Brazen and Breathless (Untouchable #6) - Heather Long Page 0,121

the spot.

Trina had figured out the Maddy affair, and I had no idea how. But she had blamed Mom for some backwards ass reason. Like it was Mom’s fault Dad had to go and have an affair with Maddy. Some of the psychology I got—Trina wanted her family back. Her sense of security and her self-confidence had gotten all tied up in the divorce. She was also lashing out at me because I was going to leave “too.”

It had been a really long night. Trina was staying home with Mom today, and they discussed real therapy, not just for Trina but maybe for the whole family. All the therapy I needed was beating up the little fuck who not only took pictures of Frankie with all of us, but had gone out of his way to use them to hurt my sister.

I still hadn’t ruled out burning a couple of her prized Barbie dolls. Nothing that had gone down justified her physically assaulting Frankie.

Nothing.

If I got nothing else through my sister last night, that had better have sunk in. Funnily enough, Dad passed off the bruises on his face as something related to a racquetball accident with his friends. I let it go because while the initial urge to rearrange his face had passed, I couldn’t say it was gone all the way.

“Ease up on the steering wheel grip,” Jake drawled. “You want your hands loose for this. Too much tension in your shoulders and arms, you run the risk of an injury.”

“Har har.”

“Not kidding,” he said. “I brought the first aid kit for your hands and tape to protect your knuckles. I also grabbed a clean shirt and fresh jeans from the stash at Frankie’s, in case you get too much blood on you.”

The fact that he said it with a straight face penetrated the hot bubble of tension boiling the air around me. I slanted a look at him. “You’re taking this very calmly.”

“I got to pound some of my feelings out into Reed’s face,” he mused. “I’m fine with you handling this one. You look like you could use it. You need me to tag in, just say the word. Otherwise, I’m your alibi.”

Ten minutes later, I pulled into the row of industrial buildings and storefronts that lined the far side of the grocery store parking lot. It was less than a five-minute walk from the school, but with more than enough distance to not be in danger of violating the rules.

Jake was a half-step behind me.

“Coop,” he warned. “Knuckles.”

“I’m good. I’m calm.”

I was very calm. I also had gloves in my pocket. When I pulled them out and began tugging them on as I walked, Jake let out a soft laugh. We crossed between the buildings and followed the L around to where Noah “dead man” Auburn and his friends were laughing away in their cloud of blue smoke.

“Go the fuck away,” Jake said when the three guys with Noah looked up at us. At least the guy my sister had wanted to date had the brains to blanch at our arrival. I sailed right through the smoky cloud and caught the cigarette dangling from his mouth and flicked it.

“Hey!” Noah complained, but my hand locked on his jaw as I kept walking him back away from the smoke and any potential help from his friends shut him up. Jake would get rid of the friends.

“No need to be so excited to see me,” I told him as I kept him going, feet stumbling until he hit the side of the building. “You put out the kind of invitation you did, you had to know we were showing up.”

“Um…” one of the guys behind me said.

“Did I stutter?” Jake asked.

The sound of feet on pavement moving away answered that question.

Noah’s eyes widened.

“I don’t know what the fuck you’re doing…” Dude had balls, I’d give him that. He was still sputtering with my hand on his face, so I just tightened my grip until he shut up.

“I don’t endorse violence,” I told him in a calm voice. I hadn’t been lying about being calm. I was not raging or furious.

Not at the moment.

I had a purpose here and a message to deliver.

When Noah tried to speak again, I flexed my fingers against his face. The pressure contorted his mouth, and tears flashed into his eyes.

“Better, now you’re paying attention. This is the point where I speak and you listen. You apparently didn’t hear us when we told