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36. Matt

Istare up at Zak and grab his hand. "I want you. I need you. I can't live without you."

"Jesus, Matt," Zak murmurs. "What the hell are you doing?"

"Go big or go home, right? I'm giving you the show you wanted."

"You're being a little over the top right now with the wanting and the needing." Zak rolls his eyes. "It didn't have to be big. Or a show. An apology would have been great. An explanation even better. But you didn't give me any of it until today. I mean, for Christ's sake, you threw a goddamn tantrum in that coat closet, and then, I saw you at the press conference where you told the world what you could have said to me the other night and a million times before that."

I furrow my brow. "You wouldn't have believed me. You said I was always all talk with nothing behind it. So, this is me giving you what you want. I'm not only telling you how I feel, I'm trying to show you. And when I saw that accident scene, I fucking panicked because I wasn't sure I'd get the chance to say any of it."

"Can you please get off the floor?"

"Why? Are you worried someone will see?"

"Are you?" he snaps.

"Not anymore. And I have a very serious question to ask you. Zak Kacey, will you be my?—?"

"Holy shit."

I look past Zak at the guy he brought to our game against the Raptors. My eyes narrow. "You're interrupting a private moment, brah."

The guy's eyes pop open wide. Zak turns toward him. "Ry, give us a minute, please?"

"Should I be jealous?" I ask.

"Definitely. We've been working on valuations all morning," he says dryly. "Real sexy shit."

"So, I'd better make this fast and stake my claim before he moves in." My lips curl upward. "Zak Kacey, will you be my…boyfriend?"

The shock that settled into his features morphs into relief. "Fuck, I thought you were proposing."

I let out a snort. "It was risky enough to come here and have you not slam the door in my face. I've got a lot to make up for and a lot of groveling to do, so when I ask you to marry me, you're not tempted to kick me in the head while I'm on my knee. Like you probably were when you opened the door."

"I've wanted to kick you in the head a lot," he says, a smirk lifting his lips. "But I kept coming back, so what does that say about me?"

"Thankfully that you're a glutton for punishment. But don't worry, I have some ideas about how to reboot punishment, so it feels awesome and is a hell of a lot more fun." I wince, my knee screaming from this position. "Now how about an answer so I can get the hell off the floor?"

Zak smiles…really smiles…like the way I've always wanted him to do when he looks at me, and it's the hottest thing I've ever seen. "Yes, I'll be your boyfriend."

I jump off the floor and gather him close. "I missed you so fucking much. And I'm a total asshole for the way I treated you."

"You did a complete one-eighty." Zak pulls away and lifts an eyebrow. "One day, you're locked in the closet, panicked about anyone finding out your secret, and the next, you're hosting a press conference telling the world that you're in love with another man."

"Yeah, well." I shrug. "It was time to be honest. I realized when I saw the accident scene where your car was crushed like an accordion and I had no idea if you were even alive, that having the perfect career and all the money and fame in the world doesn't mean shit unless I can share it with the man I love. And if I got that chance, I'd leap at it. I ran right to you because I wanted you to know how I felt. But when you kicked me to the curb, I decided on a different tactic."

"Go big or go home," he says with a nod.

"Fuck yeah." I chuckle, trailing my hands slowly down the sides of his torso. "How are you feeling?"

"Sore. Head still hurts."

"So, I shouldn't try to tear off your pants and fuck you against the door?"

"It kills me to say no but…" His dark eyes pull me in, full of promise and anticipation.

"So just a blowjob then?" I give him an exaggerated wink.

"How about a kiss to start?" Zak grabs me by the jacket and pulls me close, gently grazing his lips against mine.

I drag my fingertips down the right side of his face, careful not to press against the ugly purple bruises staining the left side of his face.

"My God, I love you," I whisper. "So fucking much."

"I love you, too." He leans his forehead against mine. "The press is going to be all over you for this; you know that, right?"

"That I can handle. But losing you?" I give my head a shake. "Fuck, no. Never again."

"Have you spoken to anyone since the conference?"

"No, but I shut off my ringer and haven't looked at it since I drove over here. But there are two important people who are really excited to meet you, the only two people I told before the conference."

"Okay, I'm intrigued."

"My sisters showed up at my place yesterday. Just a precaution. My mom brought them to the bus station, thought it was smart to get them out of town while they're still on summer break. I guess something clicked with her, and she finally realized how dangerous it was for them."

"When are they going home?"

"Never." My jaw tenses. "I'm not letting them go anywhere. Up here, they can thrive. Down there, fuck knows what'll happen to them. My dad refuses to get help, which means he's just gonna fall back down his rabbit hole. I love my parents, but they're adults. They can make their own beds. But the girls are young. They deserve a chance, and I won't keep financing their lives if my dad is gonna just piss it all away. If they're with me, I can keep them safe. Take care of them."

Zak pulls me inside. "Where are the girls now?"

