Drew.
My heart ached and my breath came in short bursts. Feeling a little lightheaded, I realized I was hyperventilating. Stars erupted behind my eyes and they filled with tears.
The next thing I knew I was sobbing. Biting my knuckle, I hoped to quiet the sound. It wasn’t anything new, crying for Drew. For the last five years, minus the first months when I cried every day all day, I’d cried at least once a month from missing him.
But what could I do about it? He probably hated me. Those last few weeks before I finally convinced him I was serious about breaking up had been torture. Torture that culminated in one of the worst nights of my entire life…prom.
We’d tried to have fun at first. But there was no hiding the elephant in the room. We were weeks from graduation. He’d yet to declare for basketball. I knew he was waiting for me. I knew he would go wherever I went. It didn’t matter where he went because any coach in America would cut their own child from the team to have Drew Thompson playing for them. And Drew would have played for anyone. It didn’t matter to him. I knew it didn’t.
I also knew that was wrong. He was the best player in the nation. He proved it when he went to Duke and they won the National title. He was the first pick in the NBA Draft the next year and he’d been playing for four years in Boston. They’d made it to the Finals twice but hadn’t brought home the trophy. It was only a matter of time.
And none of that would have happened if Drew had followed me to the University of Connecticut. He wouldn’t have been focused on basketball. He would have been too worried about me. It was bad enough in high school when the team had away games. A lot of times the boys and girls traveled together, but when we didn’t, it wasn’t easy. No one knew how often Drew stayed at my house overnight, comforting me through night terrors and holding me when the demons chased. How was he supposed to have a life of his own with all of that going on?
He couldn’t.
So, I did what I had to do. I pushed him away. And not a day went by that I didn’t regret it even though, in the end, it was the right thing to do.
But I missed him.
I ached for him.
I cried for the loss of his love.
And the sad part?
I still could hardly sleep without him.
18
Dannika
“That went well. Don’t you think?” I said, pushing the button in the elevator for the floor to his room. I was staying with Piper until our wedding night, but it was obvious she needed some space after we dropped the Drew bomb on her a few moments ago. Plus, I’d way rather be with Luke. We were about to get married after all.
Luke glared at my sarcastic tone. “You were the one who agreed we shouldn’t tell her. I was ready to be honest.”
I didn’t fight my eye roll. “We both know how that would have ended. You sister-less at your wedding and me down a maid of honor.”
Luke pushed his fingers through his dark hair, mussing it just the way I liked. “I should have just not asked him.”
Standing up straight, I frowned at my fiancé. “What? Are you kidding? He would have been crushed. And we both know the poor guy’s been crushed enough. No, you did the absolute best thing. Those two need to work through this. They’ve let it go on far too long.”
Luke wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me into his chest with a sigh. “Yeah, well, that may be true, but we should have chosen something other than our wedding for the first time they see each other in five years.”
Unable to resist, I threaded my fingers through his hair. He’d let it grow a little long on top and I loved how soft it felt against my skin. “What other reason would they both have to show up? The best part is that they both love us too much to back out.”
Dipping his head, Luke brushed my lips with a kiss. “Let’s just hope this doesn’t backfire turning our wedding into an all out brawl.”
The elevator stopped, but that didn’t keep me from lifting up on my toes to kiss him more fully. The door opened and closed again before I finished with him. “Even if they do, it doesn’t matter. As long as in the end, I become Mrs. Luke Hines.”
Luke grinned. “You have no idea how much I like the sound of that,” he said, kissing me until the door opened for the second time and a deep voice called out.
“Get a room!”
Luke and I broke apart with matching smiles to see Mia and Grayson Levitt standing in the open elevator door. I glanced behind them to see the lobby. Blushing, I realized we’d moved from the fifth floor to the first without even noticing.
Luke shot Grayson a cocky grin. “Already did, man.”
