A Favor for a Favor

by Hunting, Helena

  “I don’t have a girlfriend.”

  Violet smirks. “You keep telling yourself that.” Then she addresses the women sitting in the front row. “I present you with exhibit A. The broody, antisocial, injured hockey player with lots to prove. I give him a month—two, tops—before he has a girlfriend in our ranks.”

  A murmur of agreement comes from the women in the room.

  She makes a shooing motion. “Off you go so we can start placing bets.”

  I’m not sure if she’s serious about placing bets or not, but I do as she asks and then run into Lainey on the way back to the party.

  “Did Stevie leave?”

  She tips her head to the side. Her long dark hair hangs in a braid over her left shoulder. She regards me with deep chocolate eyes. She’s exactly the opposite of Stevie, dark to her light. Lean and willowy to her athletic build. “She did.”

  “She’ll be okay getting there on her own?” Honestly, I’m looking for a reason to bail on this party, and Stevie is a good reason to get out of here.

  “We live three houses down. She’ll be fine.”

  “Oh. Okay.” Of course Rook does. Always up Waters’s ass.

  “RJ worries about her. She has a tough exterior, but her heart is soft, and she’s been through a lot in the last few years. It’s not easy living in the shadow of someone you love, especially when it’s not by choice. Just something to keep in mind.” She pats me on the shoulder and heads down the hall, toward the roomful of women.

  CHAPTER 16

  EVERYONE HAS AN OPINION

  Stevie

  Lainey intentionally orchestrated pickup so I would have to go to Alex’s house. I tried to sneak in and out as quickly as possible, mostly to avoid my brother, which I’ve been doing all freaking day because I’m still pissed off at him—hence Lainey being the one to organize Kody’s pickup.

  Of course, RJ was on me the second I walked through the door. And he only added to my irritation and my embarrassment by introducing me to his teammates as his baby sister, with his arm around my shoulder, while he glare-smiled at most of them. It was ridiculously uncomfortable. Also, babies don’t have boobs or master’s degrees, thank you very much.

  Thankfully, I had a valid reason to bail. And then I ran into Bishop. Who was wearing dress pants and a polo. I didn’t realize that clothing combination could make my lady parts so excited. He also smelled really, really good. It only reinforced my irritation with my brother over the fact that he’d planted those stupid seeds of doubt in my head.

  Which don’t seem to apply to Bishop. He doesn’t strike me as the kind of guy who would go to that much trouble to piss someone off.

  “Why are boys so complicated?” I ask Kody as I change him into his sleeper back at RJ’s house.

  He babbles at me, random words sprinkled in with nonsense, his expression serious as if he’s truly giving me advice. Once he’s changed, I give him his nighttime snack and read him a story before I put him to bed. It’s past his bedtime, so he goes down without a fight.

  I turn on his monitor and head back downstairs to chill out. The fridge is full of my favorite foods accompanied by a note in RJ’s rushed scrawl to help myself to whatever I want. I pour myself a glass of his expensive, organic, freshly squeezed grapefruit juice, grab a snack, and flop down in front of the TV. I spend a good twenty minutes flipping mindlessly through channels, but my mind keeps wandering to Bishop and the fact that he’s only a few houses away from me right now, hanging out with his teammates and their wives and girlfriends. I wonder if he’s miserable there. He’s not big on crowds or small talk, and he has no tact. I smile, thinking about how he might accidentally stick his foot in his mouth with one of his excessively honest comments.

  Joey was never good in those situations. The few times he met my brother’s teammates, he fanboyed so hard it was mortifying.

  As if Joey can sense me thinking about him from across the city, his name flashes on my phone. Tomorrow I have to deal with him, and I’m not excited about that at all. Before I can check the message, the alarm system gives off a warning beep, and the front door opens and closes.

  “It’s just me!” Lainey calls out softly from down the hall. She appears a moment later in the kitchen. “Is Kody down?”

  “Sure is.”

  “Did he give you any trouble?” Lainey shrugs out of her jacket and drapes it over one of the chairs lining the kitchen island.

