Ryan called Camille later that morning, and since it was Monday and the salon she worked in was closed, Camille was free all day. Ryan gave her the address and Camille said she’d see her in about an hour.

Even though Ryan had expected Ben to leave, he didn’t. When she asked him if he was sure he wanted to stay, he said, “Sure. Maybe it’ll help her not worry so much if she meets me.” He did add that he and the guys were going to go out later and they might come over first, but that was it. Ben acted as if he didn’t have a single reservation about having a stranger in his house. Ryan didn’t know if he’d become a better actor after their one class or if he truly trusted her that much. She wasn’t certain which she preferred.

Closer to two hours later, the front desk called up to say that Camille had arrived. Ben told them to send her up, and three minutes later, Camille was walking into Ben’s apartment with eyes as wide as saucers.

Ryan walked over and gave her a hug.

“This is some place,” Camille said in her ear. “Does he run a drug cartel?”

Ryan laughed as she pulled back. “No. Why?”

Camille shrugged. “I watched Scarface earlier.”

Rolling her eyes good naturedly, Ryan turned so she could introduce Ben and Camille.

“Nice to meet you,” Ben said as he held out his hand for her to shake.

“Holy shit.”

Ben looked at Camille like she’d just escaped from a sanitarium. “Um, excuse me?”

“You’re Ben Williamson.” She turned to Ryan and pointed at Ben. “You’re living with Ben Williamson?”

“Yeah.” Ryan dragged the word out. In all the time she’d stayed with Camille, Ryan had no idea she was a hockey fan. “You’ve heard of him?”

Ben’s and Camille’s gazes both flew to her. Ben looked a little insulted, but it was Camille who spoke. “Are you kidding? I grew up in a hockey family. All three of my brothers played, and my dad coached.” Her eyes dropped to where Ben still held out his hand and she gasped. “Sorry.” She shook it vigorously. “It’s great to meet you.”

Ryan glanced at her friend. She might not know much about hockey, but Ryan did know it was expensive to play. If Camille’s family had been able to afford three boys playing it, they probably would have had a decent income. Since Ryan didn’t normally like to divulge too much of her own past, she typically didn’t ask questions about people’s upbringings. But now she couldn’t help but wonder what Camille’s story was, and how she’d found herself living in a hole-in-the-wall in one of Philly’s worst neighborhoods.

Camille held his hand a little longer than a typical handshake called for and flushed when she realized it. There was an awkward second of silence before Ben excused himself.

As soon as he left, Camille rounded on Ryan. “How could you not tell me you were staying with Ben Williamson?”

“Can you stop using his full name? It’s strange.”

Camille glared at her.

“Sorry. I didn’t know you’d know who he was. And I wasn’t supposed to tell you anyway.”

“He’s one of the best players in the league. Of course I know who he is.”

“I didn’t,” Ryan said.

“Well, there’s clearly something very wrong with you, then.”

“Gee, thanks.” Ryan led Camille over to the couch and they sat down.

“At least now I know why he didn’t want you telling anyone. Word of this could destroy his career.”

A sick feeling spread through Ryan’s gut. Obviously she’d known it could be bad for his job. He’d even told her as much. But hearing it from someone else notched her anxiety up a few thousand degrees. “Could it really destroy it? Athletes get caught doing dumb stuff all the time.”

“I guess that’s true. It probably wouldn’t destroy it, but he’s got a reputation for being a stand-up guy. So it’d definitely hurt his appeal.”

“No pressure,” Ryan muttered.

“It’s not like you’re going to go shouting it from the roof. And I won’t ever say anything. Pinky swear.” Camille held up her little finger.

Ryan smiled as she hooked hers with Camille’s. Even though she hadn’t put much faith in a pinky swear since elementary school, the gesture made her feel better. The two girls sat and chatted for a while, catching up on building gossip mostly. Camille seemed content to leave the topic of Ryan’s “job” alone now that she’d met Ben, and Ryan was thankful for it.

A while later, they were interrupted by banging on the front door. “Open up, asshole. I need to use your bathroom before we go.”

Gabe. Ryan started to get up, but Ben hurried into the room and toward the door. “Sorry,” he said to them as he reached the door. “And I also apologize for everything that comes out of his mouth once he gets in here. He can be a little . . . much.”

“I’m sure I can handle it,” Camille replied.

Ben nodded and pulled open the door. “You jackass. I have neighbors, you know.”

“Well, that was your first mistake,” Gabe said as he hurried in.

