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He looks completely defeated when he closes his eyes and sighs. “Fine.” He clears his throat and asks, “So where’s all your stuff? The lady said you moved.”
“That first weekend you had the preseason away game, I went back and had a friend help me move my stuff into a storage unit. I turned in my keys and came back here. But really, I didn’t have a lot. Most of the furniture stayed behind in that fancy place Dad insisted I live in when I started that job. I brought a few bags of clothes and personal things back here.”
Caleb runs his hands over his face and exhales loudly. I risk a glance over his shoulder, and the intense look on Brock’s face isstartling. He looks completely angry, his face a little flushed and the tips of his ears red. When his gaze meets mine, he seems to relax a bit, but not much. Is he mad at me? Because I lied about my job and kept this from him?
“So, I guess that means you’re staying here, huh?” Caleb flashes me a smile.
“I want to look for my own place. I don’t expect you to put me up for long,” I insist, but it falls on deaf ears.
“Bullshit. You can stay as long as you need to. Hell, you can just move in here if you want. It’s just me, Joe. Well, me and Brock here, but like I’ve said before, you know I have plenty of room.” Caleb gets up and grabs two bottles of water, handing the first one off to Brock, who is leaning against the counter with his arms crossed, just watching.
I flash my brother a wide grin. “You just want me to stay because I cook better than you,” I tell him, getting up from the chair and walking around to where he stands.
He snorts out a laugh and throws his arm around my shoulders. “That’s a nice bonus, I’ll admit, but you know it’s more than that.” He meets my gaze. “It’s always been you and me against the world.”
I nod, my throat thick with emotions, as I wrap my arms around his chest and hug him tight. “Love you, Cay.”
“Love you too, pipsqueak.” He kisses the crown of my head before stepping back. “All right, I’m going up to unpack and shower. We’ve got a team workout in the morning and films and meetings all afternoon tomorrow.”
“We can throw some burgers on the grill later,” I tell him.
“Sounds good.” Caleb turns to leave the kitchen, throwing Brock a fist bump on his way by.
The tension from earlier is now gone, but it’s only replaced by a new form, and this one feels heavy on the sexual side. I turn toface Brock, truly acknowledging him for the first time since they arrived home. “How was your flight?”
Those piercing blue eyes just stare at me, deep and all-knowing, as if he can see all the way down to my soul. “It was shit, actually. I was worried about you.”
With a deep exhale, I step up to where he stands, inhaling the familiar woodsy scent I will forever associate with Brock. There’s a hesitancy as I place my hands on his chest and meet his gaze. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset or worry you.”
He reaches forward, wrapping his big hand around my back and pulling me into his embrace. “When Caleb got that call right before we boarded the plane, I didn’t know what to think. My mind went to some pretty fucked-up places, but the reality may be worse. Knowing someone touched you, even just brushing against your arm, and then kissed you—” He shakes his head and closes his eyes. When he opens them, they blaze with fire, but it doesn’t feel angry, nor directed at me. Brock rubs his thumb over my bottom lip as he whispers, “I don’t like knowing someone else had their lips on yours, especially when it’s not reciprocated.”
I shudder out a breath. “I’ve been kissed before, Brock.”
His growl is animalistic and possessive. “Of course you have, Sunshine. You’re so beautiful and smart and funny, any guy would be lucky to get the chance to kiss you. Doesn’t mean I like it though, or that it should be without your permission.”
I wrap my hands around his shoulders and lean into his chest. “I get that, and I do agree. Do you think I like the thought of you kissing those thousands and thousands of women you’ve been with?”
Brock snorts out a laugh. “Jesus, you have to stop reading the tabloids. Thousands and thousands?”
“Hundreds and hundreds?” I tease, drawing another chuckle from his lips.
When he meets my gaze, he sobers. “I have a past. Everyone does, and I won’t deny it. But I get what you’re saying. What happened in the past stays there.”
I nod. “I know women throw themselves at you. I can’t blame them for it, because you’re, well, you’re hot. Like when that woman in the bar touched your arm. You didn’t ask her to, but she did it anyway. That’s what happened with my old boss. He initiated something that was uninvited, and I stopped it. I didn’t tell anyone because I just didn’t want the drama. If it had gone farther, then I would have said something, but a kiss is hardly anything to get worked up about.”
He growls again, his hands gripping my back as he holds me close. “I’m going to erase him from your memory.”
I can’t help but smile. “You already have.”
His mouth is powerful, his lips urgent, as he presses his to mine for the first time in three long days. “God, I’ve been waiting to kiss these lips for what feels like forever,” he whispers, sliding his mouth so easily against mine.
“Me too,” I reply, rubbing my body against his like a cat in heat.
A thump echoes from upstairs, causing us to separate well before either of us are ready. When we hear my brother’s feet descending the stairs, Brock finally releases his hold on my body and gives me an unamused look. “I’m going to have to take another cold shower.”
I flash him a quick grin. “Or you could just sneak into my room later tonight after my brother is sleeping.”
I turn and go to the fridge just as Caleb returns. “That shower felt fucking wonderful. I hate flying, especially after a long night of post-game celebrating,” he announces, wiggling his eyebrows.
