Rush the Edge: A Brother’s Best Friend Hockey Romance (Blue Devils Hockey Book 3)

“I’ll take that, thank you very much.” My brother swoops in between Kane and me to steal the chocolate cake placed on his plate.

Kane stares at his empty plate but reluctantly nods when he remembers that he made a pledge that he was going to cut out all the same foods that I have, in solidarity, now that it’s the off season.

“Too sugary for you, and there’s gluten,” River mumbles with a mouthful of cake.

I glare at him, but Kane’s hand falls to my leg to calm my irritation.

“I made you something special.” My mom comes around with a dish that looks like pudding. “There’s enough for Kane too.”

“Thanks, Mom.” I give her a quick hug while Kane hands me a spoon.

Dr. Gibson put me on a small dose of steroids after my levels came back higher than usual, despite how much I hate taking them. Thankfully, after a week, I was feeling more like myself, and with another round of bloodwork, my levels plateaued, so I was only on them for a short period.

Now that Kane is well versed in Lupus, he’s taken it upon himself to make sure I get enough rest, eat all the right foods, and practice various forms of stress relief…all of which involve him.

River has sort of come around to the idea of us. He’s no longer making vomiting noises whenever we kiss in front of him, and he’s stopped taking his blood pressure, which he only did to prove that Kane touching me raises it.

When I told my parents, with Kane nervously pacing in front of me while I was on the phone, they laughed. At first, I thought they were laughing because they assumed it was a joke, but then my dad said, “What took him so long?” and I realized right then that Kane and I weren’t as sly as we thought when we were teenagers.

We’re not so sly now either, considering River is acting disgusted at Kane’s arm beneath the table, resting his hand on my thigh. There’s a twinge of awkwardness at the kitchen table that has nothing to do with Kane and me touching, though. Kathleen, Kane’s mom, is quieter than I remember her being. There was some major tension between her and my parents the summer they took Kane in that has now switched to discomfort and maybe even a little embarrassment.

Kane and his mom have only talked a handful of times since he dropped Miles off on her doorstep.

Which is why I thought it’d be a good idea to clear the air once and for all—no less on Mother’s Day weekend.

“I’ll be right back,” Kane whispers in my ear, scooting away from the table.

I nod and continue eating my pudding.

It’s not chocolate cake, but it’s good enough.

As soon as Kane leaves the room, my brother following after him, Kathleen’s bundled shoulders relax. She asks me questions about Lupus and then brings up how cute I am in my mascot costume during the games.

I tilt my head. “You watch the games?”

“Of course.” She glances in the direction Kane and River went. “I never stopped.”

I shoot her a small, reassuring smile when she looks back at me. Things may be awkward now with Kane, but I know it’ll get better. I know him, and I know his heart.

My mom makes small talk with Kathleen until our attention is drawn to the guys walking through the kitchen with something behind their backs. I raise an eyebrow and put my spoon down. What’s this?

“Happy Mother’s Day.” River pulls out a bundle of flowers and leans down to kiss my mom on the cheek.

“I told you that you coming home this weekend was my gift!” She’s beaming while gazing at her flowers.

I sit up a little taller. “Are those from my garden?”

River pretends not to hear me, but I know my peonies when I see them.

Kane steps forward, and he, too, pulls out a bouquet of flowers, one in his left and another in his right. He hands one to my mom, who gives him a ‘you shouldn’t have’ look, and the other to his mom.

“Oh.” Kathleen blinks back the surprise, the flowers clutched in her tight grip.

Neither of their bouquets are from my garden. My mom’s is full of daisies, which is no doubt because of me, and his mom’s is full of daffodils.

I know Kane well enough to know that he’s uncomfortable with the gesture, so I glance at River. He gives me a swift nod, swooping in to save the day.

River clears his throat, stealing the attention in the room, and looks at Kane. “I thought you were taking flowers from Daisy’s garden too.”

Kane shakes his head, chuckling. “I know better than to do that.”

I hum and give my brother a look. “You’re doing the dishes.”

He scoffs. “Isn’t that the second part of your Mother’s Day gift to Mom?”

I smile. “It was. Now it’s yours.”

