That’s how I still see him. And sometimes, it feels strange sitting amongst the crowd at the arena, looking at Dominik and remembering how far we go back. Noa walks over to the nurses’ station with some of the other teammates as Tristan tugs gently on my elbow, pulling me aside.
“Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.”
“You don’t seem fine. You’re a mess, Zoe. What happened?”
I give him a sharp look. He’s dressed in a beautiful navy suit, likely coming straight from the office. “What do you mean?”
Tristan takes a deep breath. His eyes catch on something…or rather, someone behind me.
“I heard you played the worried girlfriend a little too well at the game,” he says quietly.
I blink at him, not sure if I heard him correctly. “Are you kidding me? You want to have this conversation right now?”
“Listen, I don’t care what you or Dominik have been up to these last few weeks. Hell, I’m fucking happy about it. It’s about time. That man has been obsessed for too long. But your brother is going to have a fucking cow when he finds out, especially if it’s not coming from you or Dom. I just want to make sure you’ve thought it through.”
I fold my arms over my chest. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Tristan arches a brow, smirking down at me. “No, baby girl. You will not play that game with me. It won’t work. I knoweverything.”
“Meaning what? Is that supposed to scare me?” I challenge, and Tristan’s smile only grows wider.
“It means”—Tristan leans down, whispering in my ear—“I know you and Dominik have been engaging in some kinky fun and that this hasn’t been fake for either of you for some time.”
My heart pounds fiercely, sending shivers down my spine. “I’m not doing this with you here.”
“Suit yourself, but we both know your brother won’t be as nice.” Tristan releases my elbow, glances back, and adjusts his jacket before walking away.
I catch my brother’s gaze immediately from across the room as he leans against the white hospital wall.
His stone cold eyes are fixed on me, as if he heard the entire exchange. Suddenly, I feel like the massive problem he’s been ignoring. A problem he’s now realizing he’s been neglecting.
I hate this feeling. It makes me want to crawl out of my skin.
The discomfort quickly turns into anger. Why should my sex life be anyone else’s concern? They have no right to judge or comment on my choices, as long as everything is consensual. If things go wrong, it’s up to Dom and me to handle it. I promised not to interfere with Aaron and Dom’s friendship, and I stand by that. I’ll continue pretending and prioritizing others’ needs over my own. I’m used to that. It’s where I live. So I will not feel guilty for a second longer or care about what Aaron and Tristan think.
Also, the fact that his best friends think I acted strange is fucking absurd. How else is alovinggirlfriend supposed to behave when they witness their boyfriend getting injured on ice? Anyone else would have lost their mind too.
Yeah, but your brother knows you’re not that great of an actress. It was so much more than acting, and you know it too.
But it wasn’t.
“Has anyone called his mom?” one of the guys asks.
Oh my god. Leslie. I can’t believe I forgot about her. She was so kind to me when I was going through hell. Now, when it’s my turn to show up, I fail her in the most basic way. What kind of person does that?
A new wave of tears prickles at my eyes as I reach for my phone.
“I’ve taken care of it already.” A firm hand grips my shoulder, and I glance up to find my brother standing beside me.
“Oh, thank you. I totally blanked out.”
“I know. You want to take a walk? Change of scenery might be nice for both of us.”
He looks tired. He hasn’t left since we arrived. Neither one of us have. I would love to leave, but I’m worried the second I do, the doctors are going to come out to give us an update.
I shake my head. “No. I want to wait.”
