32

luca

I ’ve made up my mind and have a plan.

Not a good one. Not a smart one. But it’s mine, and I’m holding onto it with white-knuckled resolve as I towel off sweat and avoid the mirror.

I’m done hiding.

Done sneaking around, pretending like what I have with Nova is some shameful thing I should be keeping quiet about because she’s embarrassed or afraid or whatever of disappointing her twin brother. Every second of every day I spend pretending she’s not the best thing that’s ever happened to me feels like a betrayal of both of us.

Newsflash: this is my relationship, too.

I also get to decide.

So now is the time.

Today is the day. No backing out.

Gio is sitting in front of his locker, unstrapping his pads like it’s any other day, any other practice. He’s got his earbuds in and is bopping his head to whatever he’s listening to, gloves hitting the floor with a thud.

My heart follows.

This guy’s my teammate. We’ve split hotel rooms on road trips, shared pregame superstitions, and gotten drunk on postgame beers. He’s the backbone of this team. And I’m about to break his trust.

And now I’m about to tell him I’ve been hooking up with his little sister. No— not hooking up. Not fooling around. Not some one-night regret.

Nova is more to me than that.

I inhale once. Twice. Then walk.

“Hey.”

He doesn’t look up right away, gesturing for me to wait while he yanks out an earbud and adjusts his tape roll.

“What’s up?”

My voice doesn’t come right away. It’s stuck somewhere behind my ribs.

I force it out. “I need to talk to you.”

His eyebrows arch as he finally looks at me full on. “ Okay… ?”

Get to the point.

Got it.

“In private.”

Gio glances around now, resting his hands on his knees. “What could you possibly have to say to me that it has to be in private?” He sits up straighter, his eyes narrowing now in that way that makes you feel like a microscope just turned in your direction. “What’s going on?”

“It’s about Nova.”

The second her name leaves my lips, the locker room air changes. Tension crackles. A nearby player whacks the edge of a stick against the bench without realizing it, and I swear the sound slices through my nerve endings and causes me to startle

His jaw tics. “What about her?”

Every muscle in my body goes still. I’m hyper aware of the echoing water from the showers, the clank of a stick being dropped somewhere across the room, the buzz of blood behind my ears .

I draw a slow breath, bracing.

“I’m seeing her.” I swallow; feel like a giant pussy. “Dating, I mean.” Pause. “We’re dating.”

He holds his hand up. “I fucking heard you.” Gio runs a hand down his face.

He’s silent, which is way worse than yelling. Worse than a punch. At least if he hit me, I’d know where we stood.

This? This is unbearable.

His hand stays over his mouth for a second, then drops. His stare cuts through me.

“For how long?” he asks finally, voice flat.

I shift on my feet. “A while.”

“Define ‘a while.’”

“We matched on a dating app about a month ago?” Not sure of the exact timeline—it’s not something I’ve kept track of.

Her brother stands, walking away from me and moving toward the hall where the coaches’ offices are and leans against the cold, cinder block wall there.

I have no choice but to follow.

“You’re right. This isn’t something I want to discuss in front of those assholes.” He frowns. “Go on. Say more.”

I nod, heart thudding hard against my ribs. “We started texting first. It was casual—just jokes at first. Then one night, we stayed up talking until three in the morning. It just… kept going from there. Nova didn’t…”

Shit.

I don’t want to rat her out for wanting to keep this a secret, but I also don’t want to think any of this was intentional. Lying was the very last thing I wanted.

“Nova didn’t what ? Finish your sentence.”

I rake a hand through my hair, frustrated. “She didn’t specifically come right out and ask me to lie. We just didn’t say anything at first because it felt too new. At first there was nothing to tell. Then, well—she was afraid you’d react like...”

His eyes flash. “Like what? Protective ? ”

“Like you’d lose your shit,” I say, doing my best not to poke the bear but wanting to be honest. “I get it. I do. She’s your sister. But she’s also her own person. She’s smart. Obviously stubborn as hell. She doesn’t do anything she doesn’t want to do.”

“Yeah.” He laughs bitterly, pinching the bridge of his nose. “I know that better than anyone.”

Duh.

“She didn’t want to hurt you. Neither did I. But I’m not sorry. I won’t bother pretending to be.”

That makes him look up.

Really take a long, hard look at me.

There’s a beat of silence where I wonder if he’s going to punch me in the face.

“What’s that supposed to mean? You’re in love with her?”

The question hits harder than a body check.

Am I?

“Yes. I think that’s where I’m at.” Have been from the second I saw her at the ESPYs and the moment I learned her name .

Then he scoffs, muttering under his breath. “Fucking dating apps. Knew it was only a matter of time before she matched with one of my friends.”

Friends.

Gio considers me his friend?

I swallow down the sentiment, the heat settling in my heart. For a moment, I bask in it and almost laugh from my nerves.

Almost.

“When I matched with her I thought it was a joke—and when she matched with me, it was because she thought I was a catfish.”

He leans back against the wall again, arms crossed. His jaw’s working overtime, like he’s chewing through every version of how this could go, clenching and unclenching and clenching some more.

“I should beat the shit out of you,” he finally mutters, gaze sharp. “I totally want to right now, you realize that, right? ”

“Yeah,” I say. “But you would have thrown a punch already.”

His brow lifts as if I were daring him.

“We only want what’s best for her. Neither of us would ever hurt her.” Not intentionally. “I’ve never wanted anything more than I want her. We’ve had the best fucking month of our lives.” At least I have anyway—can’t speak for her. “I love her.”

He lets out a long, harsh breath.

“I have since I saw her at the ESPY Awards three years ago.”

Gio tilts his head. “You weren’t on the team then.”

“I know. I was with Kurt Rasmussen.”

“Well now this is really fucked up,” he mutters, shaking his head. “I mean— you ? Of all people? Why couldn’t she date someone normal?”

Gee, thanks.

“Pretty sure she’s tried that?” I refuse to be insulted by his tone of voice. “Trust me, I didn’t plan any of this.”

“Valid,” he mutters. “Nova never did like doing things the easy way.”

I crack a half-smile. “Indeed, she doesn’t.”

A beat goes by.

Then Gio looks at me again, and this time it’s a little less like he’s picturing me face-first in the ice.

“So now what?”

I shrug. “No idea. She has no idea I’m telling you any of this. In fact, after you saw us the other night we’ve barely spoken.”

“So, her plan is to keep this a secret for as long as possible?”

I shrug again, embarrassed. “I guess.”

“That is so fucked up.” He glances at me up and down. “Dude, if I were you, I would be so fucking pissed.”

I perk up.

Is this his way of telling me he’s on my side?

“It hasn’t felt great,” I admit. “It would be nice to date someone who wasn’t hiding me like a giant turd in her toilet. It sucks. ”

He crosses his arms, thinking. “Anyone keeping a terrible secret for her must really love that little shit.”

I nod. “She’s a monster.”

“Alright then,” he says, straightening up like he’s about to call a team huddle. Gio claps once. “Here’s what we’re gonna do.”

“ Oh God.”

“I think,” he says slowly. “It’s time to make her realize what she’s losing. She’s too comfortable. She thinks she has time to figure all this shit out. Well, it’s time to shake that shit up.”

I hesitate, unsure. “This isn’t a revenge plot, right?”

“Nah,” Gio says hastily. “Definitely not revenge.”

“I don’t want to hurt her,” I say.

“You won’t,” he promises. “We’re gonna be dramatic and see what the little brat does, eh? See how she reacts.”

That lands. Heavy. Real.

“Fine. But if this backfires, I’m blaming you.”

He claps his hand on my shoulder and gives it a squeeze. “Deal.”