by Kat Mizera
She sighed. “Which won’t be much, will it?”
“We’ll figure it out,” he said gently. “I promise. We still have tonight.”
“Mmm.” She reluctantly rolled away from him and glanced at the clock. “You have to go.”
“Yeah.” He reached for her hand and squeezed it, forcing her to stop moving. “You okay?”
“Of course.”
He leaned over and brushed his lips across hers. “I’ll see you later, babe.”
20
Brock couldn’t remember much about the game, his thoughts overwhelmed with the memory of being with Ashleigh this afternoon. Luckily, his body was so well-conditioned he performed without needing to think much, but a pang of guilt tore through him as he fidgeted, waiting for the post-game updates with the coaches to end. He showered faster than he ever had in his life, and was out on the bus before anyone else. He couldn’t wait to get back to the hotel to see Ashleigh. She, Jet, and Maya had left right after the game to go back there, and they were supposed to have a drink in the bar. He wished they didn’t have to, but being seen with Jet and Maya would lend legitimacy to their impromptu marriage, which was good for all of them.
The bus had just pulled up to the hotel when his phone buzzed and he glanced at a text from Ashleigh with a frown.
Mobbed at the bar—had to change hotels. Call me.
He was about to call her when Cody leaned over the seat. “Hey, you been on social media?”
“No, why?” Brock looked up worriedly.
“Looks like your new foster kid’s sister is talking to the press.”
“Shit!” Brock muttered, hurrying off the bus and up to the room. It was empty and he called Ashleigh.
“Hi.” She sounded tired.
“What happened?”
“My attorney had the new papers delivered to Angel and I guess since she can’t afford a lawyer, she went to the press instead.”
“What could she say?” he demanded, irritated.
“She said I’m using my money and status to take her sister away.”
“Where are you? I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
She hesitated. “Probably safer for you to stay with the team,” she said finally. “I’m at the Hilton and so far it’s been quiet, but the paparazzo are probably watching for you, which means you’ll be followed.”
“I’m not leaving you alone in this,” he grunted.
“I’m fine. We’re going to get up early to drive back to Atlanta, so you should stay where you are and focus on hockey.”
Brock hesitated, torn between what made sense realistically and what his heart told him was important. He should go be with Ashleigh, but he didn’t need to get caught up in whatever shit storm Angel was brewing. She was right so he took a breath before saying, “Are you sure you’ll be okay?”
“Of course. Jet has security for the night and we booked a suite, so I’m in the second bedroom.”
“Is Bella okay? Does she know what’s going on?”
“No, I asked Jolinda to keep her away from the TV and computers.”
“Okay, good.”
“Have a safe flight home tomorrow and call me when you get in.”
He hesitated again, unsure he was making the right decision. “Call me if anything comes up. I’ll have my phone next to me all night and I’m just up the street if you need me.”
“Thanks. I appreciate that.” She disconnected, and he stared at the phone for a while after he put it down. He was doing the right thing by staying here at the same hotel as the rest of the team, but it stung a little. They were his family now and it felt a little selfish to be sitting here in the cocoon of the Sidewinders while Ashleigh faced this on her own.
He changed out of his suit and pulled out his laptop, curious to see exactly how much attention Angel was getting. The story didn’t seem to be on any national news outlets, but the gossip sites were abuzz. The worst part was the gossip was more about Ashleigh’s relationship with her new husband than about Angel or Bella. He cringed as he read speculation about his bad-boy reputation and Ashleigh’s foster child. For the first time, he was overwhelmed with how precarious their situation was. It hadn’t occurred to him his history of arrest could impact Bella’s adoption. Ashleigh’s attorney had mentioned it briefly, but after reviewing the facts and seeing he’d never been found guilty for anything other than the DUI, it seemed unnecessary to prepare for any backlash.
He’d paid hefty fines, completed about a million hours of community service, and gone to private therapy for alcohol-related infractions. He hadn’t been in any trouble with drinking and driving since then and had no plans to ever do that again. Everything else was probably fair game, but he would never risk hurting someone by getting behind the wheel while intoxicated again. There were dozens of other bad scenarios running through his head, though. What if his past caused her to lose Bella? What would he do if Angel and Tito went after them? As a man, he had to protect his family—even if that family had fallen into his lap by accident.
