of men.
For God’s sake, I asked you to look after her when I was gone.
If that wasn’t me giving my blessing, then I don’t know what is. ”
Rafe smiled and rose. Gio followed suit. The three of them shook hands, which morphed into guy hugs with some firm back-slapping.
“Couldn’t ask for better men for my sister. And, well, I’ve always considered you guys brothers. Now it’ll be for real. So…about those nieces and nephews…when’s that starting? Because I’m going to be the world’s greatest uncle.”
Keeley swatted her brother on the arm. “This relationship is five minutes old. Give us a year.”
“Or, you know, six months,” Gio added, winking at Keeley.
Rafe put his arm around Keeley’s shoulders, giving her a kiss on the cheek. “Or three.”
Keeley shook her head. “If you propose that soon, you’re going to have to apologize to Penny for accusing her of going too fast.”
“So noted,” Rafe replied.
Kayden glanced around the house. “Since we’ve got a little while before everyone else shows up, how about you show me the work you’ve finished?”
The three of them took Kayden to the office, then to the rest of the rooms on the first-floor level, telling him their plans for the inn. The tour ended once the rest of the gang began to arrive.
Liza and Gianna showed up with a huge bag of tater tots that Keeley immediately threw in the oven.
Aldo and Luca, like Kayden, showed up with beer.
When Keeley returned to the living room, Gio reached out and grabbed her, giving her a big kiss.
Luca homed in on it fast, gaze flying to Kayden. Either ready to break up a fight, or pull up a chair to watch the fireworks.
“The fuck?” Aldo said, when Rafe stole Keeley from Gio, wrapping his arms around her from behind, nuzzling the side of her head.
“We wanted to let you guys know,” Gio announced, “that me, Rafe, and Keeley are dating now.”
Liza grinned. “It’s about time you told everyone. That was not an easy secret to keep.”
“You knew about this?” Aldo asked.
She nodded.
“And you didn’t tell me?” Gianna was obviously annoyed at missing out on first dibs of the gossip.
“Hey,” Liza said, with no remorse. “You were invited to dinner with us the night Keeley told me. You were too busy—as always—cleaning your bedroom.”
Gianna grimaced. “Oh. Yeah. Shit.”
“When did you find out?” Aldo asked Kayden.
Kayden glanced at his phone. “About forty-five minutes ago.”
Aldo gave Gio and Rafe a quick once-over. “Well, considering there’s no blood or bruises on either one of them, I’m going to go out on a limb and say you’re okay with it,” he directed to Kayden.
Kayden gripped Rafe’s shoulder. “Of course I am. They’re great guys. And they know if they ever do anything to hurt my sister, I’ll plant evidence on them, arrest them, and throw them in jail with the biggest bruiser I can find, for the rest of their lives.”
Keeley brightened up. “Hey, points for creativity, Kay. Usually you just intimidate my boyfriends by cleaning your gun in front of them. I like the extra effort this time.”
“Figured something this big called for a fresh threat.”
They all settled in around the TV to watch the game. Elio’s team was taking on the Bruins, which ensured a lot of trash-talking.
Fucking Boston.
The living room, like everything else in the mansion, was oversized, so there was room for two couches, a love seat, and a recliner, perfect for entertaining. Plus, Rafe’s grandpa had spared no expense on his big-screen TV.
During a commercial break, Gio overheard Keeley ask Gianna how she was doing. Gianna Duncan had been dating Sam Mannarino for as long as Gio could remember, and he’d always figured they’d be the first in their group of friends to get married. Their break-up had surprised the hell out of everyone.
“Oh, I’m fine,” Gianna said, as if she didn’t have a care in the world…hadn’t just lost the only man she’d ever loved. “My apartment is spotless right now. I had no idea how much of a mess Sam made until I didn’t have to clean up after him anymore.”
Keeley had confessed that she and Liza were worried about Gianna’s lack of emotion about the break-up. Both women feared their friend was in for a fall at some point.
“That’s great,” Liza said, giving Keeley a look behind Gianna’s back that seemed to indicate the opposite.
“Is it just me, or is it chilly in here?” Keeley asked the room at large.
Liza, Luca, and Gianna were sharing the other couch, and all three agreed they felt fine.
Gio agreed with Keeley. He grabbed a blanket from the back of the couch, shaking it open to drape over the two of them. “There’s definitely a draft over here.”
