Chapter 6

Mo

"Understood."

I hang up the phone as soon as I see Nico limping towards the kitchen. Holding back a wince, I take note of the purple bruises covering every bare inch of his torso and legs.

"If you're done checking me out, could you point me in the direction of some food?"

Nico limps closer and I smirk, raising my brows at the maple leaves decorating his underwear.

"How patriotic of you. Breakfast is in the blender."

He winks, "Just being a good citizen, babe."

Ignoring the taunt, I look back at my phone when Nico groans loud enough to wake my neighbours.

"Are you trying to kill me, Maurice? This shit is green." He holds up my state-of-the-art blender where I'd thoughtfully left half of my protein shake inside.

I frown, "There's spinach in it. Of course it's green."

Nico takes a cautious sniff and pretends to gag, "I wouldn't give this to a dog."

Tamping down the urge to roll my eyes, I walk over and take it from him, "Then don't drink it. Make yourself something back home."

"Don't you have pancake mix or something?" His dark eyes flick to my chest, "What about eggs? You look like you eat a lot of eggs."

I open my mouth to snap back, but then Nico turns and my words disappear. Massive welts run down his spine, the tender skin bruised and ripped all the way down to the black elastic band of his briefs. The same horrible bruising runs down his arms and legs, fading only around Nico's face. His nose looks a little more crooked than normal and I had to stitch up the deep cut above his left eyebrow last night, but overall, his body took the worst of the beating last night.

Guilt hits me unexpectedly, and I find myself biting back an apology. The closest hospital is over in Lethbridge, and given that I"m CPR certified, it only made sense to bring him back to my place last night. But looking at Nico now, I'm wondering if there wasn't a way I could have stepped in sooner…

"Earth to Maurice."

A swollen finger snaps in front of my eyes and any feeling of remorse vanishes as his signature smirk blocks my line of vision.

"Thought I'd lost you there. Listen, this green sludge-

"Shake. It's a protein shake." I interrupt him, but Nico doesn't pause to take a breath.

-isn't going to work for me. So, how about we swing by McD's on our way to morning practice?"

I cross my arms, leaning against the granite countertop, "You aren't going to morning practice."

He mimics my position on the opposing counter, "I am."

"No, you're not."

"But I am."

"No, you're…" I close my eyes, pausing to take a breath before Nico sucks me into another one of his juvenile games. Opening my eyes, I find him grinning at me.

"The only thing practice will give you is more bruises." I pointedly look up and down his lean frame, "And that's something you have enough of."

Nico shrugs, "What's another bruise for the collection? The assistant coach already gets on my ass for not putting in enough effort."

For the love of…

"That's different."

I feel my left eye start to twitch and will myself not to explode. If Nico wasn't already a walking corpse, I'd be sorely tempted to knock his front teeth out.

"Is it?" A stitched eyebrow goes up and something flashes in his eyes, "You seem to have forgotten your place on this team, Maurice. You aren't the captain anymore. You don't get the final say on what goes down on the field. That's on me and Wes. You're just here to support us."

Nico steps forward, closing the distance between us. His breath hits my cheek, but I don"t back away. His irises are almost black up this close and I can see his upper lip is still slightly swollen.

"I am going to morning practice even if I have to walk there. I may not give it my all in every practice, but when it comes to being a leader for those boys, I will give one hundred and ten percent every single time."

His gaze flicks to my lips, as if he finally realized how close we are. Stepping away, Nico turns and grabs the car keys lying on the counter.

"What's it going to be, Maurice? Are you giving me a ride, or should I start walking?"

I study him, watching the way his eyes dart around my apartment as he waits for my verdict. There's a skittishness in him that wasn't there before and it doesn't take a genius to figure out why there's fear still running through Nico's system.

Sighing, I walk over to my pantry and grab a protein bar. Tossing it to him, I nod towards my bedroom, "If we don't want to be late, you're going to have to borrow some of my clothes."

Surprise lights up his eyes and the smile that spreads over his face pulls at something deep in my chest.

"McD's after then?"

"Don't push it, Montez."

Nico

Maurice O'Brien has stained my skin.

It's no joke. I slept in the man's bed and now I am wearing his clothes. It's one thing to enjoy another man's aftershave, it's another thing to live and breathe it for twelve hours straight.

I am horny as fuck.

Turns out, my dick wasn't injured in the smackdown last night because little Nico is up and moving this morning. The only saving grace is Mo's athletic shorts are a lot bigger than what I normally wear, so it's easier to hide my excitement on this fine smelling morning.

Subtlety doing my best to adjust myself, I yell out encouragement from the sidelines.

"That's it, Millard! Take the shot!"

Our new forward races towards the net, where my sub is currently playing, and lines up his shot. Before he can take it though, Taber's legendary all-star comes out of nowhere and sends the poor kid flying.

I blow my whistle, "Maurice! What did we say about taking it easy on the rookies?"

