Lead Player - Alex Grayson Page 0,71
seeing each other anymore.
“Hey,” she says, moving her eyes cautiously over my face. “How are you doing?”
I force a smile. “I’m great.”
She eyes the empty chair across from mine. “Do you mind if I sit?”
I dip my chin. “Sure.”
I look around as she sets her purse down on the table and claims the seat. The small café we’re at has wrought iron tables and chairs in a little fenced off area outside. It sort of reminds me of a place you see in movies where a cute couple sits and falls in love over coffee and croissants.
Surprising me, Allison reaches over and grabs one of my hands. “Let me ask again. How are you doing?”
“Honestly?” She nods. “I could be better, but I’ll be fine.” I give her a sad smile.
“That figures as much. And it’s to be expected.”
I glance back down at my decaf coffee, noticing a tiny crack on the handle. Lifting the cup to my lips, I take a sip. After I set it back on the table, I look at Allison.
“Why are you here?” I ask, not trying to be rude, but genuinely curious. She should be furious like her brother, but I get the sense she’s not and that confuses me. “And why are you being nice to me? I’m sure you’ve heard what your brother believes I did.”
“He told me,” she responds slowly. “But I don’t believe it.”
“You don’t?” I rear back in surprise.
Her look turns thoughtful. “No, I don’t think you did anything nefarious. I’ve always thought I was a good judge of character, and I don’t believe you have that in you. But,” her eyes hold mine, “I also think Enzo shouldn’t be blamed for thinking the way he does. What Karen pulled did a number on him, and he refused to ever let it happen again. It’s not surprising his mind automatically went there. The vasectomy was meant to prevent him from getting a woman pregnant, which is one less way he could be trapped. In his mind, it’s impossible.”
I wrap both hands around my cup and let the heat from it warm my palms. I’m still in shock I’m sitting here having a conversation with Enzo’s sister. A decent conversation.
“But you don’t believe that?” I ask.
Her hair sways across her cheeks when she shakes her head. “No. No form of birth control is one hundred percent.”
She looks past me, and her bottom lip slides between her teeth. I look over my shoulder and spot Juliet heading our way, her coffee in one hand and a deli sandwich in the other. The scowl she has on her face would scare even the strongest person. She’s in protective mode and doesn’t realize it’s unnecessary. But I love her for it.
Her eyes move to me and I offer a smile, hoping to defuse her anger before she reaches us. Stopping at the table, she takes her seat, setting her items on the table and shooting a fiery stare at Allison.
“Juliet,” I call her name. It takes her a minute to pull her eyes off Allison to look at me. “You remember Enzo’s sister, Allison, right?”
Allison lips tip up into a smile and she offers her hand. “It’s a pleasure to see you again, Juliet.”
Juliet doesn’t even look at her hand, just keeps her heated gaze on Allison’s face.
“Alaina didn’t do what your brother accused her of,” she says bluntly.
Understanding comes across Allison’s face. “I know she didn’t.”
“If your brother had any decency in him, he would know that too.”
“He’s not perfect by any means, but his reasons for immediately thinking the worst is sound. He’s scared he was taken for a fool again.” Her eyes move to me and she lowers her voice. “It terrifies him because he loves you.”
“Love?” Juliet scoffs. “Do you treat the people you love as badly as he treated her? If so, thank goodness she didn’t attach herself to your family.”
I kick her leg under the table. I get she’s wanting to protect me, but Allison is trying her best right now. Juliet needs to knock it off.
“That’s enough, Juliet. I love you for standing up for me, but it’s not necessary.”
“What?” she demands. “Enzo was an asshole for what he did.”
“I agree. And I’m not going to lie, it really fucking hurt, but in reality, can you blame him? As far as he knows, he can’t father children.”
“I’m not making excuses for my brother,” Allison interjects. “He handled the situation badly, but he wasn’t thinking clearly at