Offside (63 page)

“No, but something was bothering him. I was hoping he’d spoken to you about it.” Tim shrugged. “He knows he has you and Becky now. Maybe he’ll open up eventually.”

“Yeah . . . eventually.” Zach folded his arms over his chest, hating that he couldn’t just go in there and demand Scott tell him everything. After his conversation with Becky, he knew he had to be patient. Funny how it was so easy for him to show patience with a sub in a scene but so difficult when it came to the people he loved. When something hurt them, he wanted the power to make it better. But sometimes it was out of his control. And he had to accept that.

To some extent.

“Hey, you’re the Cobras’ coach, aren’t you?” A tall, lanky man in his mid-twenties with long, greasy, dirty blond hair stopped in front of Tim. He thrust his hand out as Tim stood and nodded. “I’m Jimmy. Scott’s brother.”

Tim smiled as he shook the man’s hand. “It’s very nice to meet you. Your brother is an excellent addition to our roster. We’re very happy to have him.”

“Yeah?” Jimmy snorted, scratching his scruffy jaw. His lips twisted with amusement. “That’s not what I heard. Did he finally get a contract?”

All the open friendliness in Tim’s features faded. He was still smiling, but there was something guarded about it. “Yes. But I’m sure he’ll want to share the good news with you himself.”

“I’m sure he will. Wanna tell me what room he’s in?”

Like hell.
Zach stepped forward before Tim could answer. “No.”

“No?” Jimmy stared at him, the nostrils of his sharp nose flaring. “Who the fuck are you to tell me no?”

Maybe it was none of Zach’s business, but Scott had asked Becky to keep his family away. And Zach had no doubt that included Jimmy. Something about the man made his skin crawl. He met the man’s stare with a level gaze. “Your brother and I are close. His girlfriend informed me that he wasn’t interested in seeing ‘family’ right now. I’ll let him know you stopped by.”

“Like fuck you will.” Jimmy tried to step around him, but Tim cut him off.

“Give me the number where you’re staying, and I will personally see to it that Scott gets it,” Tim said, obviously trying to keep the peace. “He can decide whether or not to call you.”

“Where I’m staying? I’m staying in my goddamn car.” Jimmy jutted his thumb over his shoulder at the parking lot. “Which is where I’mma be until I see my brother. You tell him I’m here. He knows better than to brush me off.”

“Really?” Zach fisted his hands by his sides, grateful for Tim’s presence. Something about the coach being there made it a bit easier to keep his cool. “And why’s that?”

“Because he fucking owes me.” Jimmy’s tone was cold. He stepped up to Zach, baring his teeth. “Ask him about it. How he became such a good player. He might have some talent, but it was all the training, the teams that cost a shitload for him to play on, the expensive equipment, that got him where he is.”

Zach’s brow shot up. Was the man taking credit for Scott’s success? “He’s been playing since he was quite young. You’re younger than he is. How can he owe you for anything?”

“Our foster parents . . .” Jimmy’s lips curled into an ugly sneer. “They weren’t rich, but ‘Mommy’ made sure Scott always had the best of everything. Not me. I had nothing and Scott knows it wasn’t fair. You remind him of that when you tell him I’m waiting. You remind him of how I had shit clothes and never enough to eat because even at that age he was such a pretty boy.”

Cold washed through Zach’s veins. Bile rose in his throat. It couldn’t be what he thought. Not even this bastard would figure his own brother owed him if . . . His jaw ticked as he moved into Jimmy’s personal space. Like Scott, Jimmy had a few inches on him, but Zach was much heavier than this scumbag. He relished in the hint of fear widening the man’s eyes.

“What exactly are you saying? Scott was the favorite?”

“Of course he was. Her little fucking whore. He was born that way.” Jimmy let out a nervous laugh, his gaze shifting. “He’s always known how to work people. I can tell he’s gotten to you.”

No. Just no.
Zach inhaled roughly. “How long was Scott with this woman?”

“Until he was thirteen. And she got bored of him, so we were both shipped off. She never wanted me—”

“You disgusting son of a bitch.” Zach’s tenuous control snapped like the stem of a cheap wine glass in a massive fist. His vision flooded with flaming red. He lunged for the man, snarling as Tim hauled him back. “Your brother! Your own brother and you use something like that against him? You’re sick! I’ll fucking—”

The pathetic piece of shit ran as Tim dragged Zach back, waving off the hospital security as they came to see what was going on. Tim was stronger than he looked. Or maybe part of Zach held back because he didn’t want to hurt him. But he wanted to hurt someone. Scott’s brother. Or that woman . . . fuck, he’d never wanted to wrap his hands around a woman’s neck before.

