Page 79 of The Defender

Relief cooled my lungs. I grinned. “Like ’em?”

“Are you kidding? I fucking love them. Where did you get these?”

“I mixed and matched. Some are from department stores. Others are from slightly sketchy websites. This one was custom-made.” I pointed to a pair of boxer briefs with his face on it.

I’d spent a week agonizing over his gift. What did you give someone who already had everything? I couldn’t compete when it came to money spent, so I’d opted for something humorous but heartfelt.

Vincent said he owned one type of underwear during our arcade night (black Delamonte boxer briefs—I’d checked), so I bought him a dozen more of my choosing for variety’s sake.

His underwear collection now included a navy pair printed with blueberry pancakes, a white pair with an alternating pattern of footballs and boots, and a green pair with little T. rex heads in an ode to Blackcastle’s book club. My favorite, however, were the custom-made black briefs plastered with Photoshopped pictures of him from the waist up, wearing dark shades and aHappy Birthdaysash.

I was afraid gifting him underwear would be weird since that was something a girlfriend would do, but I figured he’d enjoy the cheeky humor (no pun intended).

“I’m wearing these tonight.” Vincent held up the Photoshopped ones. “If I miss this opportunity, I’ll never forgive myself. Actually, fuck it. I’m changing into them right now.”

“This means you can’t say I have bad taste ever again!” I yelled after him.

He closed the en suite bathroom door, his laughter echoing through the wood.

I couldn’t wipe the smile off my face. Coming to Budapest had definitely been a good idea. My worries already seemed less all-consuming. I was healthy, I had a great friend group, and I had a decent nest egg.I’ll be fine.Even if I didn’t thrive, I’d survive.

While Vincent changed, I wandered through his bedroom. Correction: hissuite. It was too big to be called a bedroom. It even had a balcony, though it was too cold outside to enjoy it.

His phone sat on his nightstand. It kept lighting up every two seconds, and my eyes couldn’t help but be drawn to it. A flurry of texts filled the lock screen. Most of them were happy birthday messages, but the one at the very top was a calendar notification.

Birthday-Do Not Contact.

My brow wrinkled. Why would he set a Do Not Contact reminder on his birthday?

“What are you doing?”

I startled and whirled around. Vincent stood in the bathroom doorway. His voice was neutral, but his gaze slid between me and his phone with a hint of suspicion.

“Nothing.” I hadn’t done anything wrong, but my heart pounded like I had. “I mean, I was checking out your room and this caught my eye.” I gestured to the lamp next to his phone. A crystal swan with sapphire eyes formed the base. It freaked meout a little, and I really had been interested in it before his phone distracted me.

“Yeah, I think the owner is a big crystal guy. You should see the ballroom. Crystal chandeliers everywhere.” Vincent walked over and slid his phone in his pocket. “I’m going to hit the gym for a bit, but I’ll see you at dinner? Thanks again for the birthday gift.” His face softened. “I love it. Really.”

It was a clear dismissal. “You’re welcome. I’ll see you later.”

I left, my brain buzzing with questions. Who was that reminder about, and why did he set it for today specifically? He didn’t hang out with anyone outside of Blackcastle and his sister’s friend group.

Was it an old teammate? A business partner? An ex-girlfriend?

My chest pinched at the thought.

I’d always considered Vincent a pretty open book, but I’d never seen him shut down that quickly.

Uncertainty shadowed me as I rejoined my friends downstairs.

Just when I thought I had him figured out, he surprised me all over again.

CHAPTER 22

VINCENT

If Brooklyn saw my phone reminder, she didn’t let on. I felt bad about being so curt with her earlier, but I’d panicked.

It was stupid of me to set that alert in the first place. October third was bad enough, but after last year’s spiral, I’d set one for my birthday too. Seeing the command in black and white helped rein me in. The last thing I needed was to blow everything up on what should be a happy day.