Chapter 36

Cha pter 36

Rico

I take a calming breath and try to rein in my control. I'm still furious after watching Adam grab Amber, like she's a thing and not a woman, my woman. The only reason I didn't rip into him was that Gunner made me walk away, telling me to let Aiden deal with it. I barely stayed away. I'm trying to let Amber deal with things her way; I've tried to give her space to work through whatever it is she's working through. But after seeing her with Adam tonight and the way he treated her, I'm officially out of patience.

Amber opens the door and makes a sound. I'm already headed that way. When I get there, my stomach feels gut punched. Amber's arms are wrapped around a guy I don't recognize. And just like that, I've had enough. I step forward, but a hand on my shoulder stops me. I shrug it off and give Aiden a look. "Just wait," he says in a low voice.

"Noah?" Brielle walks over to the door and throws herself into the guy's arms.

I stare at her and then whip my gaze back to Aiden, who's wearing a smirk. I turn back around. I'm not in the mood to deal with any more men trying to take my girl from me. "Hey, hands off," I say walking right over to the group of three. Not wanting to be compared to Adam in any way, I don't touch Amber, even though I want to haul her into my side.

The guys looks up slowly and locks eyes with me. At 6'4" I'm not intimidated easily; but if I was, he would be the guy to do it to me. He's tall and muscular, like I am; but it's his face that threatens pain. There's something in his gaze that screams danger. I step closer to Amber, but she shocks me by putting her hand out in front of me. He looks at her hand and then back at me. "You must be the hockey player." His voice is low and gruff, like he doesn't use it much.

"Uh," I look between him and Amber. Her next words shock me.

"Rico, this is my brother, Noah."

My gaze goes to him and then back to Amber. Recognition dawns. I can see the resemblance now between all three of them. This is the brother.

"Come on in. Let's get out of the chill," Brielle says, motioning them forward and closing the front door. "I can't believe you're here. Where did you come from this time?" she asks.

"Somewhere." I scoff at his answer because it's not an answer at all.

I make myself back up and make room. Bri walks over to Aiden, still smiling. Amber is slower to follow, but eventually she follows Brielle. Noah, the brother, stops right in front of me; and I'd be a fool to miss the threat in his eyes. "Hurt my sister, and they'll never find your body." He steps away and walks into the living room. "Oh, and stop texting me."

I swallow and feel my face flush. I lock eyes with Aiden who smirks. I take a breath before heading into the living room. Sebastian can't wipe the goofy smile off his face, and Gunner looks less than thrilled about the newest addition to our group.

"So," Bri rubs her hands together. "This is our brother, Noah."

"Hey Noah, I'm Sebastian, forward for the Green Thunder, the good-looking one in the group."

I smirk when Noah doesn't even turn in his direction. Seb's smile falls, and I want to laugh. But considering the threat in the room, I don't feel like now is the right time. Noah looks around the living room before his eyes fall on Gunner. "Let me guess. Hockey?" Gunner gives him a nod. Noah walks over to the wall and leans against it. "Clearly, I interrupted something. Continue."

Absolute silence reigns for another minute before I decide to just deal with things. They're not going to get any better without an intervention. I turn my focus back on Amber. "What's really going on? The truth this time, please."

Amber sighs and looks exhausted suddenly. No, scratch that; she's looked exhausted for a while now. "Rico, I told you. I want to be with Adam."

"No, you don't," I say resolutely. I push on before she can argue. "If you really wanted to be with him, I would step aside. But you don't. You don't smile when you're with him, you're not happy, and he hurt you tonight."

"He didn't hurt me," she scoffs.

"Check your arms." She shakes her head. "Amber, he grabbed you hard enough to leave bruises. I saw him. Besides, you don't grab a woman and manhandle her the way he did you tonight, especially not one that's seven months pregnant!"

Her surprised eyes meet mine. "You know how far along I am?"

My voice softens. "I know more than you think, Amber; and I want to know more. I want to know everything about you—your hopes and dreams, your fears, your joys, your sorrows. I want to share your life with you, Amber. I think I've made that more than clear."

"You have." Her voice cracks, and I see her tough facade crack for the first time tonight. Then she looks at Gunner for some reason. I watch as she pushes her shoulders back and stands to her feet. "But I've made my decision. You all need to leave now."

"Amber, I—" I start, but her brother pushes off the wall.

"I believe she told you people to all go home." There's a lethal edge to his voice that would be ignorant to ignore.

