The Curve Ball - Samantha Lind Page 0,55
might not be able to now, but it is coming sooner than you think, and it’s going to bite you in the ass one of these days.”
“I guess I’ll have to cross that bridge when we get there,” he says, then turns his attention back to the grill. I finish up with the pasta salad I was putting together, taking it out to the table on the patio. I set the table, getting everything out just as he pulls the veggies and chicken off the grill. I bring Evie outside and place her in the highchair, setting a few things on the tray for her to pick at. JJ and I both dig in to the food we’ve made until our bellies are full.
Justin takes Evie from her highchair once we’re finished with dinner. He plays with her for a little bit before it’s time for her bath and bedtime. I take care of the dishes while he spends time with her then retreat back outside with a small glass of wine. When he’s home in the evenings, this has become our regular routine. He wants to spend as much time as he can with her, and I think that it's essential that he has some time with just the two of them.
I hear some shuffling in the house, so head inside to see what he might be up to. “Hey, babe?” he calls out from down the hall, just as I round the corner and run right into my brother's chest. Fuck.
“Babe?” Derek barks out.
“Oh, shit,” I hear Justin swear as he comes out of his room and finds Derek and I standing toe to toe.
“Justin, why the fuck are you calling my sister babe?” Derek asks, then sucks in a deep breath as he looks up at the ceiling.
“Derek, please.” I say his name, my voice steady, but I can hear the wariness in it, so I know that he can, as well.
He whirls around, facing off with JJ. “Talk. Now. Johnson,” Derek barks out, calling Justin by his last name.
Derek tracks Justin's movements as he comes to stand next to me. He pulls me into his side, his arm coming around me as he rests his hand on my hip. It's possessive. It’s a statement without words. One that my brother doesn’t like one bit, if the look on his face tells me anything.
“What do you want to know?” JJ finally breaks the silence between the three of us.
“I want to know why the fuck you’ve got your hands on my sister. Why you’re calling her babe. I could have sworn that I’ve told you to keep your fucking hands to yourself and that she was off-limits,” he growls. He’s getting madder as each word passes his lips.
“Why don’t you calm down,” I interject, not wanting Derek to lose his cool.
“Calm down. Really, Riley?” he scoffs at me.
“That’s enough,” Justin barks. “We’re together, seeing where things go. We fought it but decided, as two consenting adults, that we wanted to see where this went. We didn’t want to hurt you or keep it from you forever, but we also didn’t feel like you needed to know right away. We wanted to make sure that it was more than just two people being around each other all the time, scratching an itch,” Justin tells him.
Derek’s eyes bounce between the two of us. I can see the war raging in him. He wants to be pissed off, but I can also tell that he wants me and Justin to be happy, even if that means that we’re happy together.
“And how long has this been going on?” he asks.
“About a week,” I tell him. “But honestly, we’ve been dancing around it since right after I moved in,” I tell him. We might as well be honest with him, without spelling out every single detail about our relationship.
“I knew something was up with you this week,” he says, shaking his head. “Never did I think it was you fucking my sister.”
“It isn’t like that, man,” JJ states, “I care about Riley. I’m not out there chasing every woman who looks my way anymore. I see the value in what this could be, and I don’t intend to fuck it up.”
“You better not,” Derek tells him. “If you hurt her, I’d have to hurt you, and I don’t want to have to do that.”
“I’m not saying I won’t mess up, you know better than anyone that sometimes we do stupid shit, but