Ryan's head pops up from his laptop when we step into the foyer. He scrambles to his feet and throws a bunch of papers and folders into a laptop bag. "I didn't hear anything."

"Good because it was X-rated and might've made your ears bleed if you did." I wink at him then turn back to Zak. "They're at my place. I hired a security guard to stay with them since nobody other than me and my mom knows they're here in the city. I didn't want to take a chance that they'd be photographed with me, and that the fuckers down in West Virginia would see."

"I'll, ah, just get out of here now," Ryan stammers, his arms full with the bag and computer. "Let's catch up next week, Z. Okay? Okay."

He rushes for the door, pulls it open, and it slams closed behind him in a blur.

"Wow," I murmur, wrapping my arms around Zak's waist. "I feel like we should take advantage of this sudden privacy, and I promise we would if you weren't all bruised and broken."

Zak's eyebrows knit together. "How's Anna?"

I let out a sigh. "She's upset. I fucked up and hurt her, and then she did the most selfless thing in the world and tried to convince you to give me another chance." I shake my head. "I couldn't believe it when she told me. But it helped me figure out what to do, how to fix things between us." I rub my hands up and down his arms. "I don't want to hide anymore. I want the same things you do. I want to be happy. And yeah, I love football, but I love you more. That's why I did that press conference. I wanted the world to find out about my past on my own terms, not Brett's."

"It was brave of you. I'm proud of you for facing your demons." Zak traces the outline of my lips with his thumb. I grab it between my teeth and give it a long, hard suck.

"Well, they're gonna come at me now. I'm sure there will be disciplinary action taken against me. But I don't care. It was worth it to have my say and control the narrative. To take the power away from Brett after all these years."

"And I'll be by your side, no matter what."

"Shit, they're gonna ask if you knew about this. It could get you in trouble, too."

Zak shrugs. "I'm not afraid for myself. I want what's best for the team. And it isn't me. I love the sport, and I want to keep things going for my dad's sake, but I'm going to sell the team. Someone else will do a better job, and we can't be together if I'm an owner. The optics of that would be very bad."

"Very bad," I say, staring into his deep dark irises, completely captivated.

"So, this is it, huh? You and me?"

"You bet your hot ass. Now, are you ready to come home with me and cause a fucking ruckus for all the paparazzi parked outside the lobby?"

I wasn'twrong about causing a ruckus. The press that trailed me over here after the conference must've called for backup, because when Zak and I exit the building, I can't even see my truck through the hordes of camera-happy people surrounding us. They follow us to my truck, flashes blinding me as I help Zak into the car. I run around to the driver's side, hop in, and turn on the ignition.

I honk my horn a few times to clear them away from the hood and sides, slowly rolling away from the curb. "They better get the fuck back," I mutter.

"You're in enough trouble," Zak says lightly. "Let them take our picture without running any of them over."

I maneuver around them, and once we're clear, I step on the gas and zoom around a corner. "Okay, next!"

It takes us about twenty minutes to drive across the city to my place. My phone vibrates in the center console. I stab the Accept button on the screen when I see it's my mother. "Ma, look, I know your head's probably ready to explode, but just give me a few minutes to get home. I want to explain everything to you guys and?—"

"Matthew, I just got a ca?—"

The rest of her words are swallowed by static.

"Ma?" I ask once, twice.

Then dead air.

I end the call. "Lost connection. Maybe it's better that way. I'd rather see her face when I tell her I'm gay and in love, you know?"

"Dude," Zak says. "Did you think that maybe you should tell your parents before the rest of the planet?"

"I don't know. It happened so fast. I wasn't thinking about courtesy calls. I was only thinking about you, dude."

Zak drops his hand onto mine as I pull into the underground parking garage at my building. He gives it a squeeze. "It wasn't easy for me to tell my parents, either. But I'll be with you."

I nod and turn off the ignition. "That's all I want."

"And you've got it." He playfully tugs on my earlobe. "Ready?"

I hop out of the truck and help Zak out. Then we walk to the elevator, hand in hand, and everything feels fucking amazing and right.

If Zak was in better shape, I'd have stopped the elevator and done very bad things to him. But the last thing I want is to cause him any pain, so I'll wait until he's ready for all the things I have planned.

And damn, the list is long.

We get off the elevator, and my phone buzzes again. I click on the Accept call button. "Ma, give me a second. I'm almost in the door."

"Something is wrong." Her voice cracks. "I was talking to Missy before, and there was a loud bang. Then the line dropped. I tried calling her back, then Summer, and then you. But I wasn't able to reach anyone."

"Okay, I'm right here at the door." I fish out my keys. "How long ago was that?"

"Maybe twenty minutes ago?" Her voice is tearful.

Zak grabs his own buzzing phone and steps next to the door to take the call as I try to calm my mother down.

"Could've been a lost Wi-Fi signal. There's construction going on in the building. Maybe it flaked out. That could've been the banging sound, too." I stick my key in the lock and twist open the handle. "Just relax, Ma. I've got this."

