I did as he asked without question as he traipsed out the back door to the grill.
Sunday afternoon, we were piled up on the sofa while I explained American football to Axel. I had a feeling he already knew everything about the sport by the way he watched me with a smirk, like I was actually teaching him something. San Diego was playing, which meant Axel was glued to the screen whenthey had the ball. When Arizona got the ball, his attention turned to me. “I think you know more than you’re saying,” I teased.
Before he could answer, the doorbell rang. “Are you expecting anyone?”
Axel frowned. “Nope. Might be Karlsson. He said he might stop by.”
I went back to watching the game while he answered the door. When he didn’t come back, I went to see what the holdup was. Axel stood with his arms crossed over his chest, looking at a very blond, handsome man. By the way the man looked at him, they were familiar with one another. He was happy to see Axel, making my gut churn as the guy looked him over. I recognized that look. And I needed to get out of there.
Before I could turn away, Axel looked over his shoulder at me. His expression was anguished, but changed the moment he saw me. “Sorry. I was just checking.” I pointed over my shoulder. “The game is about…”
Embarrassed by my stupid excuse, I turned. But Axel caught my hand. “Luca, wait.” His touch both soothed and unsettled me. I didn’t know how that was possible. Pulling me closer, he wrapped an arm around my waist. “Luca Vaughn, this is Heath Williamson.”
Warm blue eyes glinted in the doorway as I held out my hand. I forced a smile and tried to be polite as I came face-to-face with my worst nightmare. “Nice to meet you.”
“Likewise,” he said, pulling away. “I’m sorry to interrupt, but I just got into town. Axel and I are old friends.” His eyes darted to my boyfriend. “I thought maybe we could catch up before tomorrow, but I don’t want to interrupt.”
Glancing at Axel, his focus was on me. If I had to guess, he was wondering how I was going to react. “We’re watchingfootball,” Axel said. “My brother is playing. Maybe another time.”
“Or you could join us if you want,” I added. If they went into practice like that, Axel would be fucked. They needed to talk, no matter how jealous it made me. But I could keep that to myself.
Heath appeared happy to join as he looked at Axel. “Are you sure?”
Axel looked at me quizzically as I tried to hide my real feelings about being interrupted. I had all kinds of plans in my head for halftime. “Of course. Come in. Let me get you a beer.”
I pulled out of Axel’s hold as he widened the door. Heading towards the kitchen, I heard them talking in hushed tones as they made their way to the big L-shaped sofa. When I returned with the beer, Heath was sitting in my spot, leaving me the other sofa. “Here you go,” I said, handing it to him. “Can I get you something to eat?”
“This is good, thank you.” He took the beer, and I sat down adjacent to them. I tried not to feel uncomfortable, but the longer I sat there, the more withdrawn I became. Their conversation was awkward at first, all about hockey and the team, but the longer they spoke, the more comfortable they became. Me, not so much. But it was exactly what was needed to happen for them to work together.
“So you guys played together in London.”
His head bobbed. “Back in the day, we were electric on the ice,” Heath said. “We could just look at one another and know what the other was thinking. Hopefully we’ll click like that again.”
Axel looked down at his clasped hands. “We were difficult to beat.”
Heath took another swallow of his beer while I stewed. “When I heard you were signing with the Nighthawks, I told myagent to get me over here.” He looked at me. “It was our dream to play together.”
“I bet.” My gut churned, but I kept the smile on my face. The roar of the crowd caught my attention, giving me a reprieve from them. “San Diego scored,” I announced.
“You’ve got to tell me all about what happened after I left? How wild is that to find out you had a twin?”
“You have no idea.” Axel finally gave in and used full sentences when it was about Mason. It must have been easier than he expected to talk to an old friend. When his attention fell from the game to Heath, he shifted his body toward him. With his back to me, I knew he was comfortable in their conversation. I watched the next series as Axel filled him in on how he found out about Mason.
When I stood, Axel turned back to me. I pointed over my shoulder. “I’m gonna get another beer. Do you want anything?”
He frowned as he tried to read my face. I tried to cover up my insecurity, but an unspoken tension filled the room. Did Heath know who I was to Axel? “No. I’m good, love.” He looked at Heath. “Do you want anything?”
When he declined, I went to the kitchen and looked out the window, trying to rationalize the way I felt. This was all new territory for me. I was jealous again. I could admit it. Axel hadn’t followed me into the kitchen, which had to mean I hadn’t come across as an insecure fool. But I still felt nauseated. They needed some time to catch up without an audience, and I didn’t want to be here to see it. Grabbing my computer, I stuck it in my bag and slipped out the side door. It hurt to walk away, but it was the right thing to do.
Chapter 30
Axel
Something was wrong. Very fucking wrong.
Heath was deep in conversation about his former team, while I quietly fretted over my boyfriend's absence. It wasn’t like him to be gone so long unless he wasn’t feeling well. When I failed to respond, Heath stopped talking. “Axel. Is everything okay?”
“Yes, it’s fine.” My knee bounced, wishing he would go. “I need to check on Luca.”