Vlad’s name flashed on his screen and he answered restlessly. “Hey.”
“What’s happening with Ashleigh? She’s okay?”
“Yeah, I talked to her on the phone and they hired security for tonight. In the morning they’re heading back to Atlanta.”
“They?” Vlad sounded confused.
“She’s with Jet and his wife.”
“Where are you?”
Brock paused. “In my room.”
“Not with her?”
“No. We figured it’d be safer this way.”
“Safer for you?”
Brock was irrationally uncomfortable. “Well, yeah.”
“She’s your wife.” Vlad sounded annoyed now.
“I know, but there’s nothing I can do to help at this point, and if the media follows me to where she is, it’ll only make things worse.”
“She’s your wife.” Vlad grunted. “Not being with her is more suspicious than anything else you could do.”
“Look, it’s all good, man.” Brock was losing his patience—both with himself and with Vlad. “We talked, made our decision, and by tomorrow it’ll blow over.”
Vlad muttered something in Russian, and Brock huffed out a breath. “If you’ve got something to say, say it in English!”
“I already said it—you should be at her side!”
“Dude, we drunk-eloped and are still getting to know each other—it’s not like she’s the great love of my life!” The moment he said the words, shame washed over him. She’d been his wife when he’d sat at a table with a big star like Jet Connor and couldn’t keep his hands off of her. She’d been his wife when he’d told her he respected her and would never hurt her or Bella. She’d definitely become his wife when he’d made love to her earlier today.
“If I’d known you were going to be an ass, I would’ve told her to get it annulled.” Vlad disconnected before Brock could answer.
Brock contemplated calling him back but decided against it. Vlad wouldn’t stay pissed for long and he didn’t need the aggravation. The whole point of this situation was to make his life easier, not harder, and Ashleigh seemed on board with that. So why did he feel so shitty right now, and why was Vlad so mad?
It doesn’t matter, he told himself. Ashleigh was the only one whose opinion counted, and it had been her idea for him to keep his distance. He couldn’t struggle with this anymore; the playoffs were starting, and his career would always be his priority.
Ashleigh was glad to get back to Atlanta where she could hide in her suite and spend time with Bella. Filming would begin in earnest tomorrow and she had lines to learn. Her attorney had assured her Angel’s public smear campaign wouldn’t mean anything to the courts, and she was trying to focus on the movie. Brock was on his way back to Las Vegas, so she wouldn’t have to worry about him, which was a bit of a relief. The last thing she wanted was to put him in a negative light, especially during the playoffs, even though it left her dealing with eve
rything by herself.
You were always going to do this alone, she reminded herself as she poured a small glass of wine. Bella was asleep in her room in the suite, Jolinda had retired to her room across the hall, and Ashleigh had some time to herself. She pulled out the lines she had to memorize and lost herself in the script, hoping she’d sleep better tonight than she had last night. She needed to look her best and be on top of her game from an acting perspective; she couldn’t afford to think about her sweet, gentle, sexy husband. He’d taken up a lot of her thoughts lately and it had to stop.
The fact he’d readily agreed not to join her last night made her question their relationship yet again. Her heart ached a little at the thought he was only interested in getting her into bed with him, even though it wasn’t fair to jump to any conclusions. She’d told him to stay away and technically he wasn’t supposed to leave the hotel where the rest of the team was staying. Since it bothered her anyway, she had to put the brakes on the feelings she was beginning to have. It wouldn’t be easy since she was already half in love with him, but she’d been prepared for something like this. While her brain was telling her to slow down, her heart wanted to move even faster. There needed to be a safe middle ground, but she was damned if she knew what it was.