Grayson rolled his eyes. “Well, go find it. I’ve got to get my wife a place to lay down.” He picked up a suitcase in each hand and set them inside the elevator before wrapping an arm around a very pregnant Mia and ushering her inside.
Untangling myself from Luke, I gave her a big hug, resisting the urge to pat her humungous belly. “Oh, my goodness. Look at you!”
“I’m huge,” Mia frowned, but I could tell she was really okay with it.
“We Facetimed last week and you’re even bigger now!” I couldn’t believe it!
Mia gave me a look. “Don’t I know it. And seriously, next time you plan a wedding, let’s try not to cut it so close to my due date, please.”
“I know. I’m sorry. But hey, I gave up a destination wedding so you could be here. The way I look at it, you owe me.” I grinned, letting Mia know I was joking. But she knew already. Heck, she’d been the one with me planning everything from the date, the venue, flowers, food. Even tricking Drew and Piper into being in the same city at the same time. “Besides, we had to wait until the semester was over.”
“I’ll be sure to name my firstborn after you,” Mia deadpanned.
That got the guys involved in the conversation as we exited the elevator on our floor. Mia and Grayson had a room several down from Luke’s, soon to be ours, so Luke helped Grayson lug their bags down the hall.
“You can’t name our firstborn after Dannika because he’s a little dude,” Grayson said, pulling a suitcase behind him as he walked. His broad shoulders held several duffles and a grocery sack filled with Mia’s favorite cravings.
“You could just name him after me,” Luke teased, easily pulling the second suitcase.
“I think I’ll just stick with the name we already picked out, but thanks.” Mia sighed, rubbing her lower back as she waddled beside me behind the guys.
“And that name would be?” Luke let the question dangle. It was one we’d been asking since Mia and Grayson revealed they were having a boy after an ultrasound several weeks ago. But they were keeping a tight lip about their little boy’s name, refusing to tell anyone or even share possibilities they’d discussed.
“Here we go,” Grayson said, shaking his head. Luke was particularly relentless, tossing out random names whenever we talked to each other. He prided himself on coming up with the most ridiculous names he could think of and asking if those were in the running.
They never were.
“When are you going to just give up?” I asked my husband to be.
“When they tell me the kid’s name!”
We all stopped in front of the door to their room. Mia put her hand on Luke’s shoulder. “Well, could you just annoy Grayson with your guesses from now on? I’m already miserable enough as it is.”
Everyone laughed at that even though I could tell she was perfectly serious.
Grayson passed the key card over the sensor to unlock the door. “On that note, let’s get this uncomfortable mama to bed.” He and Luke stood aside allowing Mia and I to pass through first. Mia didn’t even hesitate, but made her way straight to the bathroom.
“We’ll see you later, Mia,” I called through the door. “Don’t come down if you aren’t feeling up to it.”
Grayson smiled. Even he appeared tired at this point. “I’ll make sure she rests. Don’t worry.”
Luke and I reaffirmed the pl
ans to play ball in awhile downstairs and told him goodbye before heading to his room. Once inside, Luke didn’t wait to wrap me in his arms and drag us both down onto the bed.
“When are we going to tell everyone?” I asked him. We had a secret we’d waited to share with our family and friends. I was excited to tell, but Luke was reluctant.
Groaning, Luke rolled half on top of me. “Let’s talk about that later. I can think of other ways to keep you entertained until it’s time to go downstairs.” He trailed a row of kisses down my neck.
“Can you now,” I breathed completely on board with that plan. Even after five years, Luke made my heart and body sing whenever he was near. I couldn’t wait to be his wife.
“I’ll certainly give it a shot,” he growled low in his throat before capturing my lips with his and making good on his promise.
19
Drew
It was hot when I stepped off the plane. And humid. It wasn’t much different than Boston. Except Piper wasn’t in Boston and for the first time in five years we were both in Indiana at the same time going to the same event.
It was another wedding.