Rafe slid his feet under the blanket, trying to steal his own bit of heat. “Grandpa Albert and Marta seem determined to make this stick.”
At everyone’s curious glances, Rafe, Keeley, and Gio filled them in on all the ways they thought Rafe’s grandparents had been playing matchmaker. Gianna and Liza, like Keeley, were convinced the ghosts were real, while Aldo and Luca seemed more skeptical.
“Second period is starting,” Aldo announced, grabbing a handful of napkins, his hands covered with barbeque sauce from the wings. “Tonight is awesome, by the way. I’ve missed the weekly hockey nights.”
Everyone agreed.
“Should we take turns hosting?” Kayden asked. “Or keep having it here so Albert and Marta can fuck with us?”
Luca laughed. “The ghosts do add an extra element of excitement to the game. Plus, there’s plenty of room for all of us.”
Five minutes before the end of the second period, Elio took a bad hit. Liza jumped up from her spot on the couch and raced to the TV as if she could step through it and onto the ice, worried about her brother.
“That dirty motherfucker!” she cursed, pointing to the Boston player. “There’s no need to check someone that hard into the boards. And from behind too.”
Liza paced, despite her brother Aldo trying to calm her down. “He’s going to be okay, sis,” he reassured her. “Elio’s taken harder hits than that and gone right back out on the ice.”
Liza wasn’t appeased. Especially when Elio was helped off the ice, clearly in pain.
They were a bit more subdued as they watched the rest of the game, and even more so when the announcer gave an update toward the end of the game, reporting that doctors suspected Elio had suffered a broken collarbone.
Gio whistled low. “That could put him on the bench for a while. Weeks. Poor Elio. That’s really gonna fuck up his season.”
Liza stood up and pulled out her phone. She walked into the kitchen, but not before they heard her asking Elio how he was doing.
Aldo sighed. “She worries about him a lot. He’s taken some nasty hits the last few seasons. Two concussions, a broken finger, now this.”
“She told me she wished he’d just quit for good and come home,” Gianna added, petting Cricket, who had curled up on her lap.
“He’s played professionally for ten years. That’s a hell of a career for someone in the NHL,” Luca said.
“Yeah, but what will he do if he retires?” Gianna asked.
Aldo shook his head. “I have no idea. That boy has lived and breathed hockey from the second he was old enough to strap on a pair of skates.”
Liza returned and informed them that while Elio was still awaiting X-rays, the doctor was certain it was a broken collarbone, which meant—best case—six weeks in a sling.
“He’s not happy, but like he said, it’s the nature of the game,” she added, pointing out what they all figured was pretty obvious.
“Then he said, on the bright side, he might be able to come home for a longer visit while he’s healing. ”
The game, despite the drama, ended with a Baltimore win, which cheered them up a little bit. Losing to Boston would have added too much salt to the wound.
They all tidied up, then headed out, confirming that they wanted to do hockey night again.
Once everyone was gone, Gio wrapped his arm around Keeley’s waist.
“We have great friends,” she said.
“Your brother’s pretty awesome too,” Gio said, giving her a quick kiss. “Not gonna lie. I had some concerns about how tonight might go down.”
Keeley waved his apprehension away. “Oh, I knew that was going to be okay. My horoscope today told me so.”
Rafe chuckled. “What did it say?”
“That I’m ready to embrace a challenge of a personal nature and my support network will come through for me.”
“And you took that to mean Kayden would approve of our relationship?” Gio asked.
Keeley gave him a look like he was six eggs short of a dozen. “Of course.”
Rafe reached for her hand and pulled it to his mouth, kissing her knuckles before drawing his tongue along them suggestively. “What else did your horoscope say?” he asked, before sucking her pointer finger into his mouth.
Her eyes darkened with arousal, but her mischievous grin never wavered. “It said I was going to encounter two tall, dark, and handsome men who would seduce me, lure me to their lair, and give me a very, very happy ending.”
Gio ran his hand along her spine, loving the way she shivered in response. “Is that right? Well, we wouldn’t want to thumb our noses at fate, would we?”
Rafe released Keeley’s finger. “Or piss off Grandpa Albert.”
Keeley laughed, wiggling her way out from between them as they’d begun to close ranks. When she reached the bottom of the stairs, she looked over her shoulder and laughed when she yelled, “Race ya!”