Me and Chloe.
“You okay?”
Chloe’s voice pulls me from my thoughts.
Standing in my kitchen with her hair piled on top ofher head and face free of all makeup, she’s never looked more beautiful to me.
“Worried about you.”
“Me? Why?”
She hops up onto the counter next to me. A pen is twisted through her hair, holding it in place. I got a quick workout in while she was working on some new designs this morning.
“I don’t want you having to run into Duncan again.”
“Yeah.” She lets out a long-suffering sigh. “I know.”
“Are you going to be okay?”
“It’s not like I’ll have to see him tonight, right?”
“No.” I push her legs apart and step between them, pulling her closer to me. “You can stay with Stevie and Harper in the family suite and head out right after. I can see you back?—”
She slaps her hand over my mouth. “I can come see you after the game. It’s not like I’ll be hanging around down by the visitors’ locker room.”
“You sure?” I mumble against her fingers.
“Yes.”
I tug her hand away and press a kiss to her palm. “I know, but I don’t want you to have to deal with him again.”
“Willyoube okay?” Chloe asks. “You’re the one that has to play against him.”
“As long as he keeps his mouth shut, I should be fine.”
Chloe waves her hand out in front of her. “So like fifty-fifty chance then.”
“God, why is he such a dick? I mean really, what does he have to gain?”
“You’re asking the wrong person. I don’t know how the two of you are related.”
“You’re telling me.”
“Look.” Chloe wraps her arms around my shoulders. “Tonight will be fine. You’ll ignore your brother, I’ll stay with the girls so I don’t run into your parents, and hopefully you won’t catch any more flack about his damn interview.”
I roll my eyes. “Poor Duncan, not being able to recover from you leaving him at the altar.”
“I shouldn’t laugh, but he really is the worst.” Chloe hides her laughter in my neck. “Do you think you could get in some hits to him tonight? Nothing to get in the sin bin, but some cheap shots would be great.”
“I’ll see what I can do.”
Chloe cups my cheeks, giving me a long, slow, sweet kiss. “I love you, Dax. Have I told you that lately?”
I smile against her lips. “Not since this morning.”
“Well, I do. More than I ever thought I could love anyone.”
“Yeah?”
