He disappeared for a few days with Caleb and DJ, and the only text I got from him about it was be back soon. And while I didn’t deserve any further explanation, the guys remaining upstairs knew I was anxious when they’d come down hesitantly to ask if I wanted to hang out and watch TV or join them for dinner when they ordered delivery. Aiden must have asked them to make me feel included.
Three days of no Aiden should have been a relief—a break from his concern over what I admitted, yet I was out of my mind wondering if I’d finally chased him away like I tried doing from the start.
I barely get to the stairs when I hear a gruff “thank you” coming from the couch. Glancing over my shoulder, I see Aiden’s arm still draped over his eyes and his body in the same contorted position as before.
Swallowing, I whisper, “Go back to sleep.”
There’s a humming noise coming from the big brute as I go up the main set of stairs. When I walk into the kitchen, Caleb and Raine are sitting at the table and DJ is putting together food at the counter.
“Good morning,” Raine greets first, smiling up from the plate of eggs in front of her.
DJ turns to me, arms open. “Morning. How about a hug to start the day?”
Caleb throws something at his teammate and DJ smacks it away right before it hits his chest. “Knock it off, bro.”
“I’m just being a good roommate.”
I grab my favorite Starbucks drink from the fridge, which magically started appearing shortly after I moved in. “Do you hug all your roommates?”
Raine giggles. “That’d be interesting.”
DJ looks offended. “I happen to give damn good hugs. The guys would be lucky to receive one.”
“To receive, huh?” Caleb glances at the blond whose cheeks tint at the insinuation his teammate makes. “Didn’t know you were so generous, Danny Boy.”
Turning to DJ, I ask, “Danny?”
He grumbles at Caleb. “Yeah, Danny.”
“Short for Daniel,” Raine pipes in.
“Huh.” I uncap my drink and take a sip.
Danny decides to ignore all of us. “Do you want some breakfast before you go to work? I make a mean omelet.”
Both Raine and Caleb nod.
“How do you know I’m working?”
Caleb laughs. “You do realize we had to go to Bea’s every single Sunday with Aiden, right? It took us a couple of visits before we realized why he was so insistent on going when he only used to go there every once in a while.”
Raine bites back a smile. “It’s true. When Cal told me that it was you Aid was going to see, I almost couldn’t believe it.”
A blush creeps under my cheeks that I try hiding from everybody. “Oh, well…”
DJ’s arm drops over my shoulder, tugging me into his side. “The guys all fucked with him after it was obvious he was drooling over you.”
The running back chuckles. “It’s hard not to when your friend goes from zero to 100 in no time flat. Dude never parties, drinks, or lets any of the girls lure him into a room alone. Then you show up and he threatens to punch us in the nuts if we look at you wrong.”
A loud laugh bursts from DJ. “Remember what he said to Brady? Get this, Ives. Justin didn’t know your man had already claimed you and said something at the bakery one day. We all thought we’d get kicked out when Griff got all up in his face and threatened to cut off his dick and shove it down his throat.”
My eyes widen as I look to Caleb for confirmation. He nods in agreement, stretching his legs out and stealing Raine’s coffee. “Dude is serious about a lot of things, and you shot to the top the second he saw you.”
Throat tightening, I cap my drink and quickly grab my coat from the hall outside the kitchen. “As interesting as this talk is, I should get going. Thanks for the breakfast offer though.”
Caleb quickly stands. “Let me drive you. We got some snow overnight and I doubt it’d be a nice walk since the town sucks at clearing the sidewalks before noon.”
I try refusing, but he’s already grabbing his keys and gesturing toward the door. We’re walking toward his truck when I say, “You don’t have to do this.”
“I know.”
I’m buckling in and sitting on my hands to warm them from the cold cab when he starts up the vehicle and turns to me. “I can’t tell you where we went, so don’t ask.”
“I…” Well, okay I was going to ask. “I hope wherever you went was relaxing for him. He deserves it.”
A noise rises from the driver’s seat. “He can’t be distracted for the game coming up. The Raiders did him in. It’ll be hard for him even if he won’t admit it.” Instantly, my gaze drops to my lap as if I’m about to get the same talk their coach already delivered.
“He got screwed over at Wilson Reed,” he explains. “He’ll tell you it was his fault, but they were basically hazing the guy. I told him he could have filed a lawsuit against the school and probably won. You know, petitioned to stay on the team based on wrongful acts from the upperclassman on the Raiders. But you know him. He didn’t want to fight it. Said something about it being a losing battle. I don’t know.” He shakes his head at the thought. “They gave up something good, but their fuck up was great for the Dragons. It’s going to be a game of vengeance out there, but he needs his head in the game. He can’t be worrying about if you’re okay, or what he can do to fix it when he can’t even do that for himself.”
I stare down at the dirt, pine needles, and other things on the carpeted floor as he backs out of the driveway. “I know that. I’ve told him to stop worrying about me, but he won’t listen. You know him too. He always puts others first even when we don’t want him to.”
His sigh is one I take as agreement.
“I heard there’d be blood on the field because of his transfer here,” I remark timidly, knowing this is probably the longest conversation we’ve had since I usually bow out before he can get to know me any better.
That earns a small snort from him. “If there is, it wouldn’t come from Aiden. He’s a big guy, sure, but he’s not a violent one. You’d know that if you took him up on his thousands of offers to attend one of the home games. DJ on the other hand…”
My nose scrunches. “DJ?”
“Kid may be an animal-loving flirt, but he can be vicious out there. We have to reel him in sometimes. Don’t let the smile fool you.”
I can’t help but grin to myself. “His smile never fooled me before.”
“Probably a good thing,” he remarks nonchalantly. “Just because Griff isn’t a violent player doesn’t mean he won’t beat someone for looking at you the wrong way. DJ was right about the Brady thing. Aiden never had beef with anybody, but we all thought shit was going down that day our captain said something.”
The skin on the back of my neck tingles until it rises and settles under my cheeks. “For the record, I want to be there for him. But we haven’t been talking after…um, the other night. Then you guys left, and I’m not asking for details, but I haven’t known what to say or do to make it better. I know he’s trying to give me what I asked for, but it’s driving me nuts.”