Jace followed. “I managed to keep him from knocking again. It’s the most I could do.”

As the men walked more fully into the room, Gabe’s eyes zeroed in on the couch. He drew himself up to his full height and swaggered over—or as much as he could swagger while wearing a knee brace. “And who do we have here?”

“This is Ryan’s friend Camille,” Ben said, though he sounded like it pained him to make the introduction.

Gabe grabbed Camille’s hand and kissed the back of it. “Pleasure.”

Camille wiped it off on her jeans. “Thanks.”

Wagging a finger at her, Gabe smiled. “Oh, I like you.”

“Lucky me,” Camille deadpanned.

Ryan wasn’t sure if Camille knew who Gabe was or not. Her face was impassive, if not mildly irritated. But even if she didn’t, Gabe was quick to introduce himself.

“I’m Gabriel Torres. I play shortstop for the Premieres.”

“I know,” Camille replied simply.

Gabe relaxed back into the couch, his need to go to the bathroom seemingly forgotten. “So tell me more about yourself, Camille.”

“What do you want to know?”

Gabe gestured toward Ryan. “How do you know the lovely Ryan here? Are you in the escorting business as well?”

“For fuck’s sake, Torres,” Ben growled.

“What? It was only a question.” Gabe looked genuinely confused as to what was wrong with what he’d said.

“You’re such an ass,” Jace added.

Gabe’s face fell, all the confidence dropping from it. “What’d I say?” he asked as he looked at everyone in the room.

Camille reached over and patted his knee—the one without the brace. “It’s typically not proper etiquette to ask if someone is an escort within seconds of meeting them.”

Seeming to mull this over for a few seconds, Gabe’s face was taut with concentration until he pointed a finger at Ben. “But that’s what he did.”

Ryan turned toward Ben. “He’s got ya there,” she said with a laugh.

After that, everyone was laughing. Ryan’s eyes roamed over the people in the living room. She’d never in a million years think that she’d be sitting around laughing with three millionaires. And what was more, she genuinely liked all of them. Jace seemed like a nice guy, and Gabe’s silliness made him endearing. And then there was Ben. Ben was . . . well, Ben was everything. He was all the things Ryan could imagine wanting in a boyfriend.

Her eyes took in the room and a dull throb of melancholy settled into her as she thought about how she’d never truly have a life like this one. All of this was temporary. And it was going to hurt like hell when she had to give it up.

* * *

After Gabe finally used the bathroom—and flirted unsuccessfully with Camille for a few more minutes—Ben attempted to herd the guys out the door.

“Where you guys headed?” Ryan asked casually.

Ben said, “Lunch,” as Jace said, “Meeting,” and Gabe said, “A date.”

Camille lifted one manicured eyebrow while Ryan bit her lower lip. “So you’re all going on a date together for lunch but calling it a ‘meeting.’ Got it.” Ryan’s words were teasing but the look in her eyes as they focused on Ben was a cross between anxious and curious.

“These guys are having a lunch meeting,” Gabe said as he jerked a thumb at Ben and Jace. “And I’m meeting a date so I don’t get bored waiting for them to finish.”

“You’re bringing a date to a lunch meeting?” Camille asked dryly.

“Jealous? There’s always room for one more,” Gabe said with a wink.

“With an ego that big, I doubt it,” Camille shot back, returning Gabe’s wink in an overly dramatic fashion.

“He’s not part of the meeting. He just likes to tag around wherever we go,” Ben added. He already disliked having to lie to Ryan, but adding to Gabe’s ridiculous story made him feel even worse.

“It’s true,” Gabe said as he nodded.

“Okay, well, have fun.” Ryan’s voice was full of forced lightness.

The guys said quick goodbyes and headed out the door. Once they were in the hallway, Jace spoke. “A date? Really, Gabe?”

Gabe shrugged. “I’m not at my best when I have to think quickly.”

Jace shook his head as Ben pushed the button for the elevator. They rode down to the underground garage in silence and piled into Ben’s truck.

The drive to the Players’ Club passed quickly. Ben pulled his truck into the enclosed lot at the back of the club that had two security guards watching over it. They nodded to Ben as he flashed his parking permit.

As soon as they were let into the club, Ben was assaulted by the raucous noise of men laughing and talking. The club wasn’t normally too busy during the day, but Mike Tarino never missed a chance to throw a party. Tonight kicked off the MLB’s All-Star Break, and since the summer had been fairly uneventful so far, Mike had gone all out. He’d had the entire day catered as well as set up various activities to keep a room full of current and former professional athletes occupied. There was a dart tournament, a poker game, craps, a roulette table, as well as a basketball shooting game. It was like a casino and Dave and Buster’s had a love child.

