“That’s lame.” He drinks his beer, reaching for the remote. I leap at him, tangling our arms together as we fight for the controller.
“Don’t you dare!” I grunt, yanking it out of his hand.
“Why not?” he asks innocently, his eyes shining bright.
“You know why! Tell me what he said. Why’d he call?”
“He called to check on you.”
“Why didn’t he call me?”
“Because you lie to him. He can hear it in your voice.”
“I don’t get it, Nicky. Seriously, why wouldn’t he ask me? We’ve been through more in the months we’ve been together than most people have to go through in a lifetime. What’s really going on? What do you know that you’re not telling me?”
“Bizzy, I’d do anything in the world for you. You know this, right?” His fun-loving attitude changes. His eyes still shine, but with a different kind of brightness.
“I do.” I nod, a nervous lump forming in my throat.
“There are some things I can’t tell you. Not because I don’t want to, but because they need to come from Shaw. Stick with him. Have some patience. He’s going through something I can’t understand. It’s a range of emotions he can’t get under control. I promise you, this distance you feel, this emptiness and fear, it will all be over soon.”
“How can you know?”
“Because if this was any other motherfucker on the planet causing your pain, they’d be dead. But since it’s my brother, I’ve given some leniency. Trust me.”
“I do, Nicky. I trust you,” I assure him, now more curious than ever. A part of me wants to call Shaw and demand he tell me what’s happening. Give him an ultimatum… tell me or lose me.
But that’s not my style, and I can see it in Nicky’s face; whatever is happening, I need to hear it from Shaw.
“Okay, well, can you at least tell me what he asked you for? Must be something pretty big if you went for the boat.”
“Promise me you won’t freak out.”
“Well, of course I’ll freak out when you start the conversation like that.”
“He asked me to get Sasha and her family tickets to the game on Christmas Day.”
Whoosh! The air is sucked right out of my lungs as my vision becomes blurry. This is an ultimate betrayal.
“What?” I say in barely a whisper.
“Hey.” He leans into my face and cups my cheek. “Whatever you’re thinking is the wrong assumption.”
“Why would he ever fucking ask you that?” Claire’s voice is laced with bitterness.
He doesn’t move his eyes from mine. “Because she asked to come to the game, and he doesn’t want her anywhere near his corporate suite. Regardless of what’s happening, he still can’t stand her. The last thing he wants is for Mom, Dad, Mathis, and all his work associates to have to deal with her. Not to mention him.”
“Her family is rich. They have money to afford tickets.” Claire’s getting riled up.
He looks at her and raises an eyebrow. “The game’s sold out, Claire. We’re the top ranked team in our entire division. Tickets are non-existent.”
“She can take her bitchy ass down to the stadium and scalp them!”
“I couldn’t agree more.”
“Then why?” I croak.
A small smile forms on his lips. “Because she’s so high affluent and snotty, she wants tickets from the league’s best quarterback.”