“Goddamn it!” Zach slammed his fist back into the wall. His chin quivered. He clenched his jaw. “How could she have—why didn’t he say something? This is . . .”

“I know.” Tim took hold of Zach’s shoulders and shook him hard until Zach met his steady gaze. “I know, but beating the shit out of his brother won’t help him.”

“Then what will, Tim? I can’t force him to talk to me about this. It didn’t help when I expected Becky to tell me why she was scared to be with me and this is worse.” Fuck, he was going to be sick. How could anyone do that to a child? Any child? He rubbed his lips with his fist. “This is worse. So much worse.”

“Scott needs someone who knows what happened and doesn’t blame him. You can’t force him to talk to you, but you can tell him what his brother said. And how you feel about it.” Tim swallowed hard, looking at little sick himself. “Then just listen. I think, deep down, Scott knows what she did was wrong. But he’s spent his whole life being told it wasn’t. By his brother. By
her.
This explains a lot. He’s been living down to what the people he should have been able to trust expected him to be.” He pressed his eyes shut. “Jesus, help me. I’ve been so fucking hard on him. Always on his case about how out of control he is. He needed—”

“You couldn’t have known, Tim. None of us could have.” Zach inhaled slowly. Losing it wouldn’t fix anything. Not that anything could really be fixed. There was plenty of false blame to hand around, but doing that would be pointless. Tim was right. Zach watched Jimmy’s car speed away, positive that the man wouldn’t go far. He’d be back, and Scott needed to be prepared to deal with him. And not alone. “I’ll let Scott know you were here. That way he has both of us. And Becky, if he’s comfortable telling her—which I hope he is.”

“You have my number. You let him know he can call me whenever he needs to.” Tim’s lips were white, but he straightened, jerking at his suit jacket, his resolve firm in his eyes. “You let him know he’s not that little boy anymore, with no one—” His voice caught. He cleared his throat. “He has you and Becky. Me. The team. We’ll help him work through this.”

“I’ll let him know.” Zach frowned as Tim turned toward the parking lot. “You’re not coming in?”

“Naw, I’ll swing by later. I need to see my niece. Maybe it sounds weird, but after that I have the strangest urge to hold Amia and promise I’ll never let anyone hurt her.”

“Doesn’t sound weird at all.” Zach inclined his head at Tim, then pulled his phone out of his pocket. He tried to keep his tone as normal as possible, but Tracy knew something was wrong. He couldn’t tell her, but she seemed to understand when he asked, “Can I talk to Mathew for a minute? I just need to tell him I love him. And that I’m always here . . . don’t ask.”

“I won’t. It’s always good for a kid to hear that anyway.” Her tone was full of understanding. She was good like that. “Mathew, your uncle wants to talk to you. What?” She paused. “Yes, the one that totally rocks. You can tell him all about how awesome he played. I’m sure he’d like to know that you were watching. And he’s got something to tell you too.”

* * * *

Scott laughed as Carter and Hunt lingered by the door, blocking Mason and Ramos from coming in, Carter once again asking to see his spots. Little pain in the ass. Scott secured the sheet over his waist and pulled down his hospital gown to reveal his chest. He poked at one particularly itchy mark, already starting to scab over, using the opportunity to scratch at it while Becky wasn’t looking.

“Nasty, aren’t they?” He dropped his hand to his side as Becky glanced up from her magazine. He was only allowed two visitors at a time, but apparently, Becky didn’t count. The nurse seemed to think it would be good for his “wife” to keep an eye on him. He gave her his most charming smile. “They itch like hell, but I’m being a good boy and not touching them.”

“Liar!” Carter snickered as Ramos dragged him out into the hall. “If you need someone to tie him up, Becky, I’ll so do it.”

“Freak.” Scott gave Carter the finger, then sat forward to listen to Ramos and Mason’s recount of the game. He’d already heard it, but he couldn’t get enough. Damn, he wished he could have been there! He grinned as Ramos described a fight Mason had gotten into after one of the Rangers’ brutes had slashed Carter. Ramos gave Mason a nod of thanks as he finished with how Mason had taken the man down. Carter had shown off the stiches on his jaw. Less self-conscious about his scars than he once was. Ramos had done that.