  “Tons. Drank his bottle, let me read him a story, then told me he was tired and forced me to cuddle with him until he passed out.”

  She smiles, opens the fridge, and pulls out a few things. “I wonder if the next one will be half as easy as he is.”

  “I’ll cross my fingers for you.”

  “I appreciate that.” Lainey opens a tallboy and splits it between two glasses, then tops them off with grapefruit juice. She passes me a glass and drops down onto the other end of the couch. “RJ thinks you’re still angry with him.”

  I shrug. “He thinks it’s always about him.”

  Lainey nods and smiles behind the rim of her glass. “Often it is.”

  I roll my eyes. “Not you too. Bishop isn’t using me to get back at RJ. It’s a mutually beneficial arrangement, and we both get something out of it.”

  “Mmm.” Lainey’s eyebrows rise.

  “His man stick is pretty much broken. I’m not getting a ride out of this, if that’s what you’re thinking.”

  Lainey’s smile widens. “Well, that’s what your brother is worried will happen.”

  “It’s none of his damn business who I ride.”

  “I agree. However, he and Bishop have a bit of a standing rivalry, and you did just get out of a bad relationship, so his worry isn’t completely unfounded.”

  I sigh and tip my head back, staring at the whirring ceiling fan. “I hate it when you do this.”

  “Be reasonable?”

  I roll my head in her direction so I can glare effectively. “Make me feel guilty for being mad at RJ. You weren’t there last night. He basically ordered me not to date Bishop, which is ridiculous, and that’s not even what’s happening, so his dramatics were totally unnecessary.”

  She arches a perfect eyebrow, her chocolate eyes lighting up with mirth. “Oh, Stevie, who do you think you’re fooling here? Because it certainly isn’t me.”

  “What are you talking about?” My voice is all pitchy.

  “Bishop is a good-looking guy, and you two have been spending a lot of time together. Besides, I saw the way he looked at you.”

  “And how does Bishop look at me?” I try to sound flippant, but really I’m curious as to what she sees, because at this point I’ve convinced myself that any flirting is all in my head and a result of Bishop’s raging testosterone and his inability to manage his situation.

  “Like he wants to hold your hand.” She pauses, her smile widening at my eye roll. “And shove it down the front of his pants.”

  I bark out a laugh. “Lainey!”

  She shrugs. “It’s true. I’m sure he wants to do both things.”

  “Well, he’s broken right now.” I motion to my crotch area.

  “He won’t be forever.”

  “There’s still nothing going on.”

  “Yet.”

  My phone buzzes on the table, and we watch the screen light up. I half expect it to be Bishop, messaging to ask again if I’ll still work with him, since I never really gave him a straight answer. It’s not Bishop, though; it’s Joey. Again.

  Lainey motions to my buzzing device. “What’s going on there?”

  “Nothing.”

  “Based on the way it looks like you want to blow that phone up with your eyeballs, I’m going to go ahead and say I don’t believe you.”

  “He still thinks we’re going to get back together.”

  “Is that something you’re considering?”

  “Absolutely not. I will never get back together with him.”

  “Does he know that?”

&n
bsp; I pause at that. I mean, it should be obvious, but I haven’t had this conversation with him yet. Up until now I’ve been avoiding it.

  As if seeing my discomfort, she continues. “It can’t be easy to work with him.”

  “I’m managing fine. I don’t see him that often.” I can avoid him for the most part.

  “It’s okay if you’re not managing fine. You gave up a lot to come here, and things didn’t exactly go as planned.”

  I sip my drink, trying not to let the visual of what I walked in on form in my head. “At least I didn’t move in with him and find out after the fact that he was screwing around on me.”

  She gives me a soft smile. “That doesn’t necessarily make what happened between you any easier to get over, though, does it?”

  My phone lights up with another message from him. I flip it over so I don’t have to see them. “No. Not really.”

  “Well, for what it’s worth, I think it’s good that you’re spending time with Bishop, even if it’s for rehab.”

  “Can you convince RJ to look at it that way for me?”

