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“I’ll be back,” I tell the attorneys and follow him out the door.
When I step onto my private elevator with him, he turns toward me. His long hair hangs to his collar. He’s trimmed up his beard and mustache to a thicker style than the full beard he had before his injury when his team was making a run for the playoffs.
“You’ll follow me so that I can make the excuse I didn’t know you were coming. You won’t corner her, and you’ll just watch.” He pokes his finger in my chest. I nod because I don’t know how he knows, but I’m not going to question him. “She called me earlier to tell me before I was served what was going on.” He pauses and rubs a hand through his hair, messing it up. “She’s in a lot of pain, man. She doesn’t want to do this but has no choice. She told me she didn’t purposely keep him away from us. She tried.”
“I saw the proof.”
“There’s more. I don’t know what it is because she won’t tell me, but she’s hiding more secrets.”
“Where are we going?” I ask as soon as we get to the underground garage.
I didn’t use my car service today. I drove my Mercedes Speedster. Remi is back to driving his truck. He hated taking the pain meds and using my service to drive himself around. He has always been independent. His father is only around to help spend his checks and say he’s the father of Remington Oakley, pro hockey player.
“You’ll see. Don’t forget, you followed me.” He climbs up into his truck, and I follow him out of the garage.
As we leave the metro business area, I notice we’re heading in the direction of one of mine and the rest of the guy’s favorite places. We get closer to the Ramsey University campus and are in a small residential area. An ice rink looms in the distance. That rink is one of many around the city, but it is the closest to campus without being on the campus property. We’d go there to hang out and play. All four of us guys would play two on two every chance we could. We liked going there because we didn’t have to deal with Remi’s dad and we didn’t have the girls checking us out.
In the beginning, when I first went to Ramsey, I was by myself. I was a scholarship student living in the dorms and then I met Rowan. He was not a scholarship student as his family could afford his tuition. He and I found out we liked to game, and the rest was history. I was already on my way to selling my first security app. He introduced me to Chase and Remi. We were all the same but raised completely different. Rowan and Chase grew up with silver spoons in their mouths and a part of the country clubs. Remi and I were raised in the worst part of town. Remi had hockey to get him out, and I had my brains.
Remi pulls into the rink and parks. I follow behind him, noticing there are a few cars around. I see the rink owner’s old beat-up truck. He’s had it for years. I tried to buy this place from him years ago and let him retire, but he wouldn’t do it. I recently heard he sold to another company, and they kept him on to run it. It’s the best situation for Ernie. He gets to still be a part of his legacy. When I step out into the warm June weather, I slip off my jacket and roll up the sleeves of my shirt. My full sleeve tattoos are partially on display. For the first time today, I feel relaxed. Getting out of the office was the best idea. No lawyers.
I realize that Remi brought me here to just talk and calm down. He doesn’t know where Briar is. He was just looking out for me. That’s why he’s one of my best friends. It hurts that Chase and I are no longer close. There was a time when the four of us thought we’d take on the world of tech securities, and between our company and Chase’s mother’s company, we would rule the world. But all that changed when Rowan died. He had joined the military against his parents’ wishes and was killed on his first deployment. It tore all of us apart. Briar more than any of us. I knew back then that he was her buffer to the world. She was an introverted genius. She could hack any security system, and she helped us several times with refining our programs before I screwed up everything and slept with her. There are days I wish I hadn’t, and then there are the days I’m glad I got a taste of her.
Remi walks into the building without waiting for me, and I wonder what he’s really up to now. If he wanted to talk like we’ve done so much in the past, we’d walk in, find a place to sit in the stands, and watch the kids skate. Remi would always say that’s when he found enjoyment in the sport. When he was young, and it was fun. Even when we played in college together, he would have fun, but he’d lost the fun. I know that’s why he’s finding it so easy to take the medical and get out now. His father won’t let him though, and I wonder how long it will take before he realizes his father really doesn’t have his best interest at heart. He’s always wanted that. Wanted his father’s acceptance.
Maybe that’s why I’m so adamant that I want my son to know me. My own parents had walked away from me as a young boy. If it hadn’t been for one foster home, I wouldn’t be here now. They took me in and pushed me to get good grades. Even after I left that home and went to another, I remembered what they taught me. I pushed myself, and here I am, one of the richest men on the West Coast.
As I cross the parking lot, I think about the summer camps that will be starting here soon. I glance at the few cars in the lot and realize they must belong to the parents whose kids are finishing up the spring camps. Wait, that would mean there are games going on now. No wonder Remi wanted to come here. I open the door, and sure enough, I see the teams racing around on the ice. They are the little guys, and I watch as some need their sticks to help hold them up. There are a few who are naturals like Remi was.
I scan the stands and spot Remi. He’s got the ball cap he always carries in his back pocket pulled low over his face, hiding who he is. He’s sitting with a woman. It takes me a moment to realize it’s Briar.
That’s when I know. I look on the ice until I see him.
My son.
He’s one of the naturals skating circles around the other kids. He weaves around with the puck on the tip of his stick with complete control in a toe drag. His stickhandling is extremely good for his age. I watch as he swings back for a slap shot and scores between the pipes. I hear Briar screaming and look across the ice to where she is. She’s jumping up and down, yelling at him. The smile on her face is so big and pure that my heart clenches in my chest. I can’t stop my eyes from dragging down her body to her breasts that bounce under her sweater. Her body stills, and I focus back on her eyes. She’s staring right at me. She turns to Remi, and I now know why he wanted me to say I followed him.
Chapter 5
Briar
“You promised you wouldn’t tell him.” I grind my teeth. I thought I could trust this man.
“I didn’t tell him,” he says in his defense, holding up his hands. “He must have followed me.”
Remi won’t look me in the eyes, and I wonder if he’s playing me. But I knew that as soon as I spoke to him today, I couldn’t stop him from knowing Orion any longer. Orion can’t believe I know Remington Oakley, one of his favorite hockey players. He has posters of Remi all over his room.
“Fine. Stay here.” I point to the bench where I was seated. I make sure that Orion is still focused on his game and not me.
I weave through the bleachers and other parents until I walk over to where Thor is standing. I try not to focus on his arms that are exposed and showing his sexy tattoos. Or on his big body encased in the sexy suit, minus the jacket.
I know he was served earlier, and according to my attorney, he’s retained a top attorney himself. Worried this day would come, I’ve had mine on retainer since the day Orion was born. I knew it would happen. It’s not my fault he didn’t want to know about Orion before now. What makes it worse was the look of betrayal in his eyes.
Thor watches me as I walk toward him, but then his eyes flick to where our son is playing on the ice. I see the line change and know Orion will be looking for me soon. I try to keep the smile on my face so he won’t worry about me. My son is my little protector.
Ever since Friday night when Thor saw him for the first time, and I cried until Laya came to check on me, Orion has been keeping a closer eye on me. I couldn’t tell him why I cried. I know I’m going to have to soon, but I’m not sure how to explain that the man who didn’t want him before all of a sudden does.
“What are you doing here?” I say by way of greeting. “Don’t make me get a restraining order.” I see movement, and Orion is waving at me from his team’s bench. I wave back and then point to Remi, who is able to distract Orion from me for a bit.
