Page 36 of Hope and Country

No, Robbie was nothing like his dad. He cared for me. He made sure I never missed out on anything. Sure, he was a bit possessive and didn’t want me to go out, but as he said, we ought to stick together. We were all the family left for each other. And it counted for something.

Anthony straightened his demeanor and pushed Robbie back.

My brother showed him his badge and snarled in a threatening voice, “You better walk away from my sister now, or I’ll make sure you have no other choice. Did I make myself clear enough?”

Anthony cocked his head to look at me.

No. Robbie couldn’t barge in there like this and shatter every good thing in my life.

It was wrong. On so many levels.

I swallowed the lump forming in my throat and shook my head.

Anthony lifted his hands in surrender before him. “No need to go all cop on me, man. We weren’t doing anything wrong. Devon and I are—" I waggled a finger to shut him up, begging him with my eyes to say no more.

I pressed a hand to his chest, but my brother yanked it away. “Calm down, Robbie. It’s okay, Anthony. I should probably go anyway.”

Moisture welled in my eyes, but I blinked to avoid making a show.

Anthony brought his full attention to me and cupped my cheek. His voice soothed all my humiliation away, his palm hot against my skin. “Don’t go. Stay. I’m not okay with you leaving with him. I could probably call in sick, and we could go to my place. We have plans.”

Robbie’s jaw flexed, and his eyes flared with banked anger as he swatted Anthony’s hand away from my face. “Don’t you ever touch or even get too close to my sister again. I won’t warn you twice, dickhead”

“Robbie. Stop,” I argued. I spun to face the guy I wished to spend the night with. “I’m sorry.” He looked flabbergasted as Robbie clutched my elbow, tugging me away. “I’ll call ya,” I mouthed in Anthony’s direction.

Once my feet landed on the sidewalk, I jerked my elbow from my brother’s grip.

“What the hell, Robbie? You can’t just come in here and be the boss of me. I have a life.”

“I thought I said no boyfriend,” he yelled, rage dripping from every word.

“He’s not my boyfriend,” I pleaded, hoping it would be enough to tame the fury emanating from his pissed-off self.

“Whatever. His tongue was in your throat. It’s enough for me. Jensen was there. Saw the whole thing. And called me to say my sister was acting all slutty in there. I don’t want my friends witnessing you humiliate yourself, and me, this way. And what’s that you are wearing? The skirt is too short. What were you thinking, Devon? Or as usual, you were not thinking, were you? Let’s get you home. I’m still on the clock and have more important things to do than prevent you from bringing disgrace to our family. Get a grip over yourself, sis.”

I tried to speak but couldn’t. The whole reprimand shocked me to silence.

Robbie drove me home in his cruiser and waited while I freshened up.

“Go to sleep. And no more make-out sessions, okay?” Then he grabbed my skirt from the dresser and ripped it apart before discarding it on the floor.

“See, I’m doing this for ya. One day, you’ll thank me.”

I nodded. To ease his bad temper. Because I was done fighting tonight. I just wanted this day to be over.

* * *

The next Friday night, I waited for Anthony to get liquor from the back room. We hadn’t seen each other since Robbie forced me away the week before. His eyes lit up when he spotted me. He ran to me, lifting me and spinning me around.

“Fuck, you’re beautiful. Are you all right?” he asked, putting me back on my feet. His hands cradled my face as he waited for me to say something.

“Yes. Forget about my patronizing older brother. He was out of line. I’m sure he had a bad day or something.”

“I’m glad you’re here. I should ask to leave early so we can spend time together. Your brother is scary as shit. Are you sure he won’t come here again tonight?”

I shrugged. “I’ll stay by the bar the entire time. I’ll watch you work. Forget about him. He can be too much sometimes. He barks but doesn’t bite.”

Anthony nodded and kissed my lips. “Come on then. Help me bring some bottles to the front.”