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I slow to a stop, spinning toward him with a challenging look in my eyes. I fear the venom in my glare might be lost to the darkness, so I put some extra bite in my words. “Why do you care, Dickbag? Shouldn’t you be running back to Rainbow Brite?”
“Rainbow Brite?”
“The tiny ball of sunshine waiting for you in the bar.” When he continues to stare blankly at me, I roll my eyes and spell it out for him. “I can’t imagine your wife loves the idea of you being alone in this alley with me.”
There’s a moment of complete silence; even the biting wind grinds to a halt around us. Then deep, rumbling laughter fills the air. “I am not married to Lucy. She’s a lovely woman but she’s too sweet for me.”
The amount of relief I feel at his words is unsettling. I need to put distance between this overgrown puppy and myself. “I didn’t think anyone would be too sweet for you, Dickbag.”
“You would be surprised.” His words are little more than a breath, but I hear them. I don’t get a chance to ask what he means before he presses into my space, overwhelming me with his scent and blocking out the rest of the world. I think he might kiss me, which is insane, but then I feel his hand on my back, gently turning me toward my car. The driver’s door is open, and I have one foot in before I regain enough of my senses to form words.
“Are you married?” The breathiness of the question isn’t lost on either of us, and I quickly drop into the driver’s seat to hide my flushed cheeks.
The moment I’m seated, Theo’s torso follows me into the car. He reaches across my stomach, and I hear the click of my seatbelt fastening. “I am not married. I’m not even dating anyone.” The way he says “dating” makes me frown. There’s a bite to the word I hadn’t expected from him. “How long are you planning to stay?”
“Why? You trying to see me again?” That’s it. I’m buying myself a fucking muzzle.
Theo huffs a small laugh against my cheek, causing me to suck in a breath. His fingers dance up the column of my throat in a barely-there touch. I nearly whimper when his thumb brushes against the center of my bottom lip. What the fuck is happening right now? “It was good to see you, Viper.”
His response snaps me back into myself, and I pull my chin out of his grip. “Wish I could say the same, Dickbag.”
Theo gives me a smile that promises far more than I’m prepared to take on before stepping away. Just as the door closes between us, I hear him say, “Drive safe, Charity Lawson.”
He’s still standing on the sidewalk when I turn the corner onto Main Street, but something tells me this isn’t the last I’ll see of Theodore Grady.
THREE
BROTHERS
CHARITY
“DANE!”
My fist beats slowly against the apartment door, the exhaustion of the last two days pouring through my voice as I call his name a third time. I should have stayed at Peaks for another drink.
Or for something else.
The door jerks open, and I nearly end up punching him in the eye with my raised fist. Dark hair drips soap and water onto bare shoulders, and he’s holding a towel around his waist with one balled fist. Dane’s mouth is set in a hard line, but the murderous look in his eyes switches quickly to one of confusion. “Charity?”
“Idiot,” I say the word like a greeting, shoving my way into his apartment. It’s small but surprisingly put together. Not only does he have furniture in the living room, but I can see a table with matching chairs on the other side of the kitchen.
It’s...nice. Since when does this little shithead have nice things?
“What the fuck are you doing here?”
“That’s a hell of a greeting for your big sister.”
“Yeah, well.” He closes the door hard enough his keys rattle on the hook above the light switch. He has a key holder? And he uses it? “I wasn’t expecting company. Clearly.”
Dane gestures to his half-showered body, and I give him an apologetic look. “Sorry.”
“Did someone die?”
“No. Why would you think that?”
“Maybe because it’s been like three years since the last time you came here, and it was only under threat of death by our mother.”
“That’s a bit dramatic.”