Since today was just rehearsals, Bella stayed at the hotel doing school work with Jolinda, and Ashleigh tried to focus on work. She wasn’t doing a good job of it, her mind wandering, just as it had last night. Her determination to maintain emotional distance from Brock wasn’t going to be easy. She understood why he’d stayed away in Nashville, and it had been her idea, but it hurt enough to prove she was getting more attached than she was comfortable with. She’d never relied on a man, and didn’t want to start with a guy she still didn’t know very well, but there was something special about her husband.
“How’s it going, beautiful?” Sonya came breezing into her trailer, her eyes glittering with excitement.
“Good,” Ashleigh forced a smile.
“Why are you hiding that sexy hunk of husband of yours?” she demanded. “He’s freakin’ hot!”
Ashleigh dipped her head, flushing. “The playoffs start soon, so he’s on his way back to Vegas.”
“Then he has a double.” Sonya chuckled. “Because there’s a guy outside asking for you that looks just like him—and he’s delicious.”
“What?” Ashleigh gaped at her.
“Maybe I should just send him in…”
“Can you give me a minute, please?” Ashleigh was already out of the chair and hurrying toward the door, peeking outside.
“Hey.” Brock was leaning against the wall, a small smile on his face.
“You’re supposed to be in Vegas,” she whispered, walking toward him and looking up into his eyes.
“Plane had engine trouble and I asked if I could get a flight out of Atlanta instead,” he whispered back, sliding his arms around her. “I got the first flight here and I only have a few hours, but I had to see you. I felt…” His voice trailed off. “I felt bad about last night.”
“There was nothing to feel bad about,” she said softly. “We decided what we needed to do and we did it.”
“You were trying to protect me because of the playoffs,” he said. “And that’s not cool. If you’re protecting me, I should be protecting you too. I’m your husband and—”
Out of the corner of her eye Ashleigh spied several members of the crew approaching and she stood on her tiptoes so she could reach Brock’s mouth, kissing him as soundly as she could. “People are watching,” she murmured against his lips.
“That’s okay.” His smile was playful. “I don’t mind if people watch.” He lifted her so she could wrap her arms his neck and deepen their kiss.
When he finally set her down, her heart was racing a little. She was baffled as to why he’d shown up but couldn’t resist touching him.
“Ashleigh, are you going to introduce me to this gorgeous creature?” Sonya had joined them with a big smile on her face.
“Sonya, this is my husband, Brock Lassiter.” She slid her hand through Brock’s. “Brock, the producer and director of the movie—Sonya Horvitz.”
“It’s nice to meet you.” Brock held out his hand but Sonya was staring up into his face.
“Look at those eyes—are you wearing contacts?”
Brock blinked at her. “Uh, no… why?”
“And those cheekbones.” She reached up to touch his face, running fingers along his face and jaw. “Jesus, your face was made for the big screen.”
Brock continued to stare at her.
“Would you consider shaving?” Sonya asked him, running her hands over his beard.
“Shaving for…?” Brock glanced at Ashleigh in confusion.
“You’d be perfect for a little eye candy part I’ve been thinking of adding to the script—but the beard is too caveman for me. You’ve got great bone structure and those eyes—you’d just need to tame the beard.” Her eyes snapped to his. “Are you willing?”
“Ms. Horvitz, I’m not an actor.” He laughed. “I wouldn’t know the first thing—”
“Handsome, I need eye candy with a deep voice who looks good without a shirt and would be willing to kiss Ashleigh on screen.” She paused. “You’d get paid, of course. Union rates.”
“I don’t need—”
“And food and lodging.”
“Ms. Horvitz, I—”
“Oh, for heaven’s sake, call me Sonya. Listen, I have a movie to film—Ashleigh, talk some sense into him. If this is a possibility, plan on being here for just a couple of days, once hockey is over. Good to meet you—Ash, get back to makeup!” She waved and was gone, disappearing around a corner, leaving a barely discernible remnant of perfume in her wake.
“What on earth…” Brock was staring after her, somewhat shell-shocked.
“Don’t worry—I’ll tell her you might be playing until June.”
“If she could wait…” Brock shrugged. “I mean, it would give me another reason to be here with you and Bella.”
“You’d want to do it?”
“Why not? Money is money, and we’d be together.”
