Chapter 19
Vee
It was nearly six in the evening when I pulled into the parking garage beneath the Vine, the building in the heart of downtown Lexington.
After graduating from college, I moved into a downtown apartment.
A couple of years later, after I broke up with Kelcee or maybe it was Josh, I decided I wanted something more stable, something that was mine.
My three-bedroom and three-and-a-half-bath condominium had plenty of room to grow.
As I exited my car, I realized that growing wasn’t something I was ready to do.
I obviously didn’t want to leave my condo to live with Preston.
However, when given the chance, I didn’t want him to move in with me either.
Waiting for the elevator, I closed my eyes.
Recent reports on Troy Dennison were promising.
He was awake, talking, and moving. The doors opened, and I passed my key card over the sensor and hit seven, for the seventh floor.
The doors closed. My reflection in the golden doors wasn’t filled with the excitement I had earlier this morning.
My thoughts went to a hot bubble bath and a glass of wine.
The doors opened on the first floor.
As neighbors I recognized but didn’t know their names entered, beyond them I saw a familiar face. He stood a head taller than those around him. Without thinking, I pushed my way out of the elevator.
Fin.
The first floor of the Vine contained a bar, the Vine Club, and a five-star restaurant.
Was Fin on a date?
While I knew I had no reason to know the answer to that question or to be jealous, my rational brain was sinking in a concoction of play calls and post-breakup blues. I followed a few steps behind, trying to figure out if Fin was alone, with a date, or a group.
Inconspicuously, I moved with a group of women as they passed the entrance to the Vine Club. Through the large archway, I spotted Fin standing near the bar next to…
I blinked.
I knew the man at his side.
Zane Graham.
Fin’s younger brother.
A smile curled my lips as relief flooded my circulation. Fin met his brother after the game. As my headache returned, I turned around and headed toward the elevators.
“Vee.”
“No. Shit.” I ducked my head and continued on my way.
As I stopped for the elevator, a large hand grasped my arm. Turning, I met Fin’s blue gaze.
“Vee, what are you doing here?” he asked.
I looked up at the blossoming bruise on his cheek that did nothing to dull his sexy smile. “I live here.” I jutted my chin. “I’m going up to my place.”
“I didn’t know that. Do you remember Zane?”
Stupidly, I shook my head before saying, “Oh yeah. Your little brother.”
Fin laughed. “Younger. He’s taller and outweighs me. He came to Lexington for the game.”
A smile came to my lips. “He got to see you play.”
“It was a gamble. I warned him.” Small lines crinkled near his eyes. “We’re in the bar. Why don’t you join us?”
I scanned Fin from his leather loafers to his gelled hair as a cloud of sandalwood filled my senses. “I’m…” I looked down and back up. My clothes were wrinkled, and I probably smelled from perspiring in the sun. “I haven’t had a chance to clean up or change since the game. I should—”
“It’s only a drink. Zane would love to see you.”
Air filled my lungs as I inhaled. “Tonight’s not a good night.”
Fin’s expression sobered. “I’ve spoken to Troy.”
“You have?”
“He’ll be all right.”
“How long will he be out?” I asked.
“They’re doing more tests. The coaches should know by tomorrow.” He quirked his smile. “Come on, join us. Tell us what you thought of the sidelines. Your expressions made me think you were having the time of your life.”
“How could you see me while playing?”
He shrugged. “I took peeks when I could.”
The time of my life.
Why couldn’t Preston recognize that?
I reached up and gently touched the bruise under his left eye and then the bandage on his forehead. “What happened?”
He scoffed. “You might not have noticed, but big men kept knocking me down.”
“I did see that.”
“One drink,” he said.
“One.”
Fin and I walked together within the crowd of people. When we turned the corner, Zane waved from a stool at the bar. As we got closer, it appeared he’d secured one other stool to his side.
“You can sit,” Fin said, pulling out the stool. “I’ll stand so this old body doesn’t stiffen up.”
As I took the seat, Zane turned in my direction. He’d grown up since I last saw him, resembling his brother even more today than he had fourteen years earlier. Of course, the last time I saw him, he was in high school. “Vee, damn, it’s good to see you.”
“Zane, what have you been up to?”
Fin patted Zane’s shoulder. “My brother’s the starting center for the Vikings.”
That explained his added bulk.
My eyes opened wide. “No. How did I not know that?”
Zane brought his hands to his chest. “I had the biggest crush on you when you two were together. Now I’m crushed that you haven’t been following my career.”
“Give her a break,” Fin said. “She’s working on her own career.”
“Were you on the sidelines today?” Zane asked.
“I was. How did you know?”
“They showed you a few times on the jumbotron with your name, and I thought, damn, she’s even more beautiful than I remember.”
While my cheeks warmed at his compliment, my neck stiffened. “I’ll be having words with our camera crew.”
“I think it’s cool,” Zane said.
“So do I,” Fin replied. “What did you think?”
“May I get you a drink?” the bartender, a thin man with tattoos on his neck and fingers, asked.
“A cosmo, please.”
Fin grinned. “I remember a time you swore off vodka for the rest of your life.”
“Don’t remind me,” I groaned. The vodka had been in screwdrivers. I’d sworn off orange juice too.
“Tell us,” Fin said, “what you thought.”
Our gaze met. “If I ask you something, will you tell me the truth?”
“Always.”
“On the last drive, on third down, did I misunderstand Drew’s play?”
Fin grinned. “What do you mean?”
“I thought he called for a run play.”
“Damn, Vee. You’re right. He did. Patel was open, and I wasn’t sure we’d get the first down with the way the defensive line was coming at our backs.” He nodded. “Tilson has promised to chew my ass Monday about that.”
I lifted my cosmo and winked. “It was a good play. You saved the game.”
“I told you,” Zane said.
Fin lifted his beer mug and our glasses clinked.
I was sipping my second cosmo, and the three of us were talking Coopers and Vikings when a buzzer on the bar began to vibrate.
Fin lifted the buzzer. “Our table is ready.” His expression softened. “Join Zane and me for dinner.”
“No. You have a table for two.” I downed the last of my cosmo. “There’s a bubble bath calling me. I need to go upstairs.”
“You live here?” Zane asked.
“I do.”
Fin took my glass from my grasp. “I think it’s a good thing you’re not driving. Zane can get our table, and I’ll walk you to your place.”
A laugh bubbled from my lips. “Chivalry isn’t dead.”
Fin offered me his hand.