  Lainey laughs. “I can try, but I doubt I’ll be successful.” She stares into her glass for a few long moments before she looks up at me, her expression soft and knowing. “Your brother carries a lot of guilt around with him. He has a hard time letting go of his past mistakes, and it manifests as concern and overprotectiveness. I know he needs to learn how to let things go, but I think you might need to do that too. He continues to punish himself for his past sins, even though who he was when he was first drafted to the NHL isn’t who he is now.”

  What she says makes sense. He never pushes me to come to games; he always makes sure I’m protected from the media stuff because it was so hard on me as a teenager. And I see it in the way he is with Lainey, so doting and head over heels in love with her. Always trying to make up for the time he missed when they lost touch after their summer in Alaska together.

  I also see how that extends to me.

  The sound of Kody rustling around in his bed draws our attention to the monitor. We’re both quiet for a few moments, waiting to see if he’ll settle. “Da-eee!” he calls out groggily.

  Lainey gives me a wry smile. “It’s as if he knows his dad is out. I’m going to check on my little man.”

  “Okay. I’m going to go to sleep.”

  She gives my shoulder a squeeze as she passes. “I’m always here, Stevie, in whatever way you need me. A sister, a confidant, a mediator for you and RJ. We both love you so much.”

  “Thanks.” A lump in my throat makes the rest come out in a whisper. “I love you too.”

  I’m up early the next morning with Kody. RJ doesn’t come down until after eleven, and he and Lainey make a greasy breakfast of bacon, eggs, and hash browns. I stay out of the kitchen while they cook because they’re super touchy, and I don’t need to see that.

  Once we’ve eaten, RJ and I take Kody outside. We set up the hockey net, and RJ tends goal while me and Kody take shots at him. It’s fun and honestly cathartic. Lainey eventually comes out to get Kody and put him down for his afternoon nap, and RJ and I keep passing the puck. It’s been a long time since he and I have played sports together.

  He stays in net while I keep firing shots at him, enjoying the way he has to keep dodging them when they almost connect with his groin. A charley horse in the thigh takes him down.

  He curls into the fetal position on the ground and grumbles a litany of juicy curses.

  “Sorry. You all right?”

  “It’s like you’re purposely aiming for my balls.” He groans and sits up.

  He grabs my outstretched hand, and I help pull him up. “That’s because I am.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “For what?”

  “For making the thing with Winslow about me, for trying to tell you what to do, for making you feel like I don’t think your career has value, or that you’re anything but amazing. It’s just . . . me and Winslow haven’t seen eye to eye, like ever, and I worry about you.”

  “I know you do, and I get it, but he’s been really focused on rehab and getting back on the ice, not on trying to get into my pants.”

  “I just don’t want you to get hurt, that’s all.”

  “I can appreciate that. But I need to make my own decisions.”

  “I know. So am I forgiven?” He gives me the famous Bowman half smile that pops his dimple.

  I roll my eyes. “Yeah, you’re forgiven.”

  He pulls me into a big bear hug that makes it feel like my ribs are bending.

  “But if he does end up hurting you, I’m probably going to beat his ass.”

  I try to jab him in the ribs, but he hugs me tighter.

  “I love you, kiddo.”

  “I love you, too, even if you’re a pain in my ass.”

  RJ drops me off at home late in the afternoon. I’m 100 percent not looking forward to dealing with Joey, which is why I stayed at my brother’s so long. I’d hoped Joey might be inclined to give up, but apparently not. He said he’d be over by four thirty. The only reason I agreed at all is because my suitcase was forwarded to his place, and he promised to bring it with him. He’s already had it for more than two weeks now.

  I’m gritty with sweat from playing hockey, and I haven’t washed my hair recently, so it’s nice and greasy. I add an oversize sweatshirt to my dirty-sweats-and-tank ensemble and pull my hair up in an extra-messy bun, highlighting the stringy greasiness. I wash any residual makeup off my face—there wasn’t much to begin with—and do an armpit-sniff test. I’m definitely ripe. I want to be as disgusting as possible for Joey.

