Page 27 of Brace and Chase

They leave once Ava has made all her wishes and I’mstill smiling when Chris comes out and the elf walks over towards where I am.

Something in me tells me I need to keep seeing this, keep listening, so I move to a palm tree and hope whoever the man in the elf costume is, he doesn’t see me.

And I succeed.

My heart rate slows down enough for me to be able to hear what Chris is saying to Brotnik.

“You okay?”

“I am,” Brotnik replies, though he sounds subdued.

“Did any of the kids puke on you?” Chris smiles teasingly at him and Nikolay snorts inelegantly.

“No, thank all the gods. They were all amazing. Even Mater’s boys, who recognized me.”

“That’s good.”

There’s a long beat of silence then where neither of them speaks, and I find myself holding my breath. Eventually, Chris speaks again.

“Look, Santa, I don’t know why you’re making everyone’s lives so miserable.” I see Brotnik’s head turn sharply and I can already picture the frown he’s sporting, but Chris bravely continues. “But, I do know you have to have your reasons. In the months since I’ve known you, I’ve seen firsthand how much you care about your teammates. I know I don’t know you too well, but I do know they’re your family. So of course you have to have a good reason for all this drama.

“But I’m going to tell you a story about myself that Ithink could help put things in perspective for you.” It’s then that I realize maybe this is too private for me to listen to, but I can’t make myself leave. Ihaveto listen. “It’s something you don’t know and something everyone involved in the story knows. Also, I should probably tell you that you shouldn’t tell anyone else about this, just out of respect for your teammates, okay?”

Shit, I really shouldn’t be hearing this.

“All right.” Nikolay’s quick agreement leaves me out of options. Chris just starts talking.

“Before they met Sterling and Drew, and before I met Benny, of course, I slept with Bear and Jules. It happened years apart, and it was only one night, but I had sex with them, and we all found out we all knew each other when they threw a dinner to meet the new guy in Benny’s life.”

My jaw about hits the floor while Chris just takes a deep breath and continues.

“Safe to say that dinner was a shitshow. Sterling hated me right then and there, and he hated me for months after.” Chris chuckles weakly. “I don’t blame him for it,” he adds quickly, shrugging. “Anyway, like I said before, I don’t know what Charlie did to you or why you refuse to make peace with it, but I do know that every single teammate inside that house cares about you. Hell, most people in that house, period. Theywantyou to be happy.

“In my experience—which I know you probably couldn’t care less about—the best way to be happy in the present is to not let the past affect it. You have to acceptwhatever happened and see what you have in front of you now. Focus on that.”

I still can’t see his expression so I have no clue what he could be thinking, but Nikolay just stays quiet for a long moment, then I see him nod.

“I hear what you are saying,” he says, in a voice thick with emotion, something I’ve obviously never heard before. The door to the living room opens the next second and Gab walks out determinedly. I didn’t see her at the party; I suppose she just arrived.

She walks right past Chris and plants herself on Nikolay’s lap, throws an arm over his shoulders, crosses her legs, and stares at him with the least friendly smile I’ve seen in my life. I shiver just from looking at it.

“You know whatIwant for Christmas, Santa?”

“What?” I hear the grumble, then I see Gab turn Brotnik’s head to look directly at her with two fingers on his jaw.

“I have been the very best of women alive this year. Mostly because I haven’t murdered any of my players even though they’re actively throwing away their chances of getting another ring this season. What I want for Christmas is for Nikolay to get his head out of his ass. Do you think you can make that happen, Santa?” She’s practically growling by the time she gets to the last word.

“I’ll see what I can do.” Brotnik says eventually. Then he simply stands, with Gab in his arms bridal style. Sheyelps, clearly not having expected that from him and now clinging to his shoulders.

Nikolay drops her legs—abruptly enough to be considered a bit rude—but he does make sure she has her balance before letting go of her back. Then they both stare at each other again, both looking unhappy.

I hurry my ass back inside and try to act like I didn’t hear everything I just heard.

I’m going to pretend—for my sake and everyone involved in Chris’s story—that I didn’t hear that bit, but everything else Chris told Brotnik paints a very different picture than what I’ve been getting since I arrived.

Maybe it’s time to try again with him.

ELEVEN

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