Page 67 of The Head Game

August could still feel the velvet prickle of Nico’s freshly shorn hair against his fingertips and the way he leaned into his touch.

August had wanted to protect him. He hadn’t been able to protect Nico on the ice but he could do this now. Make him feel safe after coming out of what had to be an utterly terrifying experience.

“I don’t know.” August sighed. “This has been a weird twenty-four hours. I’m probably going to lose my job over this shit but …”

“No.” Skylar gave him a worried look. “You think so?”

“You heard what Kate said earlier.”

“Shit. Maybe I can fix this. Tell Kate you guys aren’t engaged and—”

“Does it matter?” August said. “Nico and I … we did sleep together and after this, I’m not exactly impartial. They don’t care how serious our relationship is, just that I can make calls without bias and I’m not sure I could do that anymore.”

“I feel like I fucked this up for you.” Skylar looked troubled. “I never meant to.”

“I know you didn’t. If anyone fucked up, it’s me,” August said. “I had plenty of opportunities to walk away and I chose not to. Maybe I’m not cut out to be a ref at this level.”

“No, August,” Skylar protested but the door opened and Nico’s parents walked in. All four of them.

Jesus, Nico would come with a built-in entourage, August thought uncharitably.

“Isa, don’t be stubborn. You need rest,” Anika insisted. “You’ve seen Nico is okay. Just come with me to the hotel. We’ll freshen up, get some dinner, then sleep. We’ll be back first thing in the morning.”

“I don’t know,” Isa said with a frown. “I hate the idea of leaving him all alone here.”

“He won’t be alone,” Anika protested. “He’ll have the nurses and—”

“Yes, but that’s not family.”

“Isa, I know you want to be there for our son but you need a good night’s sleep,” she insisted. “You’re coming to the hotel. No arguments.”

Isa turned to look at Pieter. “What do you think?”

He hesitated. “I want to stay but Anika has a point.”

“She does,” Noor said quietly. “I love Nico too but he’s in good hands. We’ve been awake for thirty-some hours. The best thing we can do for Nico tonight is get some rest and be fresh tomorrow. The nurse said he’ll need extra sleep anyway. He won’t even realize we’re not there.”

Isa sighed. “But what if he wakes up in the middle of the night and needs us? I know he’s a grown man but I spent most of his life away from him when he was a child. I want to be there if he needs me now.”

Her face wobbled and Anika pulled her close, whispering something too quietly for August to hear.

“I’ll stay,” August blurted out. Surely a fiancé would stay with the man he loved. That was normal right?

Oh good God. He was supposed to be pretending he loved Nico Arents.

The mind boggled.

“Oh, would you?” Her face filled with hope. “It would be such a relief knowing you were here with him. It would put my mind at ease.”

“Yeah, of course,” August said. “I’m happy to stay. It’ll be a relief for me too. Please, get some rest.”

Isa stepped forward and kissed his cheek. “Oh, I’m so glad you two are engaged. Nico always says I’m too nosy about his personal life. And really, I have no problem with him having fun at this age but I so want him to be happy.”

“He seems pretty happy to me,” August said. “I mean, even before we met …”

And there was the hole he kept digging himself deeper into.

“Yes, but think how much happier he must be now he’s found you. I think we all have that person we’re meant to find. Pieter and I were together to create Nico but Anika was who I was meant to love.” She gestured to her wife. “It all worked out like it was supposed to.”

---