Neutral Zone Trap - Bianca Sommerland Page 0,56
want more soda.” Tone changing from the sweet, enduring one to something more irritated, Casey left Luke and went to Scott, wrapping her arms around his shoulders and burying her head against his neck. “Uncle Luke won’t give me any. It’s not fair.”
“You know mommy only lets you have two a day, and you talked Tyler into giving you one at the park.” Scott rubbed Casey’s back. “You tired, pipsqueak? Maybe we should get going.”
Casey shook her head without lifting it. “No, you gotta stay with Uncle Braxton. Can he be uncle now too?” She sniffled. “I’m really tired. Can I take a nap?”
Nodding, Scott cradled the little girl in his arms. He met Ryan’s eyes. “I was hoping to talk to you more, but she still does better with naps. Some think she’s too old for them, but her doctor says it’s fine because it doesn’t disrupt her sleep schedule at night and to let her set the pace.” His cheek reddened. “Ah, yeah, so more than you needed to know, but I’ve been at parent-teacher meetings and heard Becky deal with all kinds of judgment.”
“Becky is a strong advocate for her daughter from what Laura’s told me. I respect that.” Ryan motioned toward the hall. “You can bring her to our room to rest. It makes sense that all kids wouldn’t develop the same way. She’s old enough to say when she needs a nap. I can’t see that as anything but good.”
Shooting him a grateful look, Scott carried Casey to the bedroom, coming back a few minutes later as Ryan had taken over and fed Braxton the last few bites of his pizza.
A tender smile on his lips, Scott brushed his hand over Braxton’s hair before he sat in the armchair again, helping himself to another slice of pizza. “You two look good together. We were prepared to issue some warnings, but I don’t think that’ll be necessary.” Scott grinned at Ryan’s brow raise, then winked at Braxton. “Looks like you’re in good hands.”
“The best.” Braxton took a sip of rootbeer, giving Scott a curious look. “But what do you mean by warnings? Ryan’s a cop, you wouldn’t threaten him?”
Luke’s lips slanted over the rim of his glass. “Not directly, no. We’d just make sure it was understood that you either got treated well or we’d get creative. We’re very good at that.”
I’m not sure I want to know what that would mean. After having to save Raif’s car from the antics of the ‘Trouble Triplets’, Ryan prefered not to have their ire aimed in his direction. He wouldn’t use his position against them, no matter what mischief they caused in defending Braxton, but he’d rather stay in their good books because he was making their teammate, their friend, his lover, very happy.
Tone firm, Braxton held Luke’s gaze. “Don’t. I don’t care what happens, I’m telling you now, I won’t appreciate you getting involved. I can speak up for myself and if I ever have any issues, I’ll deal with them.” He huffed out a laugh. “If I ever get my ass beat for bratting out, though, I’ll welcome your advice on recovery for my ass.”
“That we can definitely do.” Finishing off his slice of pizza, Tyler sat back against the corner at the other end of the sofa. “But you get all the free passes now.” Concern shadowed his eyes as he looked Braxton over. “How are you, seriously? You look better than you did before the game last week, but Oriana said it’s going to take a while before you’re a hundred percent.”
Arm around Braxton’s shoulders, Ryan did his best to lend his boy as much strength and support as he could, knowing how hard the reality of all this was for him. He still had a long road before he could go back to doing what he loved.
But for the first time that the subject was brought up, Braxton was calm. Even managed a smile, though it was a little sad. “It will, but like I said, there’s always next season. I love hockey, but it’s taken up so much of my life, I’ve never gotten the chance to think about doing anything else. I’m gonna take this time for, like, self-discovery or something. Do some volunteer work when I’m up to it. Maybe take a few classes.”
“You’re a smart man, Braxton.” Scott’s encouragement seemed to relax Braxton even more. “And hey, if you need any suggestions on places that need volunteers, don’t be