She didn’t get that, though. If they were attracted to each other, why couldn’t they act on it?

Duncan.

She sighed as she settled her Mac on her lap again. Big brother was being annoying. He was always annoying. She loved him, and his protectiveness was cute, but damn. She was a big girl.

She liked men. She liked having fun. Why couldn’t she and Marc have fun together if they both wanted it?

Oh right—Captain Codger. He wasn’t into “fun.”

She pursed her lips and stared at her screen. That was okay. She was used to getting her way. Duncan had just asked the question, “How do you always do that?” She’d played dumb, but she knew what he meant. All her life she’d gotten her own way. Her parents and her big brother had loved her, but having a hockey star brother had left her in the shadows a lot of the time. She’d never felt anything but loved, but had to admit there’d been times she’d felt a little lost.

Hockey took a lot of time. As a kid, there’d been early morning practices and after school games. As a teenager, there’d been weekend tournaments in other states. She’d been dragged along on those trips she hadn’t wanted to go on, sitting in cold hockey arenas drinking hot chocolate or by herself in hotel rooms. Her parents had felt guilty about all the time and attention Duncan got on the path to becoming a professional hockey player and had basically given her anything she wanted in an attempt to make up for it.

She’d never taken advantage. Well, not much. She might be a little spoiled. She’d be the first to admit it. But she truly didn’t believe she was a bad person because of it. She sometimes didn’t think things through before she acted. She changed jobs and boyfriends and hair color with head-snapping frequency. But she loved her family. She appreciated everything they did for her. She had friends she cared about and she was smart and she was forming a plan for her life.

Duncan didn’t believe that. Yet. But she would show him.

She tapped on her keyboard. She had more work to do for one of the few clients she already had in her fledgling business.

A Facebook message from Jillian popped up. Lovey smiled as she typed a response, arranging to meet for dinner before the game. She suggested somewhere near the arena so she could get a ride with Duncan and/or Marc. Did they drive to the game together? She knew Duncan would get there a couple of hours before game time, so that should work. Then if they didn’t meet up after, she could take a taxi home. She’d be ready to go when they got up from their nap. Meanwhile, she had work to do.

She inserted earbuds to listen to music as she worked so as not to disturb the guys. Much as she pushed Duncan, she knew he and Marc—apparently especially Marc—took their profession seriously. It was game day and nothing could get in the way of that. She’d behave herself and not interfere or distract them.

An hour, maybe a little more, passed before she heard noises from down the hall as the guys woke up and got ready to go back to the arena. She saved her work, closed the numerous windows she had open, and shut down her computer. She carried it down the hall to her nearly empty bedroom. She’d “unpacked” earlier, which consisted of hanging some of her clothes in the big empty closet and setting others in neatly folded piles on the floor. She’d arranged her shoes and boots on the floor of the closet. Her underwear stayed in the open suitcase, also on the floor. Well, Mom would get in touch with the storage facility on Monday and arrange to have her things transported to the condo. Hopefully it wouldn’t take long.

She changed into a pair of jeans, her favorite Silver ones, super low and skinny, but kept the big sweater on. She liked the moss green color, and it was nice and warm for sitting in a cool arena. She’d have to get an Aces jersey to wear to games if she was going to live in Chicago.

She poked her head out of the bedroom to check the status of the bathroom. It was empty, so she nipped in there to touch up her face while her flat iron heated up. She added a little more eye shadow and mascara and shiny lip gloss, then wound the flat iron through her hair to curl it back off her face in long waves.

There.

She grabbed her flat, knee-high boots and her purse and headed out to the living room again. Marc was in the kitchen, perched on a stool, one foot on the floor, the other on a rung of the stool, and her heart skipped a beat as she took in his attire. He wore a dark suit that fit his big body admirably, a snowy white shirt, and a silky tie in shades of blue, black, and purple. Shiny black shoes completed the classy outfit. With his spiky brown hair and stubbled jaw, he literally took her breath away. She struggled to drag air into her constricted lungs.

“Hi.” He unwrapped something and took a bite.

“Hi. Good nap?”

“Mmmhmm.” He was chewing.

“What’s that?” She dropped her boots to the floor and leaned on the counter, nodding at the bar in his hand.

“Protein bar.” He took another bite with his straight white teeth. He appeared to be one of the guys who’d religiously worn mouth protection and still had all his own teeth. And they were very nice teeth.

On a plate in front of him sat an apple core and the peel of an orange he’d apparently already eaten. Pre-game snack.

“Do you and Duncan go to the game together?”

“No. I like to get there earlier than he does and I stay later. I’m leaving right away.”

“Can I get a ride with you?”

He just looked at her, his face expressionless. “Why?”

“I’m meeting my friend for dinner before the game. I thought I could get a ride with you guys.”

“Get a ride with Duncan.”

Her insides tightened. “Do you have to be so rude?”

He blinked. “Uh…”

She frowned at him. “I’m not a terrible person. What’s your problem with me?”

His head jerked back. “Nothing. I have no problem with you.”

“Yes, you do. You’re being a big jerk to me. I’m sorry if I showed up and cramped your bachelor lifestyle or whatever the hell you’re pissed off at me about. I’m not going to get in your way. Is it that much trouble to have a passenger on the drive to the arena?”

His eyelids lowered and he finished chewing the protein bar, tossing the foil wrapper on the plate. “No,” he finally said, brushing his fingertips together. He rose from the stool, and holy hell and shitfire, he absolutely dominated the space in that dark, gorgeous suit. “It’s no trouble. Sure you can have a ride. And sorry. You’re not ‘cramping my style,’ whatever the hell that means.”

“Well, something’s wrong,” she muttered. “But thanks for the ride. I won’t even talk, if that’ll make it better for you.”

He picked up his plate, moved around the big island to dump the contents into the trash, and slide the plate into the dishwasher. He grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge. “I don’t believe you could do that.”

She stared at him. “Do what?”

“Not talk the entire way there.”

Her mouth fell open, but then she caught the faint twitch of the corners of his mouth. Was he actually…teasing her? She rolled her lips together briefly, then admitted, “You’re probably right.”

She caught a flash of those white teeth in a brief smile. “Let’s go.”

She grabbed her boots and sat on a stool to pull them on and zip them up. “Duncan!” she yelled.

She heard his muffled, “What?”

“I’m getting a ride with Marc. We’re leaving now.”

He appeared so fast she blinked. “What?” He shot Marc a questioning glare.

Marc shrugged, jingling a set of keys. “She asked. It’s not a problem.”

“Oh, for the love of cheese.” She headed to the closet and pulled out a puffy black down jacket. She looped a big multi-colored knit scarf around her neck and grabbed the matching mitts. Her purse was on a small table and she picked it up. “Let’s go. Let me know what you’re doing after,” she said to Duncan. “If we don’t meet up, I’ll take a taxi home.” She paused. “Have a good game.”