"All right," I say, backing down. I walk right over to her, knowing her brother is standing a few feet away. "If you need me, anytime, call me. I'll be there." She drops her head, and I can't get a read on her anymore. I look over to her brother. "I don't care that you're her brother. You hurt her, you'll answer to me." He doesn't even blink.

"I think he's got it," Aiden says, putting a hand on my shoulder and not so discreetly directing me to the front door. At the door he stops and looks back at Bri. "I'll be outside; take your time." He opens the door and all but shoves me out. We stand on the porch in the cool in silence for a moment.

"A little warning would have been nice," I mutter.

"I didn't know he was going to show up," Aiden responds. "And nice touch. Threatening him? Threatening the guy who can probably kill both of us without breaking a sweat."

I turn around and glance back at the house. "Yeah, he's one scary dude. What's he into?"

"Something so deep, even Bri doesn't really know. He's always in a foreign country and just pops in every once in a while." He gives me a look. "Usually when his sisters are in trouble."

"Maybe he just wanted to check in," I offer. "It is the holiday season."

He scoffs. "Right. Yeah, he just flew in from some country I don't even know the name of on a random day just to pop in? Try again."

I shove my hands in my pockets. "Okay, yeah. You probably have a point."

It's silent again, but it's not awkward. The nice thing about Aiden is that he can handle it being quiet. "What do you make of this mess with Adam?" He asks after a while.

I lean against the post. "I think he's an arrogant piece of work that has her wrapped up in guilt. Somehow, he's convinced her to let him back into her life. My guess is he's guilting her into it because he's her baby's dad. But he doesn't even pay attention to her. He ignored her practically all night." Aiden leans against the house and stares out at the driveway. He doesn't say anything, just listens.

The door opens, and Bri steps out. Aiden straightens and opens his arms. She turns into him, and I turn away to give them a moment. "How's brother dearest?" Aiden asks in a low voice. I smirk at the name.

Bri laughs. "Same old same old. Off saving the world, one hostage at a time." She sighs wearily. "I'm tired." That's all it takes to get Aiden moving. He nods at me as they walk past, but Bri pauses. "Rico," she shakes her head. "I'm sorry about all this mess. I love my sister; I really do. But sometimes, I want to throttle her. Like how can she even look at Adam when you're standing right here? Adam slept with another woman while they were together, probably repeatedly; and he wrote her and the baby off. He said he wanted nothing to do with either of them. And now, he what? Changed his mind? I don't buy it; not for one second." Aiden wraps his arm around her shoulder and pulls her closer.

"I think there's more to the story," I admit.

She eyes me. "I hope you're right; for your sake."

Me too.

They both say goodnight and head to the car. I wait a few minutes in the silence. I need to go home but find it hard to leave. The door opens, and I turn around, hoping it's Amber. It's not. Noah steps out silently and closes the door behind him. I eye him a moment. "Is this where you kill me silently?" I'm only half joking.

Without skipping a beat, he asks, "Do I need to?"

"Wrong guy," I mutter and turn back to face the driveway. I keep an eye on him out of the corner of my eye. Self-preservation and all that.

"Do you love her?"

His question takes me by complete surprise, but I don't have to even think about it. "Yes."

"You'll be good to her and the baby?"

"Yes."

"You'll take the baby on as yours?"

"Yes."

He doesn't say anything else, and I wonder if I passed the interrogation. I'm pretty sure it's pass or fail; there's no in-between. When I'm sure Amber's not going to come out, I face Noah. "Nice to meet you." I stick out my hand.

He eyes my hand, and I think for a moment that he's not going to take it. But he surprises me. "Take care of her." That's all he says before releasing my hand and stepping back inside as silently as he came out.

I blow out a breath of air. That guy is intense. I make my way to my car and drive home in complete silence. I get all the way home before I realize I never told him that Amber isn't with me; she's with Adam. I head inside wearily; I'm ready for bed. It's been a long day. I crash in my bed not too long after getting home, but it takes me a long time to wind down. I'm finally about to drift off to sleep when my phone beeps. I think about ignoring it but think better of it in case it's my mom and she needs something. When I pick it up and see the name, I swipe quickly.

Amber- thanks for not giving up on me

I stare at the text as my heart begins to pound.

Me- i won't ever give up on you

She doesn't text for a little bit, and I wonder if I've scared her off. But then she texts again.

Amber- why?

I smile, even though she can't see me.

Me- because you're it for me

Amber- just like that, huh?

My smile widens.

Me- just like that

Amber- okay

Me- okay

And just like that, I have hope.