Page 94 of The Golden Goalie

I stare at him, open-mouthed. “Were you just a romantic then?” He scowls at me, and I can’t help but grin. “You have a heart buried under all that gruffness somewhere.” Of course, I already know that. He wouldn’t be standing here in my living room this late at night if that weren’t true.

“He loves you too.”

His words knock the air from my lungs. I start to argue, but his look shuts me down. “But you’re going to have to trust him. You’re going to have to break down the steel wall around your heart, Little Sister, and let him in. I know you don’t trust well.” He grimaces. “We share that trait, all three of us because of dad walking out on us.”

I take a breath. “I’m glad he walked out; we didn’t need him.”

“Yeah, we did, Kid. And he walked out anyway.” He stares at me intensely for a few moments. “Don’t let this guy go just because you’re scared. He’s the real deal.”

“How do you know?” I can’t help the question.

He gives me a softer look. “I know.”

I’m so overwhelmed with everything that’s happened tonight, I walk over to him and wrap my arms around him. “Thank you.”

He rests his head on my head for a moment. “You’re welcome.” Then he pulls back, and he’s once again the guy who flies around the world saving people. “I gotta go. Take care of yourself.” I know he’s getting ready to leave.

“Wait. Did you even get to see Mom?”

He nods. “I spent time with her this afternoon.”

“Oh. Please be safe, Noah. I love you.”

“Love you too, Kid.” He glances down at my belly. “Take care of my niece.”

A soft smile crosses my lips. “I will.” I don’t even ask him how he knew it was a girl; he always knows everything. He opens the door and steps out. I watch him go a minute, notknowing when I’ll see him again. I close the door and lock it and lean my forehead against it for a few minutes. What he did for me tonight, I don’t know if I’ll ever get over it. I trust him completely. If he says Adam won’t be a problem anymore, he won’t be. The idea that I can now be with Rico leaves me breathless. I pull out my phone and stare at it. I have so much going through my head, but I keep it simple. I thank him for not giving up on me. My heart nearly combusts when he tells me I’m it for him. I stare at my phone for a long time before putting it down. I sleep better that night than I have in a long time.

The next morning, I’m up early and antsy. It’s Sunday, so I don’t have class or work. I check the schedule and see that Rico doesn’t have a game today. I walk over to the counter and grab my keys. I am going to do this. I make the drive over to his house. But once I park, doubt creeps in. I’m not sure how long I sit in the car, staring at the front door before I finally make myself go up the porch steps and knock on the front door. He opens the door, and my mouth dries up. He’s only wearing sweats, hung low on his hips. My eyes take in the wide expanse of his bronzed skin with multiple dark tattoos.

“Did you look your fill?” I hear the humor in his voice.

I shrug. “Not really. I mean if you’re going to put all that perfection in front of me, who am I not to look?”

His eyes dance. “Come on in here.” He steps back, so I can step in. When I do, I brush against his chest, and his cologne hits my nose. I take a deep breath, letting the comforting scent of him fill my nose. “What are you doing here?” he asks softly.

“I needed to come see you.” He stares down at me intently. I look down at his chest again before looking back up at him. “Um, do you think you could put a shirt on? It’s hard to concentrate.”

He grins. “Give me a sec.” He’s back in record time, and I’m disappointed to see he did indeed put on a shirt. But it’s good because maybe I can concentrate now. “So why did you need tocome see me, Amber?” His words are light, but I can hear the seriousness behind them.

“Noah said he took care of Adam; he’ll no longer be a problem.”

Rico stares down at me. “Is he dead?”

A laugh bubbles out of me. “That’s exactly what I asked! Noah said no. I actually don’t know what Noah did or said to him, but he said he took care of it. And I trust him.”

It’s quiet between us a minute before he asks, “Do you trust me?”

I swallow and go for one hundred percent honestly. “No.” His face falls. “But I’m trying.” His eyes meet mine. “I don’t trust anybody, I guess. Noah brought some of this to my attention. He said it has to do with our dad leaving us and probably everything else I went through.” I know Rico understands that because his own dad walked out on him and his mom and sister. “I don’t trust well, but I do know that I trust you probably more than I do anybody else and that counts for something.”

He studies my face. “What about Adam?”

I shake my head. “I want nothing to do with him. I haven’t wanted to since the night I found him in bed with another woman. The only reason I went back with him—” I swallow.Here goes. “He had a video.”

Rico’s eyes narrow in confusion. “What video?”

I meet his gaze head-on. “He had a video of you and Gunner fighting his team. He said he was going to release it, and that you and Gunner would be released from the Green Thunder because they have a strict no-fighting off the ice policy.” He stares at me.

His eyes turn hard. “He blackmailed you with that? To stay with him? You should have told me.”

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