Zak speaks quietly into his phone as I barrel into my apartment. It's bright and eerily silent. Where the hell are they? "Miss? Sum? Mike?"

I call out all their names and nobody answers.

A deep chill settles into my bones, dread licking the hairs on the back of my neck as I walk down the hallway toward the living room. "Guys, what the hell?"

A heavy booted foot steps into the hallway and my blood ices in my veins. I turn around slowly, my heart jumping into my throat.

Rusty.

"Surprised to see me? You dumbass. You really thought you'd be able to keep me from those fine pieces of ass?" He stomps toward me. "I told you nobody fucks with my business, Harrison. I don't like it when people try to get one over on me. So now you're all gonna pay."

He raises his hand, and I find myself staring down the barrel of a gun for the second time in the past month. "You thought I wouldn't find your sisters, huh? That they'd be protected here? That I wouldn't find out where they were? Now who's the stupid one?"

"Where are they?" My mouth is so dry, I can barely choke out the words. "I swear to God, if you hurt them?—"

"Shut the fuck up, bitch. And just so's ya know, this ain't about your dad. This is between you and me. You were always thinking you were better, smarter. Then you got out, parading your ass around with your hot girlfriends, throwing your money around like you're better than us." He grins like a ghoul, his eyes black as night. "Who's got the upper hand now, superstar?"

I strain my ears. Muffled crying comes from the back of the apartment. The tiniest bit of relief flickers deep inside of me until I process the fact that the shithead standing in front of me has a gun and I have…nothing.

"Look, Rusty. I told you, if you want money, I'll give it to you. Just leave my family alone."

"You think you should get special favors because you're famous, cocksucker?" He swings the gun around. "Fuck no to that!"

"But Rusty, if you kill me, you'll never get your money. And that'll fuck with your business way more than I ever could." Jesus, the logic is really flawed, but his expression tells me he might actually be buying the shit I spew.

More words. I can confuse him with more words. Big words.

I swallow hard, a lump making it pure misery to breathe. How the fuck am I going to get out of this? Why the fuck don't I have a samurai sword laying around here within reach?

Rusty edges closer, pressing the gun against my forehead. My eyes squeeze shut. "I can help you. I can get you what you need to run your little, ah, business."

"Always on your high horse. Well, Imma knock you right on your ass, boy." He pulls back the slide. My heart thrashes in my chest.

A shadow behind Rusty appears. It's so faint, I think I've imagined it. And then something long swings out with a fierce whipping sound before it connects with Rusty's head. It cracks against the side of his skull as Zak swings through like Rusty's head is his perfect pitch. Blood spurts from Rusty's nose. He pitches forward, falling face first into a table, then crashing to the floor.

"Holy fuck."

My Louisville Slugger.

Screw the samurai sword.

And just like that, the love of my life just saved it.

Zak staggers toward me, his breaths labored. "Are you okay?" He collapses against me. "I thought he was going to kill you."

"Oh, he fucking was. But I need to get to the girls. I think they're back here." I turn and run to the living room where they're tied together. My heart clenches when I think about how I found Summer that first time Dad called for help.

"Zak, get me a knife from the kitchen so I can get these zip ties off." I hug the girls tight. "You're good, guys. Rusty is done. I swear. He won't bother you ever again."

Zak hobbles back with a knife, and I cut the girls free. Mike is on the floor with a scary looking welt on the side of his head. I kneel down in front of him. He moans and clutches the side of his head.

"Goddamn, man," I say. "You're lucky you're alive right now to hear me tell you your ass is fired."

Mike groans. "Good, I'm fucking done with this private security shit anyway."

The girls grab me and hang on tight. Tears stream down their faces, their bodies shaking like they've been stuck in a freezer.

Zak lowers himself next to me and smooths Summer's hair out of her eyes. "Don't worry. Nobody will ever come near you again," he growls. "Especially that piece of shit lying out there."

"Did you kill him?" Missy whispers.

I look at Zak and give a half shrug. "I didn't check his pulse. Don't really give a fuck, if I'm being honest. I mean, we have to call the authorities, tell them what happened. But if he's dead, the world just became a better place."

"If he's not dead, the bat definitely rattled what little of his brain is in that skull," Zak mutters.

I look between Zak and the girls. "This wasn't exactly the kind of introduction I had planned, but, guys, this is the guy I was telling you about. My boyfriend."

Missy sniffles and throws her arms around Zak's neck. "Hi, boyfriend."

"Easy, Miss. He was just in a car accident," I say.

Zak smiles and hugs her back just as tightly. "I can handle a little bit of pain. This is so worth it."

"You saved our lives," Summer says in a quivering voice. "Thank you."

Zak wraps an arm around Summer and pulls her in, too. "I'm Zak. It's great to meet you girls. And one thing you should know about me is that more than anything, I hate bullies."

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