Page 28 of The Sweetest Risk

I drop onto my knees and continue to play with her hair. “Yeah?”

“Stay,” she says quietly.

My insides melt. Does she know there’s nothing I want more at this moment? “Okay, Cupcake. Just give me a minute. I’ll be back.”

I go back out into the kitchen and start doing the dishes for her. I load everything in the dishwasher and decide to run it. I don’t want her to wake up to a dirty kitchen. I think that is one thing we have in common. We like our houses to be clean. I find some disinfecting wipes and run them over the countertops, cabinet hardware, all the door handles, and any of the commonly touched surfaces in her apartment. I find some multipurpose spray and clean off her coffee table. Her candle is still burning, so I blow it out. After wiping down the remote, I go to turn off the TV, but before I do, I notice that it’s the episode where Chandler doesn’t remember which one of Joey’s sisters he slept with. Damn, I’ve been there, and even worse, Brooke knows I’ve been in that shameful position. Not the part of not remembering that I’ve slept with my best friend’s sister – because, trust me, that is the ONLY thing I’ve been thinking about since it happened – but the whole part about getting so drunk that I can’t remember the name of the girl I’ve slept with. And I know that’s probably one of the reasons Brooke hates me so much. I don’t think she was ever into players and to be honest, I never wanted to be one. If only she knew the truth.

Back in her room, I take off my hat and set it on her dresser. I climb into the bed and she is facing me, but on the complete opposite side of where I am. This is the first time that I’ve ever laid in a woman’s bed without having the intention of sleeping with her. Brooke’s words from earlier ring in my ears:Don’t even think about it. Regardless, I still want to make sure she feels taken care of. She looks so peaceful sleeping there beside me. I grab her hand and attempt to pull her toward me, but I feel some resistance. “Come on, Cupcake,” I whisper.

“No,” she mumbles. “I don’t want you to get sick, Tristan. The end of the season is coming up and I don’t want you to have this and have to take that awful medicine.” I can tell that she is delirious because her words are slurred and she doesn’t open her eyes once. Even in her delirious state, she still has to fight against me and make up a lame-ass excuse.

Again, fucking stubborn.

I grab the back of her upper thigh as close to her ass as I can possibly get without actually touching her ass (I really want to grab her ass but I am not going to push it tonight) and pull her over until her body is flush with mine. I wrap my arms around the back of her thighs and her back. Although she is wearing sweats and a ridiculous oversizedGilmore Girlsthemed t-shirt, I find her to be in her most beautiful state. This time, she doesn’t push me away. Instead, her leg wraps around mine and her hands find their way to the back of my neck. My favorite spot. I whisper in her ear, “One of these days, you are not going to push against me so much, Cupcake. And I hope that that day is sooner rather than later.”

“In your wildest dreams, Hot Shot.” Brooke’s voice fades away and is replaced by her adorable snore.

Once I confirm that she is fully asleep, I hold her tighter and say, “I wish you could see me the way I see you, Brooke.” I kiss her forehead softly. For years, I’ve been trying to convince myself that what I have been feeling for Brooke was really fueled by hate or at the bare minimum, a silly crush that lingered for far too long. During these past few weeks, I’ve seen Brooke more frequently than ever before, and it has cemented something in me that I have always known. I am just scared shitless to actually admit it to Brooke. Based on our history, the odds are not in my favor. Because of this stupid rule of hers, I’ve never been on her dating radar in that way and I hope to God that no one else is on her radar, especially not Hastings.

Nothing about what I am feeling is a fluke. It certainly isn’t because I want to win a damn bet. My feelings for Brooke are like my love of hockey: indisputable and unmovable.

That night, I sleep the best I have slept in years.

14

“This way, ladies,” the hostess tells us, waving for us to follow her.

I finally recovered from my horrendous cold and was in desperate need of social interaction. So, when Tess suggested we go to brunch in Uptown, I jumped at the opportunity. I still haven’t told Tess about Tristan coming over and nursing me back to health a few days ago. Or that he ended up spending the night.

We sit down in a patio area since Tess brought her small dog, Pippa, with her. I swear if she had the option of bringing her dog to work, she would. It is a really nice spring day and the real Texas heat hasn’t set in. I think we still have another couple of months left before it feels like the surface of the sun here.

“I’m so relieved you are feeling better, B. I’ve missed you at work. The kids have been extra crazy. I think they can feel that it’s close to springtime. Also, they have been dropping like flies. No doubt you got your terrible cold from one of those little gremlins. I’ve been popping elderberry gummies like nobody’s business.”

I laugh. Tess takes a sip of her coffee and leans closer across the table. “So, anything interesting happen while you were recovering?”

“Well Bradley came over and dropped off what he thought was a nice little care package–canned chicken noodle soup.”

“Um, does your brother not know you at all? You hate canned soup. It’s official, he is going to win the award for the most clueless brother. I guess he earns some brownie points for going over in the first place, though.”

“Right? Anyway, I thought that’s where my night was going to end. I snuggled up on the couch and continued to binge watchFriends. After like one episode, I heard a knock at my door. I totally thought it was Bradley because he has my extra key fob so I didn’t even check who was outside before opening the door. Guess who was there?”

“Hmmm… oh my gosh! Was it Nick coming to win you back?”

“No. Not even close.”

“Then, who? You know I suck at guessing.”

“Tristan.” Tess’ eyes widen and her mouth drops open. “He brought me my favorite ramen, a medicine ball, tissues and other cold provisions. Tess, he even bought me more chest rub!” Tess is still in her shocked mode and rendered speechless, so I continue, “Also, he might have stayed overnight. In my bed.”

“What? Why would he stay? Was he trying to seduce you while you were sick?”

I bite my bottom lip. “No, it wasn’t like that. I may have… asked him to stay?” That whole encounter in my room is a littlehazy. The one thing I do remember clearly are his large hands grabbing me and pulling me closer to him. The heat and tingles that ran through my body had me thinking for a second that I was getting a fever. Nope. That’s just how my body reacts to Tristan Lawson touching me now. It is my new normal. I don’t think anyone would ever forget the way that man’s hands feel on their body once he has run them all over. I blame my deliriousness for my uninhibited actions of letting him care for me the way he did. That is a way a boyfriend would take care of their girlfriend.

But I don’t let my thoughts go there. Not in a million years would I ever actually date Tristan.

And if snuggling with me throughout the whole night wasn’t enough, when I woke up the next morning, he had already Doordashed some coffee–a pistachio latte, to be exact. It’s not always available to order and is only around for a couple of months, if that. He somehow remembered that is my go-to coffee order in the late winter months. This gesture, along with the countless other ones he did for me the previous night, was too much for me to handle. And because I am a chicken and don’t know how I really feel about Tristan, I freaked out and literally pushed him out of my apartment. I haven’t heard from him since. Maybe he finally got the message that nothing will ever happen between us. Ever.

After dispelling all of this information onto Tess, she crosses her arms and gives me a suspicious look. “Wait, let me get this straight. He slept over? And you guys didn’t doanything? You are telling me that one of the hottest hockey players in the world slept in your bed and you didn’t make a move or he didn’t make a move?”

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