by you. So technically, you’re the intruder here.”
My brain throbs, and my eyes feel like they’re scraping against sandpaper, but still I manage to summon a little appreciation for this fancy as hell house and the home my sister will never again have to share with vermin. Well… except for the dog.
“She woke me up, Bubbles. She smells like she rolled in shit and then ate it, and now she kicked me out of bed just so she could lay down.”
“Like I said,” she taunts. “Beauty sleep. Giselle has a routine she likes to keep. You’re actually blocking her sun, so if you could just scoot a little to your left.” She flicks her hand just to annoy me. “Plus, let’s be real; uglier women have smelled worse and kicked you out of bed before, so…”
“Fuck you.” I stand and drag the top sheet with me, which elicits a growl from the spoiled dog. “I’m going to shower.”
“Ibuprofen is under the sink,” Quinn repeats. “Glass is on the counter. Drink lots. By the time you come down, breakfast will be ready.”
“Where’s Fuckface?”
“You mean Jamie?” she questions with a smile on her lips. “He’s at the gym. Bry knocked an hour ago and said he had to run before the sun turned blistering.”
My pout turns to a scowl at that ridiculous request. “And he went? Bubbles, it’s Saturday. It’s the day of the lord… or some shit…”
Pathetic, I know.
“Blasphemy,” she laughs. “Pretty sure that’s Sunday. And yes, he and Bry run most days. They said you should come find them when Evie’s done with you. They wanna spar and see what you’ve lost since you last competed.”
“Ben gonna be there?” I step into the bathroom that joins my temporary room, and close the door most of the way. “Because I don’t much wanna spar with him today.”
“Probably should stop being weird around Liv, then, shouldn’t you? She has a boyfriend, ya know.”
“She has a purse,” I shoot back. “Named Brenten. And looking at a beautiful woman isn’t ‘weird’. It’s just…” I drop my sheet, and flip on the shower. “Looking. She’s beautiful, Bubbles. Gives me heartburn.”
“She has a boyfriend,” she shouts to be heard over the running water. “And seemingly no interest in a Neanderthal like you.”
I roll my eyes to the sky and shake my head. “There’s no need to call names. And she’s interested, all right.” I turn my face up and allow the water to spray my face. She’s interested. She warms when I look, and rubs her thighs together when I speak. She’s fucking interested. “She just doesn’t know what to do about that interest.”
“Well, you could just let her date her boyfriend,” Quinn continues to shout over the roar of the water. “That would be a sensible thing to do.”
“I could also go find her in the middle of the night and tempt her into an hour of sin. She’d have no damn clue what to do about it, but I’m sure as hell willing to coach her.”
“You are my brother! Dammit, Will. Don’t be so openly gross.”
I pump a little soap into my hand and shrug. “Don’t be a prude. Now go away. I’m showering.”
“Maybe you’re not running from the cops anymore, Will, but if you go anywhere near that nice girl, you’re gonna be running for your life again. She’s got a cop for a daddy, a fighter for a brother, and Evie Kincaid for a sister-in-law. That’s a thousand times worse than when the world thought you killed a guy and were trying to lock you up for it.”
And that ugly reminder brings me crashing back to Earth. Because at the end of the day, I still killed a guy, and Olivia always deserved better than that.
“Go away, Bubbles. Eggs are burning.”
I walk into the gym at three minutes past the hour and skid to a stop when I come face to face with the blonde fighting powerhouse.
Evelyn Kincaid is small but mighty. She’s witty, and mean to boot. She could kick my ass, despite weighing less than half what I do, and I’m man enough to admit it. If she and I were to go toe-to-toe in the octagon, there’s a good chance I’d walk away without my balls.
“Miss Kincaid.”
“Will.” Instead of chewing me out for being late, she lifts her chin and gestures me into the hall. “You remember everything about this place, right?” We emerge into a room that boasts a boxing ring. “Training room. Bags over that way. Ropes