Chapter 9 #2
But he was twitchy being away from her. Their week together was counting down, and he didn’t want it to end.
He didn’t want to go back to his empty, lonely house in Colorado.
Didn’t want to go back to an empty bed. It wasn’t the sex—although that had been outstanding.
It was just… her. He’d accepted she was more than a distraction or a comfort.
She’d absolutely become a friend. And Brooks was pretty sure she had the potential to be a whole hell of a lot more.
But he had to decide what to do about it.
She was attracted to him. That wasn’t a question. And he knew she’d grown fond of him. But did she still see him as a time-limited commitment? One giant live-in-the-moment experience that she was enjoying because there was an expiration date? Or was she also wanting more?
Logistics were a thing. The reality was that she lived in Georgia, and he lived in Colorado.
For now, anyway. By the time this trip was over, it was possible the general manager would already have made arrangements to trade him God-knew where.
Could be closer to her. Could be even further.
Chances were, it would be long distance either way if he elected to continue his hockey career.
Long distance was hard under the best of circumstances, and with all the months he’d be on the road in addition to the long distance thing, the time they’d be able to truly spend together would likely be little and far between.
Was it even fair to ask her to consider that?
Brooks wanted to believe that if he mattered enough to her, that they could make that work. But he wasn’t sure he was ready to find out that he didn’t matter as much to her as she did to him. And if he posed this question, there was a very good chance that might be the answer.
But there was still a good chance that she felt as he did—like this whole crazy trip was the start of something real and lasting, if only they could sort out the details.
When his phone rang, he almost ignored it. The past few days of no contact with the outside world had been glorious. But just in case…
Grady’s name flashed across the display.
“Hey, man. What’s up?”
“Dude, I legit didn’t really think you’d answer. You’ve gone incommunicado again.”
“I’m on vacation.” Never mind the fact that the last time he’d gone radio silent on his friends had been because he’d been so deeply mired in the well of grief they’d basically had to send a search party after him.
“Uh huh.” Grady’s tone was dry. “And how is your ‘engagement’ going?”
Brooks couldn’t see his hands, but he could hear the air quotes around engagement in the tone alone. “It’s going great. We’re having a really good time. She’s awesome.”
Grady paused. “Awesome as in a she’s-a-really-great-lay-and-a-stress-relief kind of way or in a you’re-gonna-want-to-pursue-this-past-this-week kind of way?”
Brooks bristled. “She’s not just someone I’m sleeping with. Have some respect.”
“Sorry, man. I’m not trying to offend. I’m literally just asking a question. It’s relevant.”
“Why exactly is this any of your business?”
“Apart from the fact that I’m your friend, we’ve got news.”
“News about what?”
“We heard who they’re looking to potentially trade you to.”
Any pretense of relaxation evaporated. Brooks dropped one leg out of the hammock to stop the sway and braced himself. “Okay, who are the options?”
“Vegas, Tampa, and prospectively that new team they’re forming in Atlanta.”
Brooks blinked. “Atlanta? Isn’t this like the third time they’ve tried to build a team there?” He dimly remembered hearing rumblings about them getting approval, but hadn’t paid much attention. He was sure as shit paying attention now.
“Yeah. And I have no idea how successful they’ll be this go-round. But it’s on the list. It seemed like something you ought to know so you could put in your vote with the GM. Given what you’ve just said, it seems like Atlanta might be the best fit for you.”
“Why?” Brooks knew why. It would be closer to Aspen. But given the potential for a new team crashing and burning there—again—why did his friend think it was the best idea?
“Well, I just thought that, given how things are going with Aspen, you’d want to be closer to her.”
Hearing his own thoughts come out of Grady’s mouth, Brooks felt a bit of a chill. “I never told you her name, and I definitely never told you where she was from.”
The silence went on too long. With every second that passed, the ball of lead in Brooks’ gut got heavier.
“Dude, it’s out there.”
“What do you mean, ‘It’s out there’?”
“The press have found out who she is. They’re talking about her in the media. Talking about both of you, making all kinds of speculation.”
Brooks needed to be very, very sure he understood. “You mean they’ve got her full name and where she’s from?” Hell, he didn’t even know where in Georgia she was from.
“Yeah. You didn’t know?”
“Fuck no, I didn’t know. I’ve been staying off the internet entirely.”
“Well, you may want to go check that out and have a conversation with Rebekah to see if there’s anything you need to get ahead of.”
He wanted to believe that if there was, she’d have already contacted him, but he knew well enough he couldn’t be certain.
“I haven’t paid that much attention to everything,” Grady qualified. “I don’t know that there’s anything disrespectful or problematic, but your lady might need some warning.”
“Fuuuuuuuck.” Brooks blew out a long breath. He’d known this was a possibility. A probability, even. He’d just hoped that there’d be more time. That the vultures would leave him be and wouldn’t try to horn in on another aspect of his life, and thus, hers.
“Yeah, this is something I absolutely need to take care of. Thanks for letting me know.”
“Of course, man. Either way, wherever you end up going, we’re really gonna miss you.”
“Yeah, me too. You’re a good friend, Grady. Thanks.”
Brooks hung up and immediately opened a browser. He had to find out exactly what degree of horrible he had to break to his fake fiancée.