Our friends had been dropping life flies down the road to marital bliss. First, Grayson and Mia. Then, Tierney and Noah. I wasn’t sure how we’d worked it out so we weren’t both at those weddings, but I ended up at Gray and Mia’s while Piper went to Tierney and Noah’s. I think they got married over Christmas my first season playing pro ball and I had a game. I always had a game. If Boston had made it to the Finals this season, I’d have missed this wedding. Of course, Luke knew we were a long shot this year. In fact, we didn’t made it very far in the playoffs this season or the last. And for that reason, I was looking at making a move. I’d heard from teams in California as well as Texas. Speaking from a business standpoint, California was my best option for winning a National Championship. I wasn’t partial to Texas.
What did it matter where I went?
I hadn’t really cared since high school.
I hadn’t cared since she broke up with me. More like broke me. Shattered. Crushed.
I didn’t consider myself a wimp. In every other aspect of my life, I ruled. But when it came to Piper? Even still, she had the power to pulverize me.
And she didn’t even know it.
I still lied to myself. California wasn’t just my best chance of winning a title. It was also where Piper was.
I’d hopped on a flight with another player who had his own plane. At the end of the tarmac we exchanged bro hugs and handshakes. He was leaving in three days. I’d have to bail early on the reception if I wanted to hitch another ride back to Boston. And my empty apartment. My empty life.
Not that it wasn’t a good life, I reminded myself as I flagged down a car at the curb outside the private hangers at the airport. I gave the driver the address of the hotel where the wedding party was staying for the next three nights and then sat back, running through the list in my head of all the things that were going well.
I had money.
My health.
Kitty. Always Kitty. She’d been invited to the wedding but she was newly engaged and she and her fiancé were traveling to Washington state so she could meet his family. I’d already met the guy, James. Flew them both out as soon as she told me they were serious. James was a good man and I knew he’d take care of my sister. It was hard to imagine she was old enough to be getting married, but she’d always been an old soul, more mature and emotionally stable than me. It wasn’t a surprise, honestly, when she Facetimed to tell me they were getting married, but that didn’t keep me from feeling like I’d just been kicked in the gut.
Because while I had all the things money could buy, I didn’t have what Kitty had. Or what Luke and Dannika had. Or Gray and Mia. Noah and Tierney.
I didn’t have Piper.
As far as basketball was concerned, my life had turned out exactly the way Piper and I imagined it would when we first started planning a future together. I played one year of college ball, per draft regulations, won a National title, and declared for the draft. I went number one.
It should have meant more than it did.
Instead, I smiled for the cameras until they finally moved on to the next guy, declined invitations to exclusive parties with the who’s who of basketball, and went home to stare at a blank wall while convincing myself not to call Piper on the phone in my hand and beg her to try again.
Turns out, I didn’t even have her right number. Because, yeah, I gave in and called.
I figured it was really over when I found out the number belonged to someone else. That was four years ago. And I was still a wreck for her.
It had been dark days after that night. Prom night. It wasn’t supposed to go like that. None of it was supposed to go down like it had. We were supposed to go to school, together. Play pro ball, together. Get married. Have kids.
I wasn’t supposed to be twenty-four and alone.
I couldn’t even convince myself to seriously consider dating anyone else. I mean, I’d been on dates. But nothing serious. Ever.
The driver pulled up to the curb. I handed him some cash and grabbed my duffel. Once on the sidewalk in front of the hotel, I stood looking up, taking deep breaths. This was it. I didn’t know exactly when I’d see Piper, but it was only hours, possibly minutes away.
And I was seconds from losing the dinner I’d eaten on the plane into a dumpster on the side of the building.
Why should I be nervous?
I should be furious!
Piper dumped me.
Piper didn’t call me.
Piper didn’t need me.
I just wished that knowledge would stop me from needing her.
“Hey, man! Long time, no see.” Luke clapped a hand down on my shoulder. Or I should say up on my shoulder. I remembered the nickname the jerks at Eastridge Heights had called him. Little man. Luke wasn’t little, and he’d had a growth spurt right after high school just like I had, but he was still several inches shorter than me.
