“I’m going out.” Her stare was full of steel. “So I will not be attending your stupid game.”
He took a step forward, leaning over the end of the bed so he could breathe the insult straight at her face. “Didn’t anyone tell you? A date with Drew’s Zac Efron coffee mug and a book isn’t considered going out.”
“Hey,” Drew barked, suddenly offended, “leave Zac out of this.”
Leila, her mouth set in stone, rolled out of bed, and the full vision of her hit him like a brick wall. She wore an oversized t-shirt, and that was it.
No pants.
No socks.
Nothing but long, silky legs peeked out beneath the short hemline, and when you added it with the sexiest case of bed hair he’d ever seen, it was more than enough to hike his adrenaline and his testosterone up a couple notches.
She sauntered toward him, her hand on her hip. “Keep telling yourself that if it makes you feel better,” she sang, bending down to grab a pair of pants off the floor. The shirt came up, flashing a pair of black boy shorts, and he suddenly lost his ability to speak.
A pillow crashed into his head, followed by a deadly glare from Drew. When he finally looked back around, Leila faced him again, her eyes narrowed. “Move, please.”
Without realizing it, he’d barricaded himself in front of the door, his feet spread apart to deny her access to any exit she might attempt. “Friends support each other,” he said through his teeth. “You’re coming to my game.”
“You’re right. Friends do support each other. That’s why I gave my ticket to my best friend, so he could bring a date.” She threw a look at Drew, and then turned back to him. “Now move.”
He frowned, moving to the side as she stepped past him. “So, you don’t really have plans,” he confirmed as he watched her backside sway down the hallway.
“Oh, no. I definitely have plans.” She didn’t even bother turning around as she said it, and disappeared into the bathroom, slamming the door.
He turned back to his brother, his face returning the daunting stare. “She really have plans?”
Drew shrugged. “I guess. She offered me the ticket like she did.”
The thought of Leila going out, sitting next to some guy, laughing as she pressed those soft, pink lips together, gnawed at him, and the sensation was all too familiar. He’d felt it before, the first time he’d seen her with Derek. He told himself then it was only his fierce hatred for his adversary that had triggered the instinct to protect her from him, but now he started to wonder if maybe it had always been something more.
Yes. The women calling would have to stop. It was only fair.
He attempted to distract himself from the thought of Leila out with another man, someone else on the receiving end of that seductive pout, by turning his attention back to Drew. “So, you’re bringing a date to the game tonight?”
Drew held up his hands. “No. Definitely not a date. Just a friend. Please, don’t tell anyone he is my date.”
“Okay,” he agreed, looking warily at his brother, who all of a sudden looked panicked. “You all right?”
“Yes,” he sighed, hopping out of the bed. “I just don’t need you starting rumors.”
That’s when he noticed his brother wore only a pair of boxers, and his annoyance instantly returned. “You know,” he said gruffly, “if I didn’t know any better, I would have thought something happened between you two.”
Drew smirked, looking down at his half-naked body. Henrik gave him a quick shot to the shoulder. “It’s not funny, asshole.”
“I dare to disagree,” he sniggered. “And just so you know, she sleeps in my bed every night, in case you ever get brave enough to try to use that key inappropriately.”
Drew walked past him toward the bathroom. “Every night?” he clarified.
“Every night,” Drew echoed, shutting the door, leaving him alone with his sour face and haunted thoughts.
***
Later that night, Henrik sat in the Rangers locker room after his game, sweat dripping down his face as he peeled the layers of clothes and padding from his body. They’d won the game, barely, but it was enough to keep them tied with the Devils for the top spot in the Eastern Conference. Austin sat next to him, a towel draped over his face, groaning like a five year old who got a shot to the nuts for the first time. “Are you going to survive over there, Blakely?”
Austin merely groaned again, pulling the towel down to shoot him an ill look. “Don’t interrupt my misery. I’m trying to rally my energy for tonight.”
Henrik laughed, throwing a glove at his head. “So, can I assume your ass is not going home to rest?”
“Rest?” Austin laughed. “What is this evil you speak of?”
“C’mon Austin, I saw the beating you took out there tonight—”
“The beating I took for you,” Austin pointed out. “I kept them off your back all night.”
“And I appreciate that.” He smiled. “Like I always do. We leave early tomorrow for Toronto. You need to go home and rest.”
Austin ran a tired hand down his face, looking at him as if he’d just transformed into an alien. “I’m sorry. Who are you, and what did you do with my best friend?”
“This isn’t your best friend talking. This is your captain telling you to go home and rest.”
Austin sat up a little straighter, and he could feel his heady assessment. “Can I assume that my dear, concerned captain will also be going home to rest this fine Saturday night?”
“Yes.”
Austin stood, taking his jersey off, but he never took his eyes off Henrik. “What the hell is wrong with you?”
“Nothing is wrong with me. You know I’m right. If we win tomorrow night, that could put us in the lead for the conference title. We need the rest.”
“This, coming from the same guy who once told me rest is for the weak. That rest is what airplane rides were for, and I can sleep when I’m dead.”
He grinned. “We’re not as young as we once were, Austin.”