My dad chuckles off to the side, my mom busying herself with finding a vase for the three bouquets of flowers now resting on the table.

Kane and his mom talk quietly for a few minutes, and I take the opportunity to give them privacy. They’ve only chatted a handful of times since Kane came clean, and it was only to give Kane an update on Miles, who is at a gambling treatment facility for the next several months.

I disappear upstairs to escape River’s complaining about the dishes and end up in my childhood bedroom. In the past, I refused to linger in here for too long, afraid it’d bring up too many hidden memories of that summer.

With my back to the door, I stare out the window. I smile softly with the memory of Kane across the yard, staring at me out of his own window. Even back then, when we were too young to realize anything was happening between us, I was drawn to him. Seeing his boyish smile, that later turned into a bad-boy smirk, was the highlight of my evening each night.

“Should I go over there and wave at you from my old bedroom?”

I spin quickly with a yelp. My hand moves to my racing heart. “God, you scared me.”

Kane gives me a lopsided smile and shuts my bedroom door behind him. The noise of it latching shoots a thrill down my spine. Heat pulls on my core as Kane strides over to me, his tall frame taking up so much space in my small bedroom.

I peer up at him. “It was nice of you to give both of our moms flowers.”

His tight jaw flickers when he glances away. For someone as arrogant as him, he doesn’t take compliments very well.

“Did you purposefully give your mom daffodils?” I question, knowing his heart goes so much deeper than anyone realizes.

He eyes me out of his peripheral vision.

“You did, didn’t you? I was wondering why you were reading my floriography book.” I smile.

Daffodils represent new beginnings—something that’s very fitting for him and his mom.

“You can be awfully sweet when you want to be,” I say quietly.

Kane finally turns to me. “Don’t tell anyone that.”

I laugh quietly, but it fades when he starts to dig into his pocket. “I got you something too,” he says.

“Me?” I observe his face before glancing at my belly. “Do you know something I don’t?”

His laugh makes me smile. “This isn’t a Mother’s Day present.” He turns serious. “Not yet, anyway.”

I try to hide a smile at the thought of us having a baby one day. It may be a struggle because of my Lupus, but with him by my side, I know we’ll be able to handle anything that is thrown our way.

“Then what is it?” I ask.

I study the way his fingers move against the screen of his phone, as if he’s searching for something. He sharply flicks his blue eyes to me when he stops swiping.

“Here me out,” he starts. “When you’re ready to move on from being the mascot…”

I pretend to be outraged by the idea. “Never. You’re stuck with me.”

Kane grins, softening his tight masculine features for a second. His hand lands on my hip, and he brings me in close. He spins me next, pulling me backward to rest against his hard chest. When he places his phone in front of my face, it takes me a couple of seconds to realize what he’s showing me.noveldrama

My eyelashes flutter as I attempt to clear my blurry vision. I grab onto his phone and zoom in on the photo. In blue typography, the words The Blue Devil Gardenerappear above a shovel, rake, and hoe graphic with a tagline underneath that says, Soil so good it’s devilishly strong.

“I had a logo made for you whenever you’re ready for that plant stand you’ve been dreaming about since we were kids.”

I bite down on my lip to keep from crying—or squealing. Maybe both.

The room fills with silence, and Kane shifts behind me.

“Uh, do you like it? Or…” His words fade, and he shifts nervously again. If I wasn’t so blown away by the gesture, I’d make him sweat it out a little longer, because it’s not often that Kane Barlow gets flustered.

His phone falls to the floor as I spin around in his arms. I take him by surprise when I push him onto my twin bed, his blue eyes gleaming with something enticing.

“I love it.” I climb over his legs and straddle him.

That bad-boy grin spreads on his face, and he leans back on my flowery blanket to relax.

“You gonna show me how much you love it?” he asks, voice husky.

I nod with a smile. He lets me kiss him deep and slow before needing to take charge. He flips me around to my back, like I weigh no more than his pinky finger, and hovers over me.

“The first time I had you on this bed, I went slow.”

I bite my lip from excitement.

His hands roam, caressing each of my curves. I squirm beneath his touch, eagerly waiting for another secretive moment with him.

“But this time, I’m going fast, little devil.” He smirks. “So hold on tight.”