“She’s great to work with, and I think you’d have a lot of fun. She’s not always so hyper—in fact, I’ve never seen her that animated. She must think you’re hot, and that’s saying something, considering you’re not even a little bit her type!”
“What’s that mean?” he asked.
“She’s a lesbian,” she chuckled.
“Well, straight or not, I don’t notice other women anymore.”
She cocked her head. “I wish you wouldn’t say stuff like that.”
“Why not? It’s true. You’re all I’ve thought about since we got married.”
“You’re all I’ve thought about, too.”
“Does the door in your trailer lock?”
“Of course. Why?”
His eyes glittered. “’Cause I didn’t get a chance to sleep with my wife last night and I want to make sure she’s thinking about me all week while I’m gone.”
She smiled. “That was going to happen anyway.”
Grabbing her hand, he tugged her inside.
21
The good thing about working on a movie was Ashleigh was too busy to breathe most days. Sonya was determined to stick to both her schedule and the budget, so they worked long, exhausting hours. By the time she was finished for the day, having dinner with Bella—something she made a priority every evening—and exercising every other day, she usually collapsed in bed before ten. It had been a week since Brock had left, but it felt a lot longer. He called every day but it wasn’t the same as seeing him.
Marriage wasn’t anything like she’d been hoping it would be. Everyone had been so sure it would be good for both of them, but she didn’t see the benefit of starting to count on him, like him—want him. And she desperately wanted him. Her body yearned for his touch no matter how hard she tried to keep from remembering what it was like, and Bella
talked about him incessantly. The hardest thing was watching him play. The games usually started late so Bella always begged to be allowed to stay up and watch and Ashleigh didn’t have the heart to refuse her. Of course, that meant she had to watch, too; seeing his fast, powerful body glide across the ice made her miss him more than ever. Part of her felt foolish, like she was making a big deal out of nothing, but she was a survivor who’d always relied on her intuition.
The Sidewinders had lost the first game of the playoffs against St. Louis, and Ashleigh resisted calling right away because she wasn’t sure what to say. This was the hard part of marrying someone she didn’t know that well; she had no idea how he reacted to big losses like this, or how she was supposed to treat him when it happened. She pondered what to do for a while, but when she finally broke down and called, he didn’t answer, so she let Bella record a short video and sent it to him in a text. She fell asleep waiting and worrying.
She woke up early and immediately grabbed her phone to see if he’d left her a message and was relieved when she played it.
“Hey, babe.” His deep voice sounded tired with a touch of frustration. “Sorry I missed you guys, but Coach kept us late and then we had a shit ton of interviews…I was hoping to talk to you. Anyway, we’re heading back to the hotel. By the way, can you send me an address where I can mail something to Bella? She’s been hinting about a jersey so I got one signed by all the guys. Call or text when you get up, okay? Sleep well, beautiful.”
She closed her eyes and played the message again, listening to his voice. God, she was failing miserably at keeping an emotional distance from him; she already missed him. Rachel and Sonya both told her she was crazy, that she was second-guessing herself for no reason, and she wanted desperately to believe them. Brock sounded equally baffled, trying to get her to talk things out, but she’d told him to focus on hockey and that they’d talk in person when they next saw each other.
In the meantime, Angel had been quiet since her publicity stunt, so Ashleigh couldn’t do anything but wait for them to go through the process of proving Angel unfit to be Bella’s guardian. It would take longer that way, but it could be done, and she would continue trying to get Angel to sign away her rights. Being in Atlanta was hard, though. She couldn’t talk to Angel in person and there was no time to fly back to L.A., so she had to rely on her attorney. Normally, that wouldn’t be a problem, but when it came to Bella, it was difficult to let someone else take charge. She hated having to wait and worry about what was going to happen. It was bad enough being married to a guy she was trying desperately not to fall in love with, but all the uncertainly around Bella was much worse. Her gut told her Angel wasn’t done messing with them, making her dread finishing the movie and having to go home. That alone was enough to keep her up half the night. Listening to Brock’s voice messages over and over didn’t help, either.