“Hey, Luke!” I said as we bro hugged. He’d come up to my room after I sent him a text letting him know I’d arrived. “You ready for this? Marriage?” I teased him. I knew he was ready. Had been ready for a long time. Plus, Dannika was incredible. They were incredible together. I couldn’t be happier for my friends.
Luke grinned like a fool in love, which I supposed that was exactly what he was, and said, “I was born ready.”
“I’m really happy for you, man. You deserve all this and more.” It was a rare serious moment and Luke looked down at the floor to keep from letting me see the emotion in his eyes. That was alright.
But then he glanced up, his brows pinched. “You deserve all this, too, you know. A girl. A family.”
He was sincere, I knew that, but his words felt like a kick in the solar plexus. Potential proximity to his sister had rendered me stupid. And vulnerable. I wasn’t usually such a freaking wimp.
“Yeah, well, we both know how that went, don’t we.” Turning away from him, I pretended I needed something from my duffel. I didn’t.
“She’s here. In the room across the hall.”
I sucked in a breath. Of course, she was.
“We’re all meeting downstairs in about five minutes to play ball. There’s a court at the edge of the parking lot.” He paused and I stopped digging through my bag for nothing. “I invited Piper to play, too.”
With a sigh, I turned to face one of my best friends, who just so happened to be the brother of the girl who’d broken my heart. “Look, man. Piper is your sister. Of course, she’s going to be around. I knew that when you asked me to come.” I put my hand on his shoulder. “It’s okay, bro. My issues are my issues. I don’t want anything to ruin this weekend for you and Dannika, definitely not me. And Piper.” What was I even saying? There was no ‘me and Piper’. I turned back to my bag, this time for gym shorts and a t-shirt.
“Okay,” Luke said, not sounding at all like everything was ‘okay’. Bu
t it was. I’d make sure of it. If there was any sign that Piper couldn’t handle me being around, friend or not, I’d be the one to leave. “Well, meet us down there when you’re ready. We’ll probably head right out to the court. You can’t miss it.”
I nodded and Luke let himself out of my room. As the door swung shut, I caught a glimpse of the door across the hall.
Piper’s room.
Was she in there?
Had she already gone downstairs?
Would she play or sit at the side with the girls? Mia was ridiculously pregnant and Tierney was happy to watch or read a book. Neither of them ever played with us anyway. But Piper did.
I thought back to that first day, the first time I ever laid eyes on Piper Hines. She was the tallest girl I’d ever seen. She walked onto the court like she owned the very asphalt and called Luke out for not answering his phone. I remembered her teasing him about piano. I thought she was feisty. And sexy. Goodness, she was sexy. I’d seen girls play basketball before, of course, I had. But there was something about Piper walking up in the midst of all those guys and showing them how it was done. She’d made a perfect three-point shot and walked away, flipping them all the bird.
And I’d been done for.
Only I didn’t want her to know that.
As it always did when I let myself remember those days, memories flooded my mind. From the first time we kissed until the last, in a matter of seconds. And each one felt like a stab with a straight pin. Good grief. I was pathetic.
Stealing my emotions, I changed out of my jeans and button down shirt to slip on a pair of athletic shorts and a black tank top. I’d lost the lip ring during my one year of college, but I still wore more than my fair share of black and I’d added ink to my forearms and shoulders. I studied my reflection in the full-length mirror by the door.
I wasn’t the same man I was five years ago. Piper wasn’t the same, either. Of course, I’d kept track of her. She’d played for the University of Connecticut where she’d transitioned from center to power forward, the same position I played. I knew that would happen. She was tall for Eastridge Heights, but things were different at the collegiate level. We’d practiced together for hours and hours until she’d become stronger playing outside the paint. She played better, having played against me. And I was just so damn proud of her.
Dating: For the Assist Page 13