He turns to me, sweat glistening beneath his helmet and I have to refrain from fanning myself with my clipboard.

Mo walks over, his powerful stride eating up the field in no time. He stops in front of me and I take the moment to appreciate the thick leg muscles outlined beneath his shorts.

"If they want a chance to play first string, they have to be treated like they are good enough to play on the field." Mo grabs the water bottle from my lawn chair and sprays it into his mouth.

"True, but if you kill them before our first tournament, I'm not sure it"s going to matter." I smirk, "Those boys aren't used to someone your size."

Mo shrugs, "Vin is basically my size. And he's a lot more aggressive."

I wince, remembering the injuries Silverwood's leading forward gave our old captain.

"Bad example. As your coach, I'm telling you to lay off the rookies. Got it?"

He lifts a brow, "I think you're enjoying this a little too much."

"Hey, a deal's a deal." I blow my whistle, "Now get your ass back on the field!"

Mo grunts and runs back over to resume drills.

Upon arrival, it quickly became clear that I was in no shape to play lacrosse today. I made one epic save during warm-up and Mo almost had to carry me off the field because I was in so much pain. After that, I accepted I would coach from the sidelines and Mo would take my place on the field.

Had I known this is what he looked like in lacrosse gear, I would have suggested the switch much sooner.

My phone buzzes in my pocket and I pull it out with a wince. Those boots did a number on me, and I am not ashamed to say there will be an Epsom salt bath in the near future.

"NICO!"

Jerking the phone away from my ear, my face breaks into a grin.

"Mi amor! I've been dying to hear from you." I drop my voice into a whisper, "You know you"re my favourite Williams sibling."

Lacey laughs and I swear the world becomes a brighter place. Wes' younger sister is the light of my life, and had my sexuality not gotten in the way, she would have been the love of my life as well.

"Wes must be within hearing range if you're dropping that line."

Quickly signalling for the team to take a timeout, I struggle out of my lawn chair and hobble a couple feet away.

"You know I only speak the truth." She giggles and the pain in my body seems to fade.

There was a time when Lacey's ex-boyfriend had stopped her joy of life altogether. Those were dark days, and I will do everything in my power to make sure it never happens again.

"You need to learn how not to flirt, Nico. You break too many hearts with your charm."

"Where's the fun in that?"

I watch the team assemble for a water break, all of them laughing and joking except for Mo, who is standing off to the side, furiously typing into his phone.

"I'm scared." Lacey sighs and steals back my full attention.

"Scared of what? Starting university?"

"Yeah." She goes quiet and I wait for her to continue, "Wes made it look so easy, you know? He makes friends like it's the most natural thing in the world."

Distress leaks through her voice and it rips at my heartstrings.

"You can't compare yourself to Wes, or anyone else for that matter. Everyone experiences university differently and it will all come down to what you make of it." I pause, "Plus, let's be honest. Your brother has always been a freak of nature when it comes to making friends."

Lacey laughs, "You're right. I guess I'm just nervous about leaving home for the first time. I'm excited to have a fresh start after, you know…"

She trails off and I know what we"re both thinking. She's ready to leave the town and the people who led her to almost taking her own life.

"… but it's still nerve racking. What if my roommate hates me? What if I fail all my classes and have to dropout?"

I shake my head even though she can't see me, "There's no point in worrying about things you can't control. Except for the school part, you could probably put in some effort on that end."

She sighs, "You're right, I'm just being ridiculous."

I cluck my tongue, "You are not being ridiculous. Everyone feels this way, trust me."

Turning around to check on the team, I spy half of them running laps while the other half start the next passing drill. I squint, trying to pick out Mo among the orange and black jerseys.

"And remember, you've got a whole support system behind you. I'll be taking you out every weekend and Wes will be making sure only the good guys put their eyes on you. And if you get really desperate, I'm sure Wes' girlfriend would be more than happy to hangout as well. She didn't have many friends starting university, either."

"Trip is the best. We hung out a lot when she came over last Christmas." Lacey blows out a breath, "I don't think I'm ready for another boyfriend. Not yet anyway."

Vulnerability seeps down the line, making me wish that I was rich enough to hire a hitman to take out the prick who did this to her.

"Hey, as long as you have me, you don't need another man in your life. Right?"

"Damn right." I can hear the smile in her voice.

"Good. Now, I'll see you in a few days and we will tackle any potential roommate problems then. I'm thinking glitter glue should be our first weapon of choice."

Lacey laughs, "Sounds like a plan. Thanks, Nico."

"Anytime, mi amor. Love you."

"Love you too." She blows a loud raspberry through the phone, and I hang up with a smile.

Turning to rejoin the group, I crash into a brick wall. Letting out a string of expletives, I hunch over as the brick wall crosses his arms.

"If you're done talking to your boyfriend, practice has resumed."

A cold gaze meets mine and I stare back at Mo, confused.

My boyfriend?

Tossing the thought aside, I stand up and start limping back to my lawn chair with no offer of an explanation.