Love Me Again - Aiden Bates Page 0,18

I wore like protective armor.

Only it wasn’t there.

When I looked at him, I could only dredge up mild dislike for what he’d done and the kind of man who would behave that way toward the guy he’d claimed to love. That dislike would probably never go away. It was like I’d said to Adrian—forgiveness was for me. But I didn’t have to ever forget.

I nodded to Kairo then approached Ricky. “Hey, dude. You up for some fine flag football this morning?”

He rolled his eyes but grinned shyly anyway. “Only if you’re on my team.” His voice was quiet, and he spoke like he didn’t actually want anyone to hear him. He didn’t even meet my eyes.

Damn, it was like looking at myself at that age. Someone who was too scared…possibly too ashamed or feeling too unworthy to exist. No kid deserved that. I’d survived that way through all of high school, but hopefully I could prevent Ricky from having that same experience.

And his self-esteem was every bit as important as his fitness.

I glanced at the kid again. “We’ve got this.”

He smiled faintly as he looked at the other players.

Yeah, he definitely reminded me of younger Leo. And he probably had for Kairo as well, so pairing us hadn’t been an accident.

It had simply been another instance of my biggest brother’s well-intended meddling.

I grinned. On the whole, Kairo’s involvement in any situation usually worked out for all of us. I’d learned to trust his instincts over the years because they were usually accurate.

I put my hand on Ricky’s shoulder. “Shall we go and get our flags? I see Kairo handing them out.”

A flicker of uncertainty passed over his face, and he bit his lip, but he nodded. “Sure.”

I turned him toward me and crouched a little to catch his eye. “You know, if you don’t want to do this at any point, just say the word. We can always sit a round out and cheer the others on.”

Relief settled in his eyes then he shook his head as he tensed his jaw. “Naw. With you and your massive muscles on my team, I won’t have to do much. We’ll win easy.”

I chuckled, and so did someone else. It was familiar but deep enough to drown in these days.

I spun around then tried to find my cool as I almost stumbled right into Shayne.

He put his hand out to steady me, and his fingers held my upper arm, warm against my bare skin. But he jerked away like the touch had burned him before I could move.

“You guys…uh… You guys mind if I take a few pictures of you before the game starts?” He grinned, and I almost grinned back.

It was muscle memory to respond to his smile, and the way his hazel eyes sparkled when he smiled had always made me happy.

I glanced down at Ricky while I absently smoothed my hand over my upper arm, where Shayne’s touch still lingered like he’d seared it there. “You happy to have some pictures of us pre-match?”

“Two of the winners before they even start?” Shayne grinned his encouragement.

“Heck, yeah!” Ricky pumped his fist, but he still looked uneasy, and his face was starting to flush from the layers of clothes he had on.

“Great. We’ll take a couple of shots then we’ll get that hoodie off you and do a quick warm-up. Deal?” I watched him for his reaction.

He hesitated, and I could almost see the fight going on in his mind. Did he want to lose the hoodie? Probably not. But did he want to lose face in front of me by admitting that? Also probably not, but I wouldn’t care if he chose to add a layer. I was happy to take this confidence thing as slow as Ricky needed to go.

“Leo’s warm-ups are the bomb!” Shayne said as his camera shutter clicked.

“Yeah? Think if I do his exercises, he’ll get me looking like him?” Ricky asked his question while he turned to give Shayne a fresh angle, and I almost chuckled at his sudden lack of camera aversion.

Shayne lowered his camera for a moment and looked at me, his gaze sweeping right up my body. Then he lifted it again and his expression was hidden away. “I think Leo can probably teach you a lot of tips.”

I was glad he hadn’t made any promises on my behalf.

“Okay, well, that’s me. Don’t want to keep you from your warm-up.” Shayne winked at Ricky as he picked up the small duffle bag that