“You’re such a fucking idiot,” I muttered to myself, then escaped into my room.
Idiot? Absolutely.
In trouble? Fuck, yes.
6
Fiona
“Run that by me again,” Maddie said as we stood in line outside Reaper Arena.
Today was the first pre-season game, and I’d gone all out for Skye. She had her own Brogan Grant onesie, and the Tula I wore had been customized to look like the back of his jersey. I didn’t know how many games we’d be attending, but I was nothing if not prepared.
“Definitely,” Daisy added. “But tell the story slower. I want to savor it.”
I laughed as we moved up in line. “This one had kept us both up for two weeks straight,” I said, pointing to a perfectly content Skye. I swear the girl was only happy when I was wearing her or Brogan was.
“Uh-huh,” Daisy said as we continued to move forward.
“And he had early ice,” I continued, heat flaring up my spine at the memory. “I got Skye to sleep, miraculously. He came out of the shower and kissed me.”
“Too fast,” Daisy said.
“And not enough details,” Maddie added, taking the baby bag I was switching hands with and hefting it over her shoulder.
I shrugged, but I was sure they could see the heat in my cheeks. It had been two weeks since the kiss in the hallway, and I was only now telling them about it. To be fair, I hadn’t seen much of them, Skye rightfully taking up the majority of my time.
But even though it’d been two weeks, I couldn’t stop thinking about that kiss. It haunted me in the middle of the night, in those precious hours where Skye slept, and I was left undisturbed in my bedroom across the hall from Brogan’s, his scent snaking through the door and taunting me.
“I don’t know what it meant,” I admitted as we made it up to will call. Brogan had left us insanely awesome tickets, and we made our way to the family box easily enough. Daisy practically bounced on the balls of her feet the whole time, a permanent smile on her face. Her brown curls hung at her shoulders, which were draped in a McKittrick jersey.
Madeline and I didn’t match the crowd of fans in Reaper jerseys, instead wearing soft cotton T’s and jeans, but Skye was definitely winning the best little Reaper fan award.
“Was it like a peck?” Maddie asked after we got seated.
I waved to Langley, who sat with some of her girlfriends, little Colin strapped into his own custom carrier too. So, maybe Skye and Colin were winning cutest little Reaper fan awards.
“Not exactly,” I said. “But he did say he was just trying to thank me afterward.” I cringed at the awkwardness that had hung in the hallway in the seconds after the kiss. “He even apologized.”
“Aww,” Daisy cooed, and I snorted, shaking my head. “That’s very gentlemanly of him.”
“And for what it’s worth,” Maddie said. “That’s a compliment. Especially since he looks like he could go full caveman on you in two seconds flat at any given time.”
I swallowed hard, absently patting Skye’s butt. It was pretty much a habit now, almost an extension movement of my body. The girl hated it when things went still on her.
“So, it was a thank-you peck on the lips then?” Daisy asked.
“Um…” I blew out a breath, my mind racing back to that night, to the memory I hadn’t been able to turn off. To the memory I had shamelessly taken much, much farther in my mind. I couldn’t help it. I could still feel the effects of that kiss ringing through my body even now, two weeks later. And he had barely touched me. “It was longer than a peck.”
“Oh?” Maddie asked, turning her body in the seat to face me, giving me her total attention. Daisy did too, and if I wasn’t so damn tangled up about what had happened and what it meant, I might’ve laughed at their investment in this story.
“Yeah,” I said, wetting my lips as if I could still taste him. And fuck, he’d tasted good. All warmth and mint, and he’d smelled like a dream night at the beach under the moonlight.
Great, now I’m spouting poetry.
“It’s a good thing you leave the romance stories to this one,” Maddie said, pointing to Daisy. “Because you suck at details.”
I laughed again, the tension uncoiling from my chest. God, it was just a little kiss! Why was I getting so hung up on it?
“Seriously,” Daisy agreed, keeping her voice low since we were in the family box with Langley and several other Reaper family members while waiting for them to take the ice. “Did he push you up against the wall? Was he wearing a shirt? Did you moan? How did the beard feel? Give us the deets, girl!”
“Ohmigod, kill me now,” I said, slightly flustered. “No hands were involved, we stayed standing, and he was wearing a towel.” I swallowed hard, remembering how badly I’d wanted to see what was beneath that towel because I’d been so wholly consumed by the brief kiss.
“Wait,” Maddie said, eying me. “You’re telling me he didn’t even touch you?”
I shook my head. “It was like, less than ninety seconds,” I said, not that I was counting.
Maddie tilted her head, then a wide grin shaped her lips. “You like him.”
Daisy clapped.
“I do not,” I said. “I mean, yes, he’s way nicer than his scary exterior suggests. But I do not like him like him.”
“That’s such a lie, it’s almost cute,” Maddie said. “There is no way in hell you don’t like him. Especially if a quick kiss has got you all in knots.”
“I am not in knots!” I said, then cringed at how Dr. Seuss I sounded. I inhaled deeply, trying to get my head on straight.
“Hey,” Daisy said softly. “It’s okay if you do. We’re totally not judging you. You know we’re just messing with you, right?”
I relaxed my shoulders a bit and nodded. “Of course,” I said. I knew that. I knew they were teasing me, and I would do the exact same thing to them if the situations were reversed. But I couldn’t help it…thinking about Brogan the way I had been for the last two weeks did have me spinning.
“I can’t like him anyway,” I said, and Maddie and Daisy groaned.
“Because of your major commitment issues?” Daisy asked with all sincerity.
“It’s not my fault the sanctity of marriage has been lost on me,” I said. “My mother did everything she could to destroy that fairytale years ago.”
Watching her go through husband after husband had me totally against the notion. Did I believe in monogamy? Sure. I just didn’t think I needed to sign away my future to any given person just because we could stand each other’s company for more than a month at a time. And that mindset had cost me several boyfriends in the past, not to mention one disgruntled recent ex who had proposed. Clearly, he hadn’t really known me at all.
“But,” I continued. “More importantly, he’s my boss.”
My very sexy, very broody, sometimes downright endearing boss.
“For now,” Maddie said, and I nodded.
I knew this wasn’t going to be my career. I couldn’t take care of Skye forever, no matter how much I adored her. The biological mother would come back into the picture at some point. Whether it be by her own reasoning, for the NHL money, or because Brogan finally tracked her down. Whatever the case, when she came back? I’d be out of there. Because I had no right or claim to this family.