Page 176 of The Blame Game

Dom had grown up embarrassed and afraid of anyone finding out he was gay, all while his own goddamn father had fucked men and cheated on his wife with them and there were so many levels of fucked up there that Dom couldn’t breathe for a moment.

“Baby?” Shea said, cupping his cheek.

Dom blinked.

Shea stood over him and his father was in the kitchen, pouring himself another glass of wine. Probably trying to give them a moment of privacy.

“Yeah?” Dom said hoarsely.

“You okay?”

Dom cleared his throat. “Yeah, uh, just got lost in my thoughts for a minute there.”

“Okay.” Shea didn’t look entirely convinced but he held out a hand. “Dinner’s out of the oven. Are you ready to eat?”

“Sure,” Dom said, letting Shea pull him to his feet. He left his barely touched appetizer plate on the coffee table but grabbed his wineglass.

He had a feeling he was going to need it tonight.

Kurt Olson was charming.

It didn’t surprise Shea, because Dom could be very charming when he tried but Kurt was more personable and seemed less closed-off.

He was good at making Shea laugh and had complimented him several times on his cooking.

Shea wasn’t sure if he liked him.

Partly because Dom seemed very off.

His cheeks were flushed—possibly from the wine—and he laughed and joked as they all traded stories. Kurt regaled them with tales of his days in the NHL and Dom did too but there was something forced about it.

Something weird.

Dom’s eyes were bright and his laughter came easily, but it took Shea a while to understand why it felt wrong.

He finally realized it was because this was the Dom that the public saw.

Not the Dom he was when the two of them were alone or who Dom was with his team and the SAPs. He’d seemed more relaxed and natural in Audra and Shea’s kitchen when he barely knew her.

Dom was putting on a show right now and Shea’s heart ached that Dom felt so disconnected from his father that he felt he had to.

For what it was worth, Kurt’s desire to reconnect with his son seemed genuine. Shea didn’t think there were any ulterior motives there.

After the moment in the living room where Dom had gone silent and still, his gaze totally blank and distant, Shea had been ready to call the whole thing off. To ask Kurt to leave and never come back.

He’d started to, but Kurt had cut him off, frowning worriedly at his son as he quietly said, ‘I just want a chance to explain. Not for my sake, but for Dom’s,’ so Shea had closed his mouth and nodded.

He didn’t know what would come of tonight or where father and son would go from here. But if there was a chance this would help Dom in any way, Shea didn’t want to deny him that.

And if Dom didn’t want to see his father again, he wouldn’t have to. Shea would support whatever choice he made.

“So your recovery is going well?” Kurt pressed.

“Yes.” Dom took another sip of wine. “They were able to treat the aneurysm and I should be cleared for play in a few weeks.”

“That’s great. The team is in a solid spot right now.”

“Yeah.” A genuine smile crossed Dom’s face. “Yeah, it’s a good group.”

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