Chapter Sixteen

The tension in the kitchen had diffused somewhat when I walked back in. A hockey game was playing in the living room, the sounds of the crowd and commentator spilling through despite no one actually watching it.

There were beers on the go, and Ben was carefully chopping onions, though it didn't seem like it was something he did often. Theo was sitting beside Eduardo, and they were both engrossed in something on his phone.

Dylan was by the fridge pulling the cork out of a bottle of white wine. He looked up at me. "Here, I'm just pouring."

"Thanks." I walked over to him and reached a glass from the cupboard.

"Pip," he said, his gruff voice seeming hoarser than usual.

"Yes?"

He pursed his lips and poured, the liquid making a gentle glugging sound.

"What is it?" I asked.

"I'm sorry, okay, for earlier, for being a douchebag."

"Why were you a douchebag?"

He set the wine aside and gently pulled me to him, his arms around my waist. An intimate gesture that I liked…a lot.

"It must have seemed like I was angry at you," he said, "I wasn't, I was angry at your privacy being invaded when I know you hate that."

"I know, I knew it then and I know it now. We're all the same, we all like to live under the radar, but occasionally we get dragged above it." I set my hands over his collarbones. "I didn't think you were being a douchebag."

"Did you speak to your agent?" He tenderly brushed a lock of hair over my shoulder.

"I did." I smiled. "And he's on the case, told me not to worry."

He nodded and studied me. "And can you do that?"

"With four hockey players to cook dinner for, I reckon I'm going to be kept busy."

"We can order in."

"I like cooking."

"I like you." The right side of his mouth twitched, almost a half-smile. "If you don't mind me saying that."

"You're not jealous of Eduardo?"

He paused for a second then, "As long as our date is still set for Saturday. Just me and you, together, alone, then nah, you have fun with Eduardo, it's not like we're exclusive."

My heart did a little trip over itself. That was good to hear. "Yes, yes, we're still on for Saturday."

A definite smile appeared. "Good, because I'm looking forward to it nearly as much as I'm looking forward to lifting the Stanley Cup again."

I tipped my head and studied him. "Should I know what that is? The Stanley Cup."

He chuckled and touched the tip of his nose to mine. "You'll find out if you stick around long enough."

His strength surrounded me. Dylan had the ability to make me forget everything but him, and I adored him for that. I pressed my lips to his.

The embrace he held me in tightened, and he returned the kiss.

"Hey, you guys, get a room!" Ben called.

"Might just do that," Dylan said against my lips. "Not sure if I can wait until Saturday."

I giggled and wriggled free. "Right. Where are we on the vegetable chopping?" I reached for a board and knife. "And where are the chicken and prawns? I was sure I got them out of the fridge."

The next hour went by pleasantly, cooking, drinking, and laughing with Ben, Eduardo, and Dylan—Theo had gone to his room. The pap shot went from my mind, as did Steven and Cheryl. I was sure I was far from theirs; Cheryl hadn't even tried to make contact, so why should I let her play on my mind?

"Theo." I rapped my knuckles on his closed door. "Dinner is served."

"Mmm, okay, thanks…just coming."

I heard his footsteps, then the door opened. He appeared to have been sleeping.

"Is everything all right with you?" I asked.

He kind of shrugged. "Yeah, why?"

"You weren't at practice today."

"No."

"And you seem…" I took his hand. "Quiet."

"It's been a long day." He had slight rings beneath his eyes.

"Want to talk about it?"

"Not now." He smiled. "I'm hungry."

"Me, too. Come on." I tugged him. "But if you do want to talk, I'm a good listener."

"Thanks, I appreciate it."

We ate together. The hockey game had been replaced with a music channel that was easier on my ears. The paella was perfect—the rice al dente and the flavors rich. There were many compliments.

"Where'd you learn to cook?" Eduardo asked.

"My mother, she was a chef, taught me something most days."

"Great skill to have," Ben said. "I can make eggs and throw a pizza in the oven and that's about it."

"You chopped the onions brilliantly for this paella." I laughed.

"Not doing that again, my eyes still hurt." He pulled a face.

"But go ahead and cook this again." Dylan leaned back in his chair and rubbed his flat abdomen. "So good, much better than a takeout."

"Better than Ciao! ?" I asked.

"Actually…" He nodded. "Sure is, but don't tell Benita, I don't think I'd survive her wrath. She might be little, but she's damn fierce"

Eduardo glanced at his watch. "I'm going to love you and leave you all. Tomorrow is big practice day."

"It is?" Theo asked.

"Yep." Ben raised his eyebrows. "Coach wants us all to do ten miles before we start the practice session. Apparently, we've been sitting on planes and buses too much lately."

"Fair enough." Theo shrugged. "Got to be done."

"Ah, damn, I forgot about that." Dylan stood. "Let's clean this up. I gotta get some sleep if we're hitting the gym pre-practice."

"I'll sort this out." I gathered plates. "I haven't got anywhere to be tomorrow."

