Page 35 of Hart Breaker

What the fuck?

“I had Lily for six nights. It’s going to take a while to wean myself.” He gives me a squeeze. “I appreciate you.”

“And I’m gonna elbow you if you appreciate me any more than this right here.”

He whispers, “I’ll try.”

“Boone, I’m exhausted. Quit fucking around, yeah?”

“Well, get a power nap in. We have plans tonight.”

“My plan doesn’t leave this room.”

“This shit doesn’t happen in baseball,” comes from Nour, and Jillian laughs. “Maybe you got it wrong, little Hart.”

I know exactly what he’s referring to, asshole. I look over and glare at him.

“It was right there.” He lifts a shoulder. “Had to do it.”

“Hudson needs to sleep. We have a high-stakes card game tonight.” Boone rolls to his back.

“That’s tomorrow night, and we’ll be?—”

“Lauren rescheduled because she knew the OG Players would want to hang out with us.” He sits up, looks at me, and laughs. “Do you not pay attention to your messages?”

“The whole family is here; if anyone needs me, they know where I am.”

“Fuck, man, the team group text is blowing up. One of the guys heard someone stole Riley’s wedding dress right from her place.” He laughs. “They’re not sure when, but it’s gone.”

“Don’t they have security cameras?” Nour asks.

“Sure do, but they’ve been down for a couple of days, and no one knew.”

Thank God.

He slides off the bed. “I’m betting it’s her fiancé. One of the guys said he’s seen him a couple of times with some blonde chick in Ithaca.”

My eyes meet Jillian’s, and her brows raise.

“Any of them tell Jackson?” I ask.

“Nobody wants drama,” he says, yawning.

“You should tell Jackson,” I strongly suggest.

“Hell no, I save my drama for my baby’s mama.” He shakes his head. “I pick you.”

Jillian coughs out, “Bad idea.”

Boone is a giant child, the joker. He plays the village idiot with pride and is as laidback as anyone I’ve ever met, but the son of a bitch is quick.

He looks from her to me and sighs out, “Hart.”

Jillian jumps in for the save. “You said it yourself; you think it’s the boyfriend. He hates my brother, so if it comes from him, Riley’s going to think it was Hudson.”

I catch him glancing down at the pink scrunchy on his wrist. “Not getting involved directly, but I do have a little birdie whose ear I could whisper in.”

“Not to shoot myself in the foot, but be careful with little birdies—they’re fragile as fuck.”

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