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Which Idon’tlike. My eyes narrow. “That’s it. Everybody beat it.” I’m out of my chair, walking over to Boomer to scoop my son off his chest. “Thanks for stopping over. See you later.”
I can feel Nora’s eyes on me. But as strong as the pull to turn around is, I resist.
“Dude, they’ve barely been here an hour,” Anders says, chuckling as I shoo one player after another out the door.
“Yep. They got to see Otto.” And Nora. “Hang out a while. Now it’s time to go.”
Anders’s brows raise, his focus shifting to Nora and back to me.
I don’t give him the chance to say anything. “You too. Out.”
While the guys from the team don’t put up a fight, grunting and offering head nods as they exit, Anders isn’t exactly known for respecting authority.
His arms cross over his chest, a belligerent look filling his eyes. “I’ll go in a minute.”
My molars grind. “You’ll go now.”
His head cocks. “Make me.”
Jesus. Obviously, I could. But for as physical as hockey can get, I don’t fight off ice. And because I’m both older and have always been bigger than Anders, I don’t lay hands on him. Even when he’s asking for it.
Which is all well and good, except the little shit knows he’s safe and isn’t going anywhere.
When the last of the guys are out, I turn back to him. “What?”
He winks. “Hey, Nora, you look wiped. How about Axe and I handle Otto a while, and you take a break.”
My jaw drops. He does not get to tell Nora to take a break. No matter how good an idea it is. I’m the one who tells her to take a break. Or the whole night off. Me.
He smirks, leaning in to give me a light sock on the shoulder, followed by a pat to Otto’s back. “Yeah, take a couple hours. Or the whole evening. Axel’s good.”
Nora snickers from where she’s putting the water bottles the guys left in the kitchen into the recycling.
“Hey, you don’t need to do that.” I follow her in and take a bottle out of her hand. She holds up the recycling bin and I drop it in for her.
“Wow, Axe. Dude, you’re such a gentleman, helping her with that bottle she was already holding.”
I shoot my brother a shitty look, but yeah, I’m an ass.
I clear my throat. “Nora, Anders is right. You want to get out of here for a break?”
She plants her hands on her hips, thinking about it with her mouth twisted to one side of her face.
Cute.
“You know, I’ve got that interview coming up. Maybe I will run out and see about picking up something to wear.”
Anders asks about the position, making all the appropriate noises a normal person would. But he’s not a normal person, and I know exactly what he’s doing.Working her.
I’m trying to figure out if it would be weird to offer to pay for her new clothes when he reaches out and— motherfucker—slides an arm around Nora’s shoulders, pulling her in close to his side for one of his “entry-level” hugs.
Fucking Anders. I know his game, and, based on the smirk he shoots me, he knows I know it too.
“Enough of that. Hands off the nanny, bro.”
Laughing again, like she thinks we’re joking around, Nora holds up her hands. “Okay, I’m going to scoot out for a couple of hours. Call if you need me.”
I nod, then feel my heart do something I’m not used to when she steps in close, resting her hand on my arm as she drops a light kiss on Otto’s cheek. It takes everything I have not to wrap my free arm around her and pull her in for a hug of my own. But again, I stop myself.
