Game On (10 page)

“I don’t think Clint’s the guy for me, Ry.”

He chuckled. “Hell, I coulda told you that.”

“I like him,” she said quickly. “It’s just…
when he kisses me…”

“Uh, Bri.” He cleared his throat. “This may
fall under the heading of
too much information
.”

She took a deep breath and found the
courage to say exactly what was on her mind. This was Ryan. She’d always been
able to tell him anything and everything. “I don’t feel the way I do when you
kiss me.”

She could hear the smile in his voice when
he said, “I take back what I said. That was just the right amount of
information.”

“What the hell are we doin’ here?” she
whispered. “This might be the biggest mistake we’ve ever made, Ry.”

“Yeah, or it could be the smartest risk
I’ve ever taken.”

She let his words sink in as she thought
about the implications of taking that risk with him. “I don’t know…”

“We don’t have to decide anything tonight.
Just get some sleep. I’ll see you tomorrow at the office, okay?”

“Okay, good night.”

“Sweet dreams, angel.”

She closed her eyes and let his deep voice
envelop her. She was used to hearing the laughter in his voice, accustomed to
his teasing and sarcasm, but the ache of longing she heard tonight was so
uncharacteristic, she didn’t know how to respond, so she merely said, “’Night.”

***

Ryan looked up from his spreadsheet to see
Aiden Cooper darkening his doorway. “Long time no see, buddy. How’s it goin’?”

“Save the b.s. for someone who’ll buy it,
Spencer. I want to know what the hell you think you’re doin’ with my sister.”

Ryan couldn’t believe Evan had sold him
out, but who else could it have been? Brianna wouldn’t have openly shared this
information with her brother, so it had to be Evan. “Come in, and close the
door behind you.” He gestured to the chair across from him. “Just shut up and
listen, before you start readin’ me the riot act.”

They had been friends their whole lives.
There was little Ryan wouldn’t say to Aiden, but when it came to the man’s baby
sister, he knew he had to tread lightly. “I told you not too long ago about
that night my buddy brought her to a party…”

“Yeah, you said you had too much to drink,
and you guys kissed.” Aiden sat down, leaning forward as though he was poised
to strike at the slightest provocation. “I suggested you talk to her about it,
so you could move on. I take it you didn’t take my advice?”

Ryan considered his options and chose his
next words carefully. “I’ve had feelings for Bri for a long time, man. Since
long before that night.”

“What the hell are you talkin’ about?”
Aiden sat back, staring at him quizzically, as though he was half-expecting the
punch line to come next. “You and Bri? Come on, you’re messin’ with me.”

“No, I’m not.” Ryan braced his elbows on
his desk and leaned forward. “I’m dead serious.”

“Are you tellin’ me you two have…”

Aiden couldn’t seem to get the words out,
and Ryan was grateful because discussing
that
with Brianna’s brother
would definitely cross the line. “No, we haven’t. I wanna take it slow.” Ryan
smiled when Aiden looked skeptical. “I know this is a new approach for me, but
Bri’s special. I don’t wanna screw this up.”

“So, she knows how you feel about her?”

“Not exactly. She knows I’m attracted to her,
but neither one of us wants to make a mistake that could cost us our
friendship.”

“You’ve got a lot of friends, Ry.”

“Yeah, but none like Brianna.” Ryan looked
at Aiden a long time, hoping he could express his feelings in a way his friend
would understand. “She gets me, in a way no other woman ever has. You know what
I mean?”

A slow smile spread across Aiden’s face.
“Yeah, I know what you mean. I’ve got dozens of guys in my life who’d take a
hit for me, who’d have my back in a fight, but Sela’s the first person I call
when I need someone to talk to.”

“That’s just it,” Ryan said, sighing. “It’s
always been that way for me and Bri.” He held up his Blackberry, flashing his
contact list. “She’s number one on my speed dial, the first person I think to
call when I need to vent or laugh or celebrate…”

“So how come you’re just figurin’ this out
now?” Aiden asked, crossing his booted foot over his knee. “You said that
incident at the party happened a few years ago.”