"Nah, we'll help." Dylan picked up the giant paella pan from the middle of the table.

"No, really," I said. "I insist. You head off."

"Yeah, you guys go, we'll help Pippa," Ben said, standing. "And there isn't much to do."

"You sure?" Eduardo, who was sitting to my left side, said.

"Yes, of course." I smiled at him.

He pressed a kiss to my cheek, his scent wrapping around me for the second time that day and bringing back sexy memories. "I'll see you tomorrow, ma choue ."

"Goodnight."

Dylan rested his hands on my shoulders. He kissed the top of my head. "Sleep well, and don't worry about anything, okay?"

"I won't." I rested my hand over his. "Or at least I'll try not to."

"You do that."

Eduardo and Dylan left. It was dark outside now and the pool area lit with blue lights that reflected onto the kitchen ceiling in shimmering waves.

Ben was stacking the dishwasher. Theo was putting things away in the refrigerator. He paused for a moment and removed his fleece, tossed it onto a barstool to the right of the island.

In the creases of both of his elbows were small white Band-Aids.

I frowned. What on earth was going on?

He'd been acting very strange, like a weight was on his shoulders, and now I had a feeling it was to do with his health. But I wasn't one to pry. If he wanted to tell me, he would.

I picked up my wine and went into the living room. After drawing the heavy gray drapes, I sat on the huge sofa and picked up the remote. I turned the music down but left it on. It was a countdown of nineties movie classics, and I liked it.

"Ah, I love this one." Ben flopped next to me and put his feet up on the table.

"You like Titanic ?" I asked.

"Sure, great movie. Who doesn't love Jack and Rose?"

"True."

Theo joined us and sat on my opposite side. He set a glass of water on the table and rested back.

I reached for his hand. It was warm in mine, and he nudged his shoulder close as though wanting to be nearer to me.

Worry tugged at my heartstrings. I didn't like to think that he was going through something on his own.

"How'd it go, Theo?" Ben asked suddenly.

There was a pause, then Theo spoke. "A day of laughs." He huffed. "Like always."

I pressed my lips together, not wanting to appear nosy.

"Did he tell you?" Ben asked, turning to me.

"No, and if he doesn't want to, that's fine." I paused. "Whatever is going on is clearly personal, and it's not like you've known me long and—"

"You really didn't Google us?" Theo said suddenly. "Not even after the other day?"

"No, I really didn't. And what about the other day?" I tried to think back. "Why? Did you Google me?"

Theo kind of shrugged. Had his cheeks gone a fraction pink? "A bit."

"You did? When?" I was surprised.

"Today, I was hanging around, I was missing you…crazy, huh?"

"No, not crazy." What was he hanging around for? And where? Hospital?

"Are you mad that I searched you?" he asked me. His voice held a hint of vulnerability that made me melt for him a little more. "I understand if you are, I hadn't really planned to. Not normally my style."

"No, I'm not mad, and Dylan must have Googled me, too, or something like that, to have found that picture of me and Eduardo."

"Apparently," Ben said, "he follows the guy on social media, and every day he posts a link to his blog. He's a big Viper fan."

I nodded. "Fair enough." I looked at the small Band-Aid on Theo's left elbow crease. "And what did you find out about me?"

"I mainly wanted to see your face—plenty of images of your face to be had."

"There are." I knew that for a fact.

"And of you in designer clothes." He paused. "Only one of you with that asswipe Steven, and it's a good scroll down."

"I made a point of avoiding us being photographed together, which is good now, less explaining to the masses."

"Sensible."

"And I'm sorry," Theo said. He turned his hand over so he was holding mine in his and he set his other over it. "About your parents, that really sucks."

I swallowed and closed my eyes. Them being mentioned was giving me an emotional slap. "It was a long time ago."

Neither of them spoke. The music video switched to Whitney Houston, ‘I Will Always Love You,' from The Bodyguard . "I like this movie, too." I was keen to move the conversation on.

"Haven't seen it," Theo said.

"What? We must, at some point. It's epic."

"If you want to, we will." Theo drew my hand to his mouth and kissed the pale underside of my wrist.

"You need to tell her," Ben said suddenly.

I hitched in a breath. I had the growing sense that whatever was going on with Theo was a big deal.

Theo didn't speak; instead, he placed my hand down and stood. He went to the window, pulled back the drapes, and stared out at the quiet street.

"He doesn't have to," I said. "Really, you don't, Theo."

"I want to." Theo didn't turn.

A silence stretched between us.

"Is it…is it something to do with your tattoos?" I asked. "You said the other day that you'd both had matching hockey stick tats after…something. That it was a brother thing."

Ben rubbed his hand over his t-shirt, where his ink was.

Theo dropped the curtain back into place and turned to me. "Yeah, that's right." He looked at Ben.

"You want me to tell her?" Ben asked.

"No."

I swallowed. My mouth had dried, and my heart rate was galloping along. Perhaps I should have Googled them, then I wouldn't feel so out of the loop.