Carter was doing really well with the big Spaniard. Scott had to admit, he used to be a little jealous of what Carter had with Ramos and Jami, but now it was just awesome to see Carter being the same, easygoing, smart-talking, little shit he’d always been. More confident. More comfortable in his own skin.

‘Cause I’m getting there too
. Yeah, he’d started off needing to prove himself to stay on the team, but Zach and Becky had motivated him a lot. And he finally believed he was good enough for them. Part of him knew they’d be fine without him, but they wanted him. Best of all, he’d helped them too. Waking up to see them cuddled up on that small chair-bed had made him feel big enough to conquer the fucking world. But he didn’t have to go that far. All that mattered was making sure the two people he loved more than anything were together. And with him. And happy.

Zach slipped into the room, standing near the door, looking a little grey—like someone had just told him he was being traded to the Bruins or something. Scott’s smile slipped as Zach asked Ramos and Mason if he could speak to Scott. Alone.

Fuck, if he’s been traded, I’m . . . I’m going with him. Even if I have to give up the game.
The thought made his muscles tense as though his whole body objected. Never stepping onto the ice again? Never scoring another goal? Could he do it?

It wouldn’t be easy, but he could. He
would
.

What about Becky?

Leaving her would . . . no. He wouldn’t leave her. He’d talk her into coming too. The three of them could figure things out. There must be good schools for Casey in Boston?

Who said anything about Boston?

Okay, he was thinking worst-case scenario here. He had to rein it in and wait for Zach to tell him what they were dealing with. People in relationships made decisions like this together, right? Zach could say no. Fight the trade or . . . damn, what if it was something else? Something worse?

“Scott, I need to tell you something.” Zach’s features stiffened, as though he was trying not to show how upset he was. He wasn’t covering very well. Becky stood, moving toward Zach, reaching out to him. Zach hugged her, then whispered something. He looked at Scott. “It’s up to you whether or not you want Becky to stay.”

“Of course I want her to stay!” Scott didn’t feel good lying in bed while Zach was being all serious and weird. He moved to stand, then shifted to the other side of the bed when his IV tugged at his hand. His stomach rolled. He couldn’t wait to get the damn thing out. “It’s the three of us, right? There’s nothing you can say that I’d want to keep from her. Just spit it out, you’re scaring me.”

Zach rubbed Becky’s arms, then nodded and came to sit on the edge of the bed. He took a deep breath. “I saw your brother. Spoke to him.”

The earth did a nosedive under Scott’s feet. He reached for the bed and latched on to the rail. Jimmy was here. What did he want? Scott had sent him twenty-thousand dollars. Maybe he should just send him a clean million and tell him to take a hike. But it wouldn’t be enough. It would never be enough.

“Where is he?”

“I asked him to leave.”

Oh, fuck.
Scott knew Jimmy. Jimmy wouldn’t have just walked away. He had to be desperate to come all the way down here. He owed people. And those people would agree that his rich brother should be able to cover him. They’d sent someone.

Scott pulled at the IV stuck into his hand, making a frustrated sound when Becky grabbed his wrist. “Babe, you have to let me go. I’ll go see my brother. He just needs a bit of help, then he’ll go away.”

“Why would you want your brother to go away?” Becky looked from him to Zach, not letting Scott go. “Someone please talk to me.”

“Jimmy wants money. He always wants money from you, Scott.” Zach blinked fast, his eyes shiny, his lips pressed together so hard they turned white. “He thinks you owe him. He told me why.”

“No.” The whole world froze. His heart stopped beating. He twisted away from Becky and backed into the bed. Something warm oozed between his fingers. He shook his head. Kept shaking it. Jimmy wouldn’t have done that. He wouldn’t have told anyone. No one needed to know. “You’re lying. Jimmy told you he wanted money. I can see that. But that’s it. I’ll give him the money. I don’t need it.”

“Scott . . .” Zach came closer, but Scott couldn’t let him. Not if he knew. He wouldn’t get it.

If he knew, he wouldn’t want Scott anymore. He’d see him for what he was. Someone who would take any opportunity given to him. Someone who was only good for one thing.

But Zach should know. He should know everything. Scott’s bottom lip quivered. He bit it hard. He wouldn’t be weak now. He’d be strong enough to admit that Zach deserved better than him. That Becky did. They both deserved better.