Take the Chance (Top Shelf Romance #9) - Brittainy Cherry Page 0,360

them, but they’re certainly appreciated.” Why are there butterflies suddenly flitting around in my stomach?

“You don’t need to do anything to warrant something nice. If it was reasonable, I’d send you flowers every day.” He clears his throat, and I can hear water running in the background. “I wanted to check in with you before I head out this afternoon. Would it be okay for me to call you later tonight, once I’m settled in Toronto?”

“Of course.”

“And when I’m home, you’ll stay over again? If you’re not busy?”

“I’m available whenever you need me.”

“That would be always, Charlene. I’ll touch base when I’m in Toronto. Enjoy the flowers.”

“I will. Bye, Darren.”

He never ends a call with goodbye. I don’t know why. I stare at my phone for several long seconds as I roll what he said around in my head. “That would be always.”

With the recent revelation about his family, I’ve come to a few new realizations. Darren was essentially starved of affection as a child, and likely for his entire life, so his asking for my time is him trying to restrain his neediness. All those nights spent in his bed with him lying like Dracula was as much about giving me space as it was about being afraid to seek intimacy and be denied. It isn’t control he’s seeking, so much as a way to let go of the restraints placed on him.

Part of me loves being needed by him like this, but the other part worries that need turns into dependency, and that’s when things get dicey. Until now I’ve never allowed myself to get involved with someone to the point of needing them so acutely.

I don’t have time to fixate on it, though. My morning meeting and deleting my mom’s emails keep me too busy to be able to obsess. At noon, Violet peeks in my door and declares it’s lunchtime and she needs to eat all the Thai food because she’s starving to death.

I shoulder my purse. “Should we invite Jimmy and Dean?”

She gives me her cringy face. “Only if we run into them on the way out?”

“Sure.”

We’re barely seated at a table before Violet is beelining it to the buffet, loading her plate with things she normally wouldn’t. She barely utters a word as she shovels food into her mouth.

Violet slows down about halfway through her plate. “Okay, I think I got a little overexcited.” She slumps back in her seat and rubs her tummy. “I hope Chicago doesn’t shit the bed this game.”

I pause with my fork half an inch from my mouth. “Vi! You can’t say things like that. You’re pretty much ensuring they lose with that kind of talk.”

“Toronto has been solid this season, and they’re fighting to win, you know? They haven’t seen the Cup in more than half a century. Besides that, and you can’t repeat this to anyone, but Alex hasn’t been on top of his game. That injury last season has slowed him down, and the only reason he’s been managing is because Darren is picking up the slack. Everyone knows that. All the guys, and Darren I’m sure, but none of them will say anything.”

“Alex has been playing well,” I counter. But even as I say it, I know it’s a half-truth. Normally Alex is one of the top players in the league, but this year has been different. His stats have taken a serious hit, and he hasn’t been playing as well as usual, whereas Darren’s stats have been on the rise, particularly his assists. It’s like he’s handing goals to Alex instead of taking them for his own. Which says a lot about him as a person.

“Well, in the general sense of the word, but not like he used to. Promise me this conversation stays between us.”

“Of course. I promise.”

“You can’t tell Darren.”

Violet has been my best friend for almost a decade, so when she asks me to keep a secret, it’s usually a no brainer. But since Darren and I just dealt with the fallout of one of his secrets, I hesitate for a second before I respond.

“I won’t tell Darren.”

I hold out my pinkie and Violet grips it with hers. “Imagine if you unzipped a pair of pants and found a dick this small inside. How sad would you be?”

“So sad.”

“Darren seriously hasn’t said anything about Alex’s performance this season?”

I consider what she’s asking, and weigh it with how freely I should share my private conversations with Darren. “He mentioned that recovery can