give me a second chance.
Hell, he hadn’t even given me a first chance.
“I’m here to see Brandon,” I said.
“He’s not here.”
I glanced over his shoulder in time to see a curtain in a window flicker and fall back into place. “Seriously?” I said, pointing toward the window. “You’re going to try and tell me he’s not here?”
“That’s his mother,” Jack said. His tone went beyond condescending. Maybe I’d been wrong to warn him off Tess. The two of them could sit around being judgy and patronizing together. With their combined powers of condescension, they could take over the world.
His sharp glare scanned me from head to toe. “She doesn’t want to see you either.”
I drew in a sharp inhale at the barely barbed slight.
“Do you have any idea what your family did to them?” he said.
No. But I could imagine. I took a step toward him and toward the house. “That’s why I’m here. To make it up to them.”
He scoffed. “You might be a good actress, but you’re a terrible liar.”
“Maybe you’re right,” I said, though it nearly killed me to say so. “I shouldn’t have tried to hide the truth of who I am and why I’m here.” I shrugged. “I thought it might be easier to befriend Brandon first before bringing up the topic I came here to discuss.”
Jack didn’t look swayed, but I took another step, and he didn’t back away. The guy might’ve been an insufferable know-it-all, but he was Brandon’s best friend and clearly his self-appointed protector. I didn’t stand a chance if I couldn’t get past Brandon’s very own bodyguard. “Look,” I said. “I’m not here to stir up trouble. I promise.”
He made another scoffing noise that spoke volumes. My promises meant nothing to this guy.
I licked my lips and tried again. “I just need to talk to him. That’s all.”
“Well, he doesn’t want to talk to you.”
Brandon’s voice interrupted my next plea. “Who doesn’t want to talk?”
I spun around and saw him approaching. Or rather… I saw a horse coming toward me. A very large horse.
I hated horses. I always have. It was sheer panic that had me scrambling backwards, not stopping until I bumped into Jack’s hard chest and his arms wrapped around me. “Whoa, easy,” he said.
I was pretty sure he was talking to me, though it could have been aimed at the horse.
Brandon squinted down at me, amusement turning his handsome features welcoming and warm. “You all right, Lila?”
I felt Jack’s chest move against my back as he tried and failed to stifle a laugh.
I jerked away from him, barely refraining from throwing an elbow into those hard abs of his as I half turned so I could face them both.
They were laughing at me. These hillbilly morons were laughing at me.
Awesome. This was going exactly as planned.
“You scared of horses?” Brandon asked as he climbed down. “Or just nervous to face me, Delilah Devereaux?”
I pressed my lips together and studied the two guys who faced me with nearly identical smirks. “I’m not afraid.” Brandon’s horse took a small step in my direction, and I stumbled backwards a little too quickly. “I just have a healthy respect for large animals.”
“Mmhmm,” Jack said.
Brandon wasn’t saying anything, and his boyish smile had faded fast. I felt a stab of guilt and just a smidge of regret that the guy I’d had such a fun time hanging out with yesterday was eyeing me now like I was some sort of Disney villain. Cruella De Vil in the flesh, ladies and gentlemen. All I was missing was a fur coat.
“Can I talk to you for a moment?” I said to Brandon.
“No way, Devereaux,” Jack said.
I cut him a quick glare. “I wasn’t talking to you.”
Jack took a half step in front of Brandon as if to protect him from my evil vibes. “He has nothing to say to you.”
“Then he can tell me that himself,” I shot back.
“Haven’t you and your family done enough?” The anger in his voice made me hesitate but not for long.
I’d been a Devereaux my whole life. I was used to the mixed reactions it inspired. This wasn’t my first run-in with a victim of my father’s harsh ways, and it wouldn’t be my last. I drew in a deep breath and lifted my chin. “My family, maybe,” I said. “But what horrible thing have I done to Brandon that you’re afraid to leave me alone with him?”
“Other than lie about who you are and why you’re here?”