Page 53 of Score Her Heart

“It smells awesome. Riley, you should have asked Benny to marry you instead. I think he’d be a better hockey wife.”

Riley laughed.

That got us both the finger from the big man in the kitchen.

“How’s the writing going?” Riley asked.

I wrung my hands. “Don’t ask! Ugh, it’s terrible. Everything sucks, and I’m sure my publisher’s gonna ask for my advance back.”

I pretended not to notice the two men share an uneasy glance. “What did your agent say again?” Riley asked, trying to be helpful.

I grumbled, “To send it over.”

“Sweetheart, turn it in.”

Benny turned off the burner. He turned to the three plates he had laid out on the counter with a soft tortilla shell laid out on each. He spooned the meat filling onto all three, along with diced avocado, onion, and some sort of soft cheese I didn’t recognize, and squeezed lime onto them. He handed me the first plate. “Here, ladies first.”

I took my plate to the dining room table Riley had set up in the space in front of the big window. The two big men joined me. I took the first bite and moaned in ecstasy. “Holy shit!” I exclaimed.

“Good, right?” Riley said with a grin. “That’s why the ladies all love Benny here.”

Benny frowned. “Damn, this is still not as good as my abuela’s.”

“So your grandmother taught you how to cook?” I asked

I didn’t really know anything about Riley’s teammates. I had met TJ Desjardins last year in passing; he seemed like a fun guy, and he definitely hit on me, but I think he only did it to annoy Riley. Benny was Riley’s best friend, outside of me, so I did want to get to know the big man sitting next to me.

He nodded. “I’m not close to my parents or my dad’s parents, but my mom’s parents have always been really loving and supportive. I used to hate it as a kid, but Abuela always said I would win some nice girl over with my cooking.”

“Hasn’t worked yet, though,” Riley joked.

I glared at my husband for being insensitive. Man, he must not like this Stephanie girl. “So what’s the deal with the girlfriend?” I asked.

“Oh no you don’t. Go finish your writing, and then you can play therapist,” Riley warned.

I gave him the finger, and Benny tipped back his head with a loud laugh. “Man, you two are something else. Not much to say, honestly. She wants the whole marriage and family thing, and that’s never been me.”

“You don’t want kids?” I asked.

He shook his head. “Nope. I like being the fun uncle! Kids aren’t for me; it’s hard to find women who are okay with that. Some say they are but end up changing their mind.”

Riley drained the rest of his beer. “So did you finally break up for good this time?”

Benny shrugged. “No idea, but I knew I couldn’t stay there tonight. Thanks, Fi, for putting up with me.”

I shook my head. “If you cook me dinner every time you need to crash here, it’s fine by me.”

Both men laughed, but Benny looked sad, and that made me sad too. “No, really. I know you two are still in the newly-wed phase, and I feel bad being a cock-block,” he apologized.

I averted my gaze and finished eating my tacos. Riley took the empty plates into the kitchen and started doing the dishes. He didn’t say anything either. Benny couldn’t really be a cockblock if we weren’t having sex.

Benny’s brown eyes bored into me. “Fi, you better not break his heart,” he whispered.

“What?” I asked because I had zero idea what he was actually talking about.

“Riley. That man loves you.”

I stared at him for a second and then excused myself to go finish working on my book. Riley rolled into bed around eleven while I was still proofreading, sitting up against the headboard of our bed. I lifted the headphones off of my head and smiled at him. He undressed for bed and slid into the covers next to me.