She checked the Mascot Mania text thread, which had gone on without her.
Mustang (Detroit)
Heard that reporter is gonna sue Durand for assault.
Tommy Toga (New York)
It was barely a tap. Jesus, Deacon wouldn’t last long in a game. Or a mascot costume.
Trigger (Nashville)
Can dish it out but can’t take it. Still, sucks for Durand, though. All because he was defending our Pepper.
This was not good. She’d practically ruined Bast’s career, now she’d left him open to a lawsuit?
She headed out to the kitchen, where she found Bast toeing off snow-covered boots. The air was a little chill, which meant the sliding door to the patio must have been open for a few seconds.
“You went outside? Again?”
“Yeah, just to get some air.”
“You really shouldn’t be doing anything with your wrist in such poor shape. What if you slip out there?” Her gaze was drawn to the sliding door—and the furry being huddled on a cleared path outside the glass.
“Is that Chester … eating something?” She moved closer and sure enough, the little guy was munching on what looked like a cashew. “Where did he—” Her mouth dropped open. “You fed him? After telling me not to?”
Bast was moving his boots to a mat in the mudroom. “I figured he worked up an appetite while creepily watching us banging.”
“Uh, he had no idea what we were doing.”
Bast grinned. “Oh, he knew. I could see his beady little eyes lighting up.”
“I think it’s sweet that you fed him.” A closer look at the patio revealed more than she’d first seen: a maze of crisscrossed paths. “He has a little play area. So cute.”
Bast stood beside her. “Just making it easier for him to come and go.”
“You and Chester, BFFs.”
He snorted.
She leaned against the counter. “So, I just heard from the mascots that Curtis Deacon is making a fuss. That he might sue you.”
Bast had opened the fridge and was rooting around.
“Hey, did you hear me?”
He looked up. “Deacon. Fuss. Sue. Yep.”
“Aren’t you worried?”
He straightened. “It’ll blow over. My agent says I need to apologize, and we’re good.”
That sounded manageable. “So you’re going to do that?”
“Nope.”
“Bast, you cannot get sued because of me!”
Quick as a flash, he backed her against the table. “That was my call. You can’t take on the blame for that as well, you guilt hog. And I won’t be apologizing because I was right and he was wrong.”
“But—”
He kissed her, working his mouth over hers in a way that made her a limp noodle. “But, nothing. Wait, did you say you heard about Deacon from the mascots? Plural?”
“Yeah, we have a text group. They’re a good bunch of people. They have my back.”
That seemed to amuse him. “So, do you guys talk about the players?”
“Of course we do, especially the ones who are total dicks. Or crash into the mascots and make it all about them.”
“Okay, I asked for that.” He gave her a quick kiss. “I’m starving, so let’s make dinner. And then after that, I have a surprise for you.”
Dinner she could get on board with, but she wasn’t a fan of surprises.
“Is my brother coming to visit?”
He frowned. “Uh, no. It’s a good surprise. I promise you’ll like it.”
She had no choice but to take him at his word, and she wished now that she hadn’t brought up her brother because that reality was impinging on the fantasy. Had Kent talked to Connor and found out she was with Bast? Is that why he texted?
“So what’s for dinner?”
“Burgers. We have ground beef that’s thawed—thank you—and some seasoning, Worcestershire sauce and the like. And luckily you had the foresight to grab those burger buns at the store.”
“That’s me, all the foresight. How can I help?”
“We have tomatoes and onions. Maybe some sort of salad?”
She could manage that. She started slicing tomatoes, and together they worked side by side, initially in companionable silence.
“About Connor,” she said after a short time.
“What about him?”
“How friendly are you, really?”
“We knew each other in college, and we text each other a couple of times a month. The usual trash talk. Meet up when we’re in the same town.” He slid a glance her way. “Back in college, he mentioned you a few times. But I still had no idea who you were when we connected in Jimmy’s Tap.”
Connected. “And I didn’t realize you guys were friends. Connor and I aren’t that close.”
He nodded. “Sibling relationships can be tricky.”
“You and he seem—I dunno—different.”
He chuckled. “Wondering why we’re friendly, I suppose.”
“I didn’t mean to imply that you shouldn’t be. College friendships, especially around sports, are sacrosanct. I get that.”
“Sure, college makes for tight, fast friendships. Maybe not the deepest, but you’re usually working together toward a goal. Brothers on a team, that kind of thing. It creates its own ecosystem. But that wasn’t why we were friends.”
She stopped chopping and turned to him. “Then what was it?”
He paused for a moment, as if carefully choosing his words. “He needed someone to temper his worst impulses. Kind of like my brother.”
She blinked. “You were his friend so you could—cure him of being a jerk?”
“Sounds like it didn’t work if he’s ordering you around and sending stupid texts about your misfortune.” He grimaced. “Forget I said that.”
“He did? What did he say?”
“Nothing. It’s just a gif that’s doing the rounds.”
“Show me.”
“Pepper—” But she’d already grabbed her phone and was searching it out. There was only so much Bast could protect her from. She needed to face this kind of thing head on.
“Oh. Well, it’s funny except for the look of pain on your face. That’s just awful.” She flinched as the hit came around again. This was never going to go away.
He took the phone out of her hand. “How about we not watch that anymore? I’d rather not hear this blow to my career with a Godzilla roar soundtrack.”
“You’re forgiving me because of the great sex, aren’t you?”
He grinned. “Sex always puts me in a forgiving mood, but no. I forgave you before that. Well, sometime between the oral sex and the cheeky feel-up while I was trying to sleep.”
“Hey!” She thumped him in his good arm. “I was the one trying to sleep.”
Quick as a flash, he pinned her to the counter, though she could have resisted. The man had only one good arm after all.
But resistance wasn’t in her future. She just wanted to lose herself in these good vibes for as long as they lasted.