End Game (Vegas Aces #5) - Lisa Suzanne Page 0,3

like that,” she says.

“Nobody asked for your opinion,” I shoot back.

Luke sighs. “Can I just have some time alone?” he asks.

“Everybody out,” Debbie says, her voice authoritative as her gaze falls to Michelle. She doesn’t mean me...does she? “I’ve got my famous homemade chicken soup for you,” she says. She sets a tray over his lap with soup and crackers along with a tall glass of chocolate milk. All of that sounds good to me. “Let’s give Luke some space to eat in peace, and when he’s ready, he will let you all know.”

“Thanks, Deb,” he mutters. He’s doing a lot of muttering.

“I need to talk with Josh anyway,” I mumble, and I follow my brother to the front door. “Is he okay?”

Josh shakes his head. “I’ve only known him for the last year, but I’ve never seen him like this. Football is his life, and it was just taken away from him for who knows how long.”

“What can I do?” I ask, or rather, I beg.

“Give him a minute to sort out what he’s feeling, and just be there for him. But don’t take any shit from him. If you need me, I’m right across the street.”

“Anything else I can do?”

“Do you have a guest room down here?”

I nod.

“Make it into your bedroom so he doesn’t have to deal with the stairs,” he suggests.

“Oh, good idea. Okay. Can I text you if I need any help?”

“Of course.” He gives me a look of sympathy. “Luke will waver between wanting to be alone and needing you not to leave him alone. I know that won’t be easy to judge when he needs what, but I can help. I know him pretty well. We don’t want him to slip into a depression over this, but he very likely will. It’s a big hit to him, especially given that it’s the last year of his contract. Just be sympathetic and be strong, okay?”

I nod. “I’m nervous, Josh.”

He hugs me. “I know. We’ll be here for you, I promise. Let me pop home and say hi to my wife, and we’ll be back in a bit. We can rearrange some furniture to make things more accessible down here for him.”

“But we won’t let Nicki move anything too heavy,” I say, a touch of slyness in my tone.

He chuckles and rolls his eyes. “She told you, didn’t she? I knew she couldn’t keep it quiet.”

I giggle before I toss my arms around his shoulders. “I’m so happy for you. Congratulations.”

“Thanks, little sis.” He squeezes me, and I don’t know how I keep my giant mouth shut, but somehow I refrain from telling him that his baby will have a cousin only a couple months younger.

I’ve only been living with this news a couple minutes. I’m not quite sure I actually believe it just yet.

I give Luke some space to eat in peace while I go to work on the guest room. I can’t do much since I’m guessing I shouldn’t lift too many pounds, but I change the sheets on the bed and grab our pillows from our bed upstairs. I take our comforter, too, and I set shower supplies in the bathroom.

I tackle his office next, pushing the lighter things around to make it easier for him to move. I sit in his desk chair for a minute.

What does this injury mean for his sponsorships? What does it mean for next year? If he knows he’ll just be cut after his contract runs out, will he even be motivated to work hard to get healthy?

These are all good questions. I make a note in my phone to email his agent tomorrow. He might have some of the answers I’m seeking, and since I’m his publicist, the agent seems like a great place to start.

I hear the doorbell along with Pepper’s barking, and I find Josh and Nicki on the other side. Pepper calms when she sees familiar faces, and she scampers back to the family room to lie in front of the television.

Nicki has a bouquet of flowers with a get well soon balloon coming out the top. She brings her gift into the family room where we find Luke watching the game where he was injured. He’s rewinding the play as we join him.

He watches as Hammond plows into him. Rewind. Watch. Rewind. Watch. Over and over and over.

It was a dirty shot. It was cheap. I’ve seen it too many times, and every time my reaction is the same: my stomach