“I’m twenty-three. I’m young enough, asshole.”
Henrik shook his head mockingly. “You can barely move, and you want to go to out?”
“If I remember correctly, last year you went out with three broken ribs, and took a girl home. I practically had to carry you on the plane the next day.”
“Yeah, and it wasn’t the brightest decision I’ve ever made,” he reminded him, because that was the same game the trade rumors started. “We’re leaders on this team now. All that happened before I was captain. Look around us. We’ve got to be a better example.”
“For who? The kids? You’re talking like we’re old men now. Are you going to start showing me nursing home applications next?”
He stood, looking his best friend in the eye. “Damn it, Austin. I’m just trying to be responsible, here. You’re the one who nominated me for captain, remember?”
Austin stopped, his face turning solemn. “All right, all right,” he conceded, holding his hands up in surrender. “Just one thing, though, and be honest. Are we going home tonight because you think it’s what’s best for our team, or are we going home because you don’t want a certain feisty redhead we know to get more pissed at you than she already is?”
Henrik pretended to be offended before stepping over to grab an eavesdropping Sam, who stood at the locker next to him, and put him into a headlock. “We’re doing it for the kids, Austin.” He laughed, patting Sam affectionately on the side of the face. “Right, rookie?”
Sam looked awkwardly between Henrik and Austin, until Austin finally nodded his agreement. “Whatever. I’ll take my captain’s word for it,” he added, grabbing a towel before heading toward the showers. “But just remember. I know when my best friend is lying to me.”
Henrik released Sam with a relieved huff. “He’s right, you know,” Sam whispered, maneuvering away from him. “If you keep avoiding his offers to go out, he will get suspicious.”
He rubbed a nervous hand t
hrough his hair. “Trust me. Austin’s suspicion isn’t anything new.” Sam’s eyes rose, but he shrugged it off. “Long story.”
“What are you going to do about it, then?” Sam asked instead.
Henrik smiled that same determined grin he always used when accepting a challenge. “Exactly what you told me to do. Be her friend, even if it fucking kills me.”
Chapter 12
LEILA’S TURTLES
Leila’s eyes were downcast as she sat alone on the front seat of the subway. It rumbled through the underground with such determination and force that it made her tired just thinking about it. She felt exceptionally bad yesterday, and after a miserable morning of needles and pissing in cups, she knew it wasn’t only guilt. The extra rest from skipping the hockey games hadn’t been enough to stop the doctor from increasing her medication.
She stuffed the generic brown bag containing her new medicine into her oversized purse. No one needed to know about it. She didn’t want their sympathy. In fact, she didn’t need it. She had everything completely under control.
A woman across the aisle smiled at her. It was the fourth person to smile at her today. The guilt hit her again. It was cruel to keep her condition a secret, but she had no choice. Austin would overreact and Drew would mother her to insanity. Then there was Henrik.
Clueless, idiotic Henrik.
She felt guilty about him too. It was a new trend. He’d been giving the whole “friends” thing his best shot the past week. Mother Theresa would be proud. She hadn’t seen a single woman in the hallway, and she even caught half an interview of his coach singing his praises. He even used the word responsible.
No one in the history of existence had ever used responsible to describe Henrik Rylander.
It didn’t matter, though. She shot him down at every corner. She even turned down the Mortal Combat marathon with extra buttered popcorn.
They couldn’t be friends. She lacked the patience for it. She would never be able to stomach his juvenile behavior as he played ‘hit it and quit it’ all over Midtown. She also couldn’t risk the chance of another tirade like the one she had with the woman who hung up on her.
It was best for everyone if she followed Drew’s advice and kept her distance.
The subway came to a screeching halt, and she stood to join the fellow patrons in the mass exit. Her head felt light. She probably should have taken her medicine at the pharmacy. She needed to get home. Quick.
***
She shoved open the door to Drew’s apartment, only to be greeted with the sound of bolstered cheering. She absently grabbed her head as the ache behind her eyes began to throb. She turned the corner to peek into the living room, and saw no less than ten oversized men scattered about, all their attention focused directly on the television. “Hey, Sis,” Austin announced from the couch, throwing his hand up in greeting.
“What’s going on?”
She meant to sound chipper, but didn’t. Not even close.
“Henrik’s idea,” Drew explained from his spot on the floor. His brows were drawn together in defiance like he just lost some ferocious battle. “Team bonding day watching the football game.”
“That’s nice.” Again she tried to smile, but couldn’t even manage a fake one. “Why are they bonding here instead of his apartment, exactly?”
“Because we wanted to include you.”
She spun around to find Henrik behind her, a stack of pizza boxes in his arms. “You made it back just in time for lunch, and the second quarter.”
She frowned at him. He wasn’t allowed to be in her apartment. Her icy attitude the last time he showed up unannounced should have made that point clear. He especially couldn’t show up looking irresistible in his faded jeans and ripped t-shirt, acting all sweet and thoughtful. Except, actually, it was his apartment, which meant he could be there as much as he wanted.
Her frown deepened.
