Page 101 of Risky Play

I felt heat color my face. That thought had never occurred to me.

Kiira burst out in laughter.

“What happened with Matt?” Elsa asked.

I sighed. “It’s complicated.”

“Did your brother find out?” Ari asked.

I shook my head. “No. That was the problem.”

Kiira took a sip of her beer. “Were you still sneaking around?”

I nodded.

Elsa frowned. “Matt didn’t like that, huh?”

I sighed and gulped down my beer. It was nice they wanted to talk it out, but my thoughts were such a mess, I didn’t know what to do.

“Maddie,” Ari started. “What happened?”

“We broke up,” I muttered.

Kiira made a face. “Why?”

I let out a long, drawn-out sigh. “He didn’t want to be with me if we didn’t tell my brother. He doesn’t understand!”

“Then explain it to us,” Ari said gently.

So, I did.

I told them the reason I transferred to Franklin in the first place and then how my brother dropped the gloves with the guy who did it. How I was so afraid of what Noah would do when he found out his teammate, who he had taken under his wing, was fucking his little sister. I explained that Matt told me he loved me but then dropped the impossible ultimatum on me before storming out.

Afterward, Ari gave me a sad smile, but Kiira looked confused. Elsa had her arms crossed over her chest and looked pissed.

“So let me get this straight…you love each other but…you’re too much of a coward to tell your brother, ‘hey, by the way, I’m dating Matt. Get over it’? Sounds like a load of bullshit.”

Ari gave me a knowing look. “She has a point. I don’t understand the problem.”

I gulped.

“You didn’t tell him,” Kiira said for me.

I dropped my eyes to the table in front of me, guilt wrapping itself tight around my heart.

“Oh, Maddie,” Ari sighed.

“You gotta tell him,” Kiira insisted.

I looked up at the TV above the bar. The team was in Boston tonight for an away game. They were winning so far, but I had to tear my gaze away. I hadn’t been able to bear to watch a game since Matt and I broke up.

“Get over yourself,” Elsa scoffed. “You love each other. I don’t see what the problem is.”

“My brother will murder him,” I argued.

She shook her head. “That seems like an excuse.”

I looked around at the girls, and they all had similar looks on their faces.