“It’s fine. I don’t mind.” Scanning the fifties-themed diner, my eyes landed on Edith. She glanced at me, then winked. Turning back to him, I caught his eye. “She loves you. Like she’s your gran.”
His eyes softened when he looked at her. “She’s great. But not related to me.” Luca closed his menu and placed it on the table. “You didn’t answer my question.”
“Which one was that?”
He raised a brow. “You know which one. How did you get my number?”
I smirked. “It was easy. I threatened your former boss.”
His warm brown eyes danced as a laugh bubbled up. It looked good on him, and I preferred it over the worry lines on his face. “With what? I have to know.”
I closed my menu and leaned forward. “Threatened to buy the building if he didn’t give it to me.”
More laughter bubbled from him, and I wanted to keep that look on his face. “God, I wish I could have seen it. That was probably the one thing that would stir him up.”
I shrugged one shoulder, but the smile remained. How could anyone want to harm such a beautiful person? “It worked. And I might do it. Just to prove a point.”
Luca’s laughter filled the sparsely populated diner. Glancing at Edith, her smile said it all. “But how did you get my address? I only list a P.O Box.”
He might not appreciate this one. “Yes, I know. But my brother-in-law is a private investigator.” To soften the intrusion, I offered a bit about myself. “He located me. For my brother.”
I expected anger, but he surprised me. “Okay. I’m going to come clean. After you called me out of the blue, I did some research online.” He leaned forward, mirroring me. “About you.”
“And what did you learn?” I murmured.
“What a big deal it was for the DEL’s biggest star to leave and come to the NHL. I figured you must have a good reason. And I’m guessing it was to be closer to your brother. But I hate to tell you, Hughes, you aren’t close to San Diego.” He was fucking charming
I pursed my lips but couldn’t stop the sarcasm. “No? It’s a lot closer than Europe.”
I expected a litany of questions, but he only made a statement. With a heartfelt expression, he caught me off guard. “I’m really happy you found him, Axel. Now you’ll always have someone in your corner.”
My chest caught. I was right. He was probably the most genuine soul I’d ever encountered. He deserved someone to be there for him. And I wanted that to be me. “Thank you. You remind me of him.”
“How’s that?”
I looked into his brown eyes. “He’s the kindest, most sincere person I’ve ever met.”
“What makes you think I’m like that?”
“I just know.”
We sat back when Edith walked up with a tray carrying two glasses of water. “Are you ready to order, or do you need more time to chat?”
Luca rolled his eyes. “Do you know what you want, Axel?”
Yes. I do.“Whatever you’re having is great.”
His face lit up. “You sure?”
“Absolutely. I trust you.”
“Okay.” He turned to Edith with a smile. “We’ll have two plates of liver and onions, rare, with a side of sauerkraut.” He turned back to me. “That okay?”
My brows pulled together at the horror of what he’d ordered. “Uhh…” I muttered as my mouth fell open.Gross. Did he really eat that?
Luca covered his face with his hands and keeled over in laughter. Edith beamed at him and shook her head. It was obvious I’d been had. “I’m sorry. That wasn’t a very nice joke,” he cried, wiping his eyes. “But your face. And I’ve always wanted to do that.”
Suddenly, I didn’t mind being the butt of his joke if it made him happy.