Ryan leaned back in his swivel chair,
knowing it was time to admit the truth to himself and his friend. “This may
come as a surprise to you, but I’m a shallow, self-centered, egotistical son of
a bitch.”

Aiden threw his head back and laughed. “You
think that’s news?”

The two men smiled before Ryan said, “I
thought I had to get all this craziness out of my system before settlin’ down
with just one woman, ya know?”

“And you think you’ve got it all out of
your system? You think Bri’s the one for you?”

“How would you feel if I said I thought she
was?” Ryan held his breath, waiting. He loved Brianna’s family like his own,
and he wanted their approval even more than he realized.

“You’ve got a reputation, Ry. Granted,
you’ve earned it, but if you promise me you’d never do anything to hurt my
sister, I’ll believe you.”

“I swear to you,” Ryan said, holding up his
right hand. “If she decides to give this thing a chance, she’ll be the only
woman in my life. I’d never do anything to hurt or embarrass her. You gotta believe
me.”

Aiden seemed to consider his request as he
tipped his head to one side, scanning his face for some hint that he was being
insincere. “I do believe you.”

“How do you think Josh is gonna feel about
this?” Brianna’s father and Luc had been close friends for years. Josh knew
Ryan’s reputation with women as well as anyone, and it scared Ryan to think of
how Josh might respond when he found out that he’d set his sights on his baby
girl.

“That’s between you and my old man.” Aiden
got to his feet, a smirk on his face. “Good luck with that, buddy. You just
might need it.”

Ryan couldn’t get Aiden’s gibe out of his
head all day, so he decided to man up and tell Josh the truth. He knew it could
end for he and Brianna before it even began if her parents didn’t approve, but
if Ryan could convince her father he was sincere, it could go a long way toward
convincing the woman herself that he was playing for keeps.

He stood on the wrap-around porch and rang
the doorbell. This house had been a home away from home for him growing up. He
thought of the weekends he’d slept over, hanging out with Aiden, or the fishing
trips with Josh and Aiden that he and Evan had enjoyed as kids. These people
were his family and he didn’t want to lose them anymore than he wanted to lose
Brianna.

Josh opened the door with a smile. “Since when
do you ring the doorbell, kid? You’re family, not company.” He slapped Ryan on
the back as he stepped into the open foyer.

The house was filled with the warmth of
rich wood and natural stone, so different from the opulent mansion he’d grown
up in. Walking in to the Cooper home always made Ryan feel like he’d stepped
into a welcoming retreat, where some of his best childhood memories resided.

“Aiden’s playin’ in Chicago tonight,” Josh
said. “Let’s grab a beer and head downstairs to watch it on the tube.”

“Lexi around?” Ryan asked, following him
into the kitchen.

“No, she and Sierra went to visit Alisa and
the baby.” He chuckled. “That poor kid doesn’t get five minutes peace with all
the people around smotherin’ him with affection all the time.”

Ryan rolled his eyes as he accepted the
long neck from Josh. “Yeah, I really feel for him.”

Josh laughed and slapped him on the back as
they headed down the staircase leading to the family room and games room in the
basement. “It was a nice surprise when you called and said you wanted to stop
by tonight. I know how busy you and Evan are with Titan.”

“Yeah,” Ryan said, sitting down on the
distressed leather couch across from the big screen TV. “But you know my
brother; he’s taken it way too far. He works crazy hours, and his commitment to
the company has cost him a hell of a lot.”

“Yeah,” Josh said, sinking into the
loveseat next to Ryan. “I was real sorry to hear about what happened between
him and Erika. She’s a good girl.”

“That she is,” Ryan said, taking a polite
sip of the beer he didn’t want before setting it down on the coffee table.

“Think they’ll be able to work things out?”
Josh asked, reaching for the remote control on the coffee table.