She needed to start looking for her own place. Soon. Of course that required a job and a steady income. It wasn’t like her to depend on anyone else, even if it was her brother and best friend. If only the job interview she called about last week would come through, she could move out, get some distance, and maybe a little perspective that didn’t involve the outline of Henrik’s abs through his shirt.
“I’m not hungry.”
“But it’s pizza. Do you know how long I had to argue with Austin to let me break our training diet for this?”
She slipped by him down the hallway toward her room. She would use the faucet in her bathroom to take her medicine before she lay down.
“Hey, wait a second,” she heard him call after her.
He’d discarded the pizza by the time he’d caught up with her at bathroom door. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.” She knew better than to try to smile again, so she tried to lie better. “I’m just tired. I’ve had a busy morning.”
He stuffed his hands in the front pockets of his jeans, scuffing the toe of his sock against the carpet. “Where have you been?”
“Shopping.”
“Doesn’t look like you had much luck.”
“I didn’t, which is why I’m tired. So, if you’ll excuse me—”
She tried to shut the door, but he caught it. “You’re tired a lot lately.”
Her stomach knotted up, and she suddenly felt nauseated. “What do you mean?”
“It just seems that you’re always putting off hanging out with me,” he explained in a whisper, but she could feel the tension in his voice.
She let out a sigh. Relieved. “I’m not avoiding you, Henrik.”
He smiled, a small dimple forming in his cheek. “Yes, you are.”
“Not intentionally.”
He stepped forward, his hand grazing under her elbow as he dropped his voice between them. “Yes, you are.”
She rubbed her eyes. It wouldn’t be much longer until the flashes started, or orbs started to appear in her vision. She needed her medicine.
“Go lay down,” he instructed, his hand delicately brushing the edge of her shoulder. “Get some rest. We’ll discuss it later.”
She wanted to argue. In fact, she wanted to scream at him. She hated that she wanted to give in so easily. She wanted to watch Mortal Kombat and laugh every time he dropped his voice to mimic Scorpion. She wanted to eat pizza and meet his friends. She wanted him to be human—to have a heart.
But Drew was right. He was Tin Man Henrik.
She pushed his hand away, ashamed of the adrenaline spike the small contact created inside of her, and shut the door.
“I’ll try and keep the noise to a minimum,” he added on the other side, but she didn’t respond. She stood there, her head against the cool metal, and waited until his footsteps retreated back down the hallway.
She needed to tell them. Henrik needed to understand why the playful banter and his game to break her willpower had to stop. She knew that. However, it wouldn’t be today.
***
Leila woke up three hours later feeling slightly refreshed, only to find the apartment completely empty. She wandered aimlessly around, looking for some sign it had housed half a hockey team earlier that day, but it was spotless. She made her way into the kitchen, deciding to eat lunch. She managed to finish an entire BLT and two sides of fries when she heard a commotion at the front door. She hurried around the corner to find it was only the boys, attempting to squeeze through the small frame at the same time.
She laughed at the ridiculous sight. “Watch it,” Drew groaned, shoving his brother, only to bounce back and land against Austin. Poor Drew looked like a Hobbit trapped between two trolls as he tried to fight his way through the door.
“You watch it,” Henrik shot back, pulling a load of bright yellow bags through the door behind him. “I’m the one doing all the work.”
“Where have you guys been?” she inquired, eyeing the nameless bags as Henrik set them down at his feet.
“Shopping.” Austin threw himself down on the couch a
s if the activity had been strenuous.
Her interest was instantly piqued. Boys, especially these three particular ones, loathed even the thought of going into a department store. Something was off about the entire scenario, and she was confident it had something to do with her. “What exactly did you buy?” She leaned up on her tiptoes to sneak a peek in the bags.
“That’s the best part,” Henrik told her, pulling a piece of paper out of his back pocket and handing it to her. “I was going to tell you about it this morning, but Austin thought it was best to wait until we were more prepared.”
She cautiously took the paper from him, analyzing the overzealous smile plastered on his face. She slowly unfolded it and read through the bold writing down the page. The annual Rangers Halloween extravaganza was scheduled for that afternoon. Costumes strongly suggested, noted a handwritten amendment on the bottom.
She eyed the yellow bags again, noticing Drew and Austin shared the same ridiculous smile. “Costumes? You realize they were probably referring to the kids, right?”
“What do you have against costumes?”
“Nothing, I guess. The kids will love it. You guys will have a good time.”
She spun around, prepared to run.
But their voices rang out in unison. “Stop.”
She winced, pausing at the edge of the doorframe.
“You guys?” Austin’s voice echoed behind her. “You’re coming with us.”
She turned around slowly, knowing now why they’d all shown up together. It was an intervention. She could see it in the sad way they each looked at her, as if she were a fragile piece of glass hanging on the edge of a cliff.
She pulled herself up, attempting to appear in control of herself, but it was a nearly impossible feat while wearing Drew’s decade-old Power Ranger pajamas. “Why would I come to your team’s Halloween party?”
“Because it’s hosted by the Rangers organization, and it’s for our families,” Henrik explained.
“And I want to spend time with my sister,” Austin added softly, smiling at her.
The Girl With Hearts (Midtown Brotherhood #1) Page 9