Total pages in book: 126
Estimated words: 121734 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 609(@200wpm)___ 487(@250wpm)___ 406(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 121734 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 609(@200wpm)___ 487(@250wpm)___ 406(@300wpm)
“Yeah?” He grinned.
“Yeah.” I kissed him.
He sealed his mouth to mine, and it was a long time before he let me go.
I was okay with that.
The team had decided this celebration needed to be more personal, and it turned out Jesse had a house nearby. We all piled into his place, where he had a karaoke machine set up in the basement, complete with its own stage. Meester and Eric were the deejays.
Coaches Marken and Javier showed up. I didn’t feel too awkward being here, though I pulled away from Tyler as they approached.
Both waved me off. “We’re adults, Rain,” Marken said. “If my wife had a night like you had tonight, I wouldn’t let her out of my sight. I get it.” Javier nodded beside him. “We get it.”
I couldn’t help my smile. One night. I would let Tyler and me be Tyler and me in front of the team for this night. Come tomorrow, it was back to business.
Later that night, I was telling Tyler that plan as we got back to my hotel. The doors slid open for us as we stepped inside. Tyler was just in front of me, but came to a complete stop. “What the fuck do you want?”
I moved around him, looked, and felt the floor fall from underneath me.
Dane was sitting in the lobby.
75
RAIN
“Dane.” I stopped in my tracks, just inside the lobby doors.
He stood, his face hard. “I’d like to talk to my sister.”
“Why the fuck now?” Tyler growled, taking a step toward him.
Dane’s eyes flashed, but they settled on me again. If anything, he seemed… I didn’t know. I couldn’t place the emotion. I’d so rarely seen any emotion on Dane’s face, so it wasn’t natural. He’d always been impassive. A wall.
“I came to apologize,” he said.
“Apologize for what?”
I touched Tyler’s arm and moved around him, but I kept a hand on him. He drew in a shuddering breath, standing behind me, fitting himself against my back.
Dane’s eyes followed our movements. His jaw clenched. “I should’ve said something. Stopped it. I should’ve…” He glanced away, then looked down at his hands, which were in fists at his sides. “I was a year older than you, Dylan.”
Dylan.
I’d not been called that name in twelve years. I almost didn’t realize that he was talking to me. “I go by Rain,” I told him.
His eyes flared. “Because mom gave you that name?”
I nodded. “She said she’d always loved the name Rain Connors for me. He wanted the other name.”
“You could’ve changed it.” He cocked his head to the side, an unspoken question.
I shrugged, feeling my throat tighten. “It was the last thing I had from her, so I kept it.”
“Do you even know mom’s maiden name?”
I shook my head. “She never told me and… No one ever told me. I didn’t search for it.”
“I’m sorry for that.”
I lifted a shoulder, wanting to shrug that off, but I couldn’t. “Mom said she didn’t have anyone. Was that a lie? Did she?”
He snorted. “Let’s just say there’s a reason Dad looked like a knight in shining armor to her. You’re better off. I don’t let my girls see them.”
His girls.
“You named one of your daughters after me?”
He jerked his head to the side. I could tell that surprised him.
“I was in the bathroom at the arena and heard your wife talking to her. They mentioned Grandpa Keith. And his love for licorice…” I faltered, not knowing why I’d even brought her up. “I just assumed.”
“They didn’t see you?”
I shook my head. “I came out of the stall when they were leaving. She sounded happy.”
His face clouded over and his shoulders slumped. “I was trying to survive too. Back then. Dad was—he was demanding and up our asses, and I’m sorry I didn’t stop Daniel from being such an asshole to you.”
I didn’t know what to say or how to feel. I wasn’t even sure what I was hearing.
“When you left, I never thought that’d actually be the last time I saw you,” he continued after a moment. “I don’t know what I thought. I was just—I was trying to survive. Look…” He stepped toward me before coming to an abrupt halt, his eyes lifting to meet Tyler’s.
“There are a lot of things I’d like to say about how we grew up, but none of it’s an excuse. None of it. I felt bad when you never came home, and I was shocked that you stayed away. I was hurt, but now, knowing things from your point of view, I had no reason to be hurt. I can’t fix anything that happened, but I don’t hate you. I never did. I want you to know that. I just—I was a shit brother and a shit person to you, and I’m sorry. I named Dylan after you because even if you don’t want anything to do with me, you’re still my sister. Daniel doesn’t speak for me or my family, and if he doesn’t change his fucking attitude about you, he’s going to find that Dad is the only one talking to him. Lindy, my wife, she wants to meet you. She wants the girls to meet you. But that’s not why I’m here. I…I’m sorry. I think all I can say is that I’m sorry.”