“It’s packed in here,” Jace remarked.

Ben nodded in agreement as his eyes traveled over the space. The Club, despite being in a rough section of town, was welcoming, with an expansive dark wood bar and lighting that was bright without being harsh. The green walls looked like freshly cut grass and had sports memorabilia adorning them. Ben loved being there if for no other reason than he could be himself and relax without having to worry about being asked for an autograph or bothered by a reporter. It was unfortunate that one of the rules of the Club was that he couldn’t tell anyone about it—necessitating the awkward lying to Ryan—because Ben was a frequent visitor and it meant that he’d always be telling some variation of a lie whenever he came. Not to Ryan specifically, since that relationship had an expiration date—a thought that did not make his chest clench—but to whomever he eventually settled down with.

The guys decided to make their way to the bar first. They’d all received their beers when Mike came up behind them and clapped a large hand on Jace and Ben’s backs. “Hey, fellas. Glad you could make it.”

They all shook hands with the Players’ Club owner before settling into easy conversation.

“How’s the rehab going?” Mike asked Gabe.

“Eh, it’s going,” Gabe replied before taking a sip of his beer.

“You still thinking of retiring after this year?” Mike asked again.

Gabe’s eyes widened as he did a deer caught in headlights impersonation.

“Wait . . . what?” Jace asked.

Mike’s eyes darted between all three of them before settling back on Gabe. “I’m guessing you hadn’t told them that yet. Sorry.”

“No worries,” Gabe replied as he looked at his friends, clearly awaiting their reactions.

Ben stared at his friend for a second. He looked unsure yet determined. Like he wasn’t certain how they were going to react, but he was preparing himself for a ration of shit just in case. Brow furrowing, Ben tried to make sense of what he was hearing and seeing. Gabe lived for baseball. Didn’t he? “How come you haven’t said anything to us?”

Shrugging, Gabe fiddled with his beer label. “I’ve been trying to get my priorities straight in my head before I spoke them out loud.”

“But we’re your friends,” Jace said. “If you need a sounding board, we’d always be here for you.”

“I know. That’s not why I didn’t say anything. It’s just . . . you guys are still so in love with what you do, but I’m not in that place anymore. I don’t think I have been for a while.” Gabe gestured toward Mike. “I wanted to hear the perspective of someone who’d retired. Try to figure out if I was really ready to leave the game behind me.”

“Come to any conclusions?” Jace asked.

“Yeah. I think so.” Gabe sighed heavily. “It’s like this. This is the second time I’ve hurt my knee bad enough to require surgery. Add that in with the other injuries like broken bones and strained ligaments that I’ve had over the years and, I dunno, I feel too old to keep putting my body through all this crap. I’ve worked hard for a long time, sacrificing my health for baseball because I loved it so much. But I think I could love other things too. And I don’t want to miss out on my chance to experience those things because I let myself be consumed with baseball for too long.”

Ben worked to process Gabe’s words. He understood what his friend was talking about. While they weren’t chronologically old by any means, the beating their bodies took made them feel much older than they actually were. And while Ben had always thought Gabe would need to be surgically removed from the field, that clearly wasn’t the case. It made Ben feel bad that Gabe had been struggling with this and Ben hadn’t even noticed. “That makes sense, man. You gotta do what makes you happy.”

Gabe visibly relaxed. “Really? You don’t think I’m lame for wanting to quit?”

“You’re not quitting in the giving up sense. You’re retiring. Moving on to find the next exciting thing that can keep Gabriel Torres’s ADD under control for more than five minutes,” Ben said with a smirk.

“Asshole,” Gabe said, though the smile he wore and the fondness in his voice took all the heat off the word.

Mike patted Gabe on the shoulder. “There are a lot of exciting opportunities in the world. I don’t think you’ll regret going in search of a few of them.”

The men’s conversation drifted into more neutral territory after that, but Ben’s brain was reeling. Ben admired how Gabe was reacting to his decision. Ben wasn’t sure that he’d be able to hang up his skates with as much acceptance and excitement as Gabe was radiating. Just the thought of retiring made his palms sweat.

But the idea of there being more to life, things they owed it to themselves to experience, that was what made Ben’s mind work overtime. Because even though he loved hockey, he also wanted something that could love him back.