“I’d like to say yes, but I’m a realist.
Evan is who he is, and I don’t see that changin’ anytime soon.” Ryan cringed as
soon as the words left his mouth. They were true, but he didn’t need to remind
Josh how unlikely it was for people to change.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right,” Josh said,
setting the remote down on the cushion beside him once he’d located the right station.
“It’s a damn shame, though. For most of us, a love like that only comes along
once in a lifetime, if we’re lucky.”

Ryan knew that was his opening. “That’s
kind of what I wanted to talk to you about, Josh.”

Josh glanced at the screen when he saw his
son being interviewed. “What’s that?”

He reached for the beer bottle when he
realized his mouth was too dry to get the words out. “Um, me and Brianna.”

“What about you and Brianna?”

Josh’s eyes narrowed and Ryan had an
inkling of how his suspects must have felt when he cornered them in an
interrogation room. “I, uh, like her, a lot.” That didn’t even begin to
describe his feelings for her, but he knew Josh would have to get used to the
idea before he revealed his true intentions.

“What do you mean, you
like
her? I
already know that. You two have been the best of friends for as long as I can
remember.” Josh kicked his feet up on the coffee table, waiting for Ryan to
continue.

If he’d thought explaining himself to Aiden
was difficult, it was nothing compared to this. “Yeah well, I’m beginnin’ to
think there may be more to it than that.”

“How much more?”

Josh was deceptively calm when he posed the
question, but Ryan wasn’t fooled. His police training had obviously taught him
to reveal nothing. “I care about her, more than I’ve ever cared about any
woman.”

“That wouldn’t be too tough. Hell, there
have been plenty of first dates that I can recall, but not too many second
dates.”

Ryan hated that he couldn’t dispute Josh’s assertion.
“I never intentionally hurt any of those women, you need to know that. They all
knew the score. We went out, had a good time, maybe we slept together… or not.
But I told them all from the start that I wasn’t interested in any more than
that. I wasn’t seein’ half a dozen women at a time, and I wasn’t lyin’ about
what I was doin’ when we weren’t together.”

“I know that.”

“You do?”

Josh smiled. “You may think Evan is more
like your old man than you are, but before Luc fell for your mama, he had quite
a reputation with the ladies. A lot like you, in fact.”

“Really?” Ryan couldn’t imagine his father
as a womanizer. He’d never met two people more devoted to each other than his
parents. It gave him hope that maybe he and Brianna could find what his parents
had.

“People probably would have said there was
no way Luc could’ve settled down with just one woman, but Marisa believed in
him, and I think that made him believe in himself.”

Ryan smiled. His father had always been a
ruthless business man. It was amusing to think that he was the one drawing
strength from his wife. “I’ll have to ask him about that sometime.”

“You do that.” Josh looked him in the eye.
“But I wanna hear more about you and my baby girl.”

Ryan swallowed his discomfort. He knew this
wasn’t going to be easy. Josh had three sons he loved, but he’d always had a
special place in his heart for his only daughter. “I started realizin’ I had
feelings for her a while back.”

“Did you tell her?”

“Not really.” He started peeling the label
off his beer bottle. “I wanted to, but I was afraid.”

“Afraid of what?”

“I never wanna lose what we have, Josh.
She’s my best friend.”

“That’s how it was for me and Lexi in the beginnin’
too. It was a hell of a risk, but for us, it paid off in the end.”

“I’m hopin’ it’ll pay off for me and Bri,
too.” He set the beer bottle down on the table and leaned forward. “But I wanna
know we have your blessin’.” When he didn’t react, Ryan continued. “You and
Lexi are family to me, and I’d never wanna do anything to disrespect you.
That’s why I came here tonight, before Bri and I even thought about takin’ our
relationship to the next level.”

“Bri’s dated a few guys over the years, as
you well know. She’s even brought a couple of them home to meet her mama and
me.”