“Come on, doll,” he pleads, going for the dip once more solely to be denied. “You’re keen on me shirtless.”

“Um. No. Not a lot.” Layla jumps in from her place on the ground, her mouth twisting in disgust. She’s type of confiscated the cheese board together with Fallon. It may be a cage struggle to get a few of the goat cheese I’m eyeing. “In actual fact, it’s undoubtedly ruining my urge for food, which I by no means would have thought attainable. I’m that chick who can all the time eat.”

They proceed going backwards and forwards, ribbing Asher, which is all the time amusing to observe. Lenox chuckles, and it attracts my consideration over to him. Rising up off the couch, I stroll over to him as he stands alone by the balcony door, simply doing his personal factor.

“Hello,” I say sweetly.

He blinks at me after which grins however doesn’t say something in return.

“Thanks for digging into Joe’s… stuff, I suppose you’d name it. I don’t know what you do, or the way you do it, and admittedly, I don’t need to know. I’m grateful although. For me and for Asher.”

He provides me a agency nod and that’s about it. For the way a lot Asher—and even Greyson—discuss, Lenox is the whole reverse. Asher mentioned he’s all the time been this manner, however after he misplaced his sister, it’s been worse. He additionally looks like a little bit of a loner however clearly loves his individuals with an plain ferocity.

I attain up and provides him a hug, which he returns—albeit a bit awkwardly—after which I’m going again for the cheese, able to struggle my means in if essential whereas Asher digs right into a plate of spinach dip with pita and veggies since he now has his shirt again on. Greyson activates the tv to place the night video games on, however regardless that one other staff is taking part in, Asher is all anybody is speaking about.

“Oh my God!” I cry once they do a replay of me and Asher on the sidelines. “I appear to be a loopy lady.” Layla and Aurelia giggle flippantly at my outrage.

“It’s not so dangerous,” Fallon attests, mendacity by way of her enamel.

“Uh, no. That’s tragic lady hair proper there. My hair is legit in every single place. Why didn’t you inform me?” I throw Asher a scathing glare, however all he does is shrug it off.

“I believed you appeared lovely, and actually, I didn’t discover the hair.”

I forged a hand within the path of the tv that’s displaying the insanity in like eighty inches of excessive definition. “It’s a ball of electrified frizz. Remind me subsequent time it’s shitty New England climate to put on it up.”

“I hate to interrupt it to you, however your face goes to be in every single place now,” Aurelia tells me. “I didn’t count on it once I obtained along with Zax, however yeah, it occurred, and it wasn’t all that enjoyable.”

“Reils, your face was already in every single place. You’re a mannequin. Or had been.”

She waves Greyson away. “That was completely different. It was like I used to be courting a Beatle or”—she snickers—“a member of Central Sq..”

“Similar,” Fallon commiserates. “It was insanity for me and Gray. We had press posted outdoors the warehouse we stay in for weeks. Then Gray proposed, and it began once more.” She factors on the tv. “Oh look, they’re exhibiting you standing on the rostrum holding up your gold medal. You look so cute.”

It goes from that to my freaking medical faculty commencement, like some warped that is your life video montage. I groan and collapse on the ground, splayed out like a starfish. “I take it again, Asher. We’re breaking apart. Formally. You may go to Mason everytime you need, so long as I’m not there.”

“Oh, come on,” he drawls, sipping his water to scrub down his meals. “Don’t be such a wimp. You had your likelihood to run—not that I might have let that occur—however now it’s too late. In for a pint, in for a pound. Apart from, it’ll blow over in like every week. And Fallon is correct, you probably did look cute.”

“They’re virtually reporting my ultimate rating within the Olympics and my GPA in school!” I half-yell. “Subsequent factor you understand, they’ll be taught you knocked me up within the rest room of a membership. It’s so much. I haven’t been on tv because the Olympics, and that is completely different. So, so completely different.”

“Right here, sweetheart. Sit up. I’ll get you some wine as a result of I feel you could possibly use a drink, and it’ll make you extra keen to do the naughty stuff later. Oh, and there’s goat cheese. Have some goat cheese. You’ll really feel higher.”

Asher jogs into the kitchen and returns with a glass and a bottle of wine—like I’m going to drink the entire thing—and pours me a mammoth glass. I take a sip after which a gulp as he makes me a cheese plate and even provides on the fig unfold I like with a bounty of crackers beside it.

“There. Higher now?” he checks.

“Marginally. Immediately sucked.”

He agrees. So does everybody else, since all of them appear to find out about what Joe did. I’m going to have to inform Limbick. That’s not one thing that may be ignored, whether or not it turns into public information or not. I can’t think about he’ll be too happy, however he noticed the MRI simply the identical as I did, and if it had been him as an alternative of me, he would have opened up Asher’s shoulder too.

That’s what’s sitting with me the toughest. The manipulation. The lies. The deceit. I’ve a half-brother I by no means knew something about, and he simply so occurs to be Asher’s teammate. His rival, I suppose. What’s going to that be like?

Asher smacks a kiss on my lips, after which we simply settle right into a groove of watching soccer—nonetheless not my favourite sport—and consuming good meals and laughing along with his mates, who’re beginning to really feel like they’re my individuals too.

It’s good.

I’m unsure I’ve ever had individuals earlier than, so I just like the notion of a lady squad. I like the sensation of being dwelling. It’s not one I’ve had for so long as I can keep in mind. After Joe left, that every one type of fell aside, after which I used to be touring nonstop for skating, after which after that, it was school, med faculty, residency… it didn’t cease.

However being right here with Asher, our son, his individuals… it’s dwelling. He’s my dwelling.

Supply: www.seynovel.com