  At a quarter after four there’s a knock on my door. He’s early. I take a few centering breaths, school my expression so it looks annoyed more than nervous, and open the door. Except it’s not Joey. It’s Bishop.

  He, too, is wearing sweats and a T-shirt. The sweats hug his thighs, and the shirt, which has holes in it—not the strategic kind either—pulls tight across his chest. Is there anything this man wears that doesn’t look good on him?

  I glance over his shoulder at the elevator, almost expecting Joey to show up at this exact moment.

  His gaze sweeps over me, pausing at the text across my chest that reads F THIS S and then lifting to my hair. “Are you feeling okay?”

  “Huh?” I did not expect him to say that or for him to look so concerned.

  “Are you sick?” He motions to my outfit. “You usually dress differently.”

  I look down at my outfit. “Oh. Uh . . . this is on purpose.”

  “Oh. Okay.” He shifts from foot to foot like he’s nervous about something. “I, uh . . . I have pizza for you. I thought maybe it would make you less mad at me.”

  “I’m not mad at you. I’m annoyed with the circumstances and the way everyone keeps overreacting.”

  “I’m sorry.” He bites his lip. “If you’re not mad anymore, does that mean we can still work on rehab?”

  “We can still work on rehab.” I wasn’t clear about that with him last night, mostly because I was fixated on how good he looked in dress pants and also because I needed to get the Joey crap out of the way.

  “Great.” He takes a step forward, as if he wants to come in, but I stay where I am, firmly rooted in the center of the doorway.

  “Now isn’t the best time, though.”

  “Oh. You’re busy?” His gaze moves over me again, his confusion apparent.

  It’s understandable: I’m dressed like I’m homeless, not like I have something important to do. “I have this thing, and I can’t get out of it.”

  “What kind of thing?”

  “I got suckered into volunteering for something for my work.”

  “Maybe I could help?” He looks somewhere between hopeful and unsure. It’s almost cute.

  “I wish you could, but my stupid-ass ex-boyfriend signed us up for it, and then he invited himself over here to work on it. I’ve been putting him off, but it needs to get done.”

&nb
sp; That hopeful expression turns dark. “Wait a second. The asshole who cheated on you is coming here?”

  “Yeah. One of my suitcases got misdirected to Alaska when I flew in, and it’s now at his place because that was the forwarding address, so as much as I would rather he not set foot in my personal space, I could really use the rest of my wardrobe.” I rub the space between my eyes where a headache threatens to make my afternoon that much worse. “I need to get this over with. Once he leaves, we can do rehab.”

  “How long will he be here?” Now he sounds frustrated, which would make two of us.

  I lift a shoulder and let it fall. “Hopefully not long, but I’m sure he’ll find a reason to drag it out.” Unless I can find a way to get rid of him. I take in Bishop’s somewhat angry expression. I’m not sure if it’s because it’s the douche ex who’s coming over or because it interferes with his rehab, but I plan to capitalize on it either way. “I have an idea . . . if you want to help shorten his visit.”

  “Sure. Yeah. What do you need?” He gives me a quick, somewhat jerky nod.

  “He’s supposed to be here any minute. Maybe in, like, half an hour you can come back with the pizza, and I can pretend like I forgot we have a session? That way I won’t have to be alone with him for long, because I know he’s going to try to plead his case for us to get back together.”

  “I’m sorry, what?” Now he looks seriously pissed. And I’m anxious, because Joey will be here any minute and I don’t have an exit strategy for him yet.

  “Never mind. I’ll figure out an excuse. I’ll get Pattie to call and pretend there’s an emergency or something.”

  “You don’t need to do that. I can’t believe that Assface thinks he actually has a chance with you after what he did. I can message you in, like, twenty and see where you’re at or if you need me to come by sooner.”

  “Are you sure?” He sounds angry more than anything.

  “Yeah. I’ll put your pizza in the oven to keep it warm, even though it means my apartment is going to smell like pineapple and olives.”

  “It really doesn’t taste as bad as you think.”

  “I’ll take your word for it.” He turns around and heads back to his apartment.