"I was sick, a few years back," Theo said. He took a sip of water and sat on the table, right in front of me, his knees almost touching mine. "Really sick. I didn't think…I…fuck." He closed his eyes. "It was all over the media, certainly in Toronto and the hockey sites."

He was so big and healthy and strong that it was hard to imagine he had been really sick. I reached for his hands. "But you're better now?"

He opened his eyes. "That's what today was about. I've been at the hospital being prodded and poked. I get regular checkups."

"What was wrong?" I asked. "Or would you rather not say?"

"Leukemia," Ben said. Clearly it was a hard word for his brother to utter. "A real nasty type."

"Shit." My throat constricted, and my pulse thudded in my temples. "I'm sorry, that must have been hard. Awful."

"It was," Ben spoke again. "You wouldn't have recognized him. The chemo was a son of a bitch, and his hair, it all fell out, and the weight he lost, it was—"

"That'll do," Theo said with a frown.

"Sorry, bro." Ben stood. "I need another beer. Anyone want anything?"

"No, I'm good, thanks." I shook my head.

Theo said nothing, just stared into my eyes.

Ben went from the room.

"I'm so sorry you went through that, I can't begin to imagine how horrendous that experience must have been," I said, stroking my thumb over the top of his. "And you were in Canada, yes?"

"Yeah, I was seventeen, playing in Toronto. We both were."

"So this was…"

"Over ten years ago."

"So you're cured, right?"

"In theory, but still, every six months, or more if I get any weird symptoms, like the back pain or fatigue, and they have me in sooner."

"Which is what today was all about?"

Ben came back and sat down, the sofa dipping with his weight.

"But you spent the day in hospital alone. I could have come with you," I said.

"Not exactly the first date I wanna take you on."

"Ah, so you are going to ask me out?"

"Of course." He smiled, just a little. "Dylan and Eduardo can't claim you."

"Damn right they can't." Ben huffed and slugged his beer. "Besides, we're all on the same team."

I was quiet for a moment, then, "You said it was a nasty type. Is it because you were so fit that you got through it?"

"No." Theo shook his head. "It's because of this guy here." He nodded at his brother.

"I don't understand."

"We were a perfect match, bone marrow, that is," Ben said. "So what I had in me was the best medicine for Theo."

"Thank goodness for that." I blew out a breath. "Some people never find donors, I've seen that on the news."

"A sibling match has the highest rate of success," Theo said. "Up to ninety percent."

I reached for Ben's hand and held it tight. "What you guys have been through, what you've done for your brother," I said, my eyes prickling. "I know it must have been a truly horrendous time, but you're both here telling me about it, and that in itself has to be the best outcome, that you're both alive to tell the tale."

Ben nodded. "That's a positive way to see a bad experience."

"I try to be positive, you know that."

"I do." His eyebrows came together. "When I thought my brother was going to die, I wasn't sure I wanted to live. Where would the fun be in life? We spent every minute of every day together on and off the ice. Being competitive with each other had driven us to train until we were the best in our age category from thirteen onward."

"Our dream," Theo said, "was to play for The Vipers, together. We had their posters all over our bedroom walls. Twice our parents had taken us to see them play when they'd been in Toronto. It was our number one goal, and then…"

"Theo got sick, quickly, we didn't know what was going on. And when our parents found out, they cried so hard when they came home and told me they'd had to leave him at the hospital. He had to start treatment immediately." He paused. "Hockey, for once, wasn't the most important thing in our world."

"Do you have any other siblings?" I asked.

"No, so the pressure was on me when it came to being a donor." Ben clenched his jaw, clearly remembering the stressful time. "I'd have given up hockey, pizza, girls…" He laughed softly. "Everything to be a bone marrow match, it was the only thing that mattered."

"Thank goodness you were."

Theo leaned forward and rested his hand on Ben's knee. "And you still are, so if ever I needed you again…"

"I'd be there like a shot."

"I know you would be." Theo smiled. Some of the tension had gone from his face. Perhaps telling me had been part of his worry.

"When do you get the results of today?" I asked.

"In two days' time."

"And do you feel well? You mentioned back pain, fatigue…?"

"I feel fine."

"So the results should be fine." I reached for his face and cupped his cheeks. His blond stubble was soft on my palms. "But I'll come with you, you shouldn't go on your own."

"I always offer," Ben said. "But he always says no."

"I don't want him to miss practice," Theo said to me more than Ben. "We gotta keep our spots on the team. There's always young talent nipping at our heels, wanting to fill our skates, the little asswipes."

"The day after tomorrow," I said. "I'll come with you, okay?"

Theo tipped his head and bit on his bottom lip. He drew his face closer to mine. "So that means you're planning on staying…for a while?"

"Do you want me to?"

His eyes were deep blue, and in the dull light of the living room they were like the darkest part of the ocean; rich and mysterious and full of promise. "Hell yeah," he said, "we both want you to stay around, don't we, Ben?"

Ben pressed in close, and his warm lips touched my ear. "That would make us real fucking happy."