encircled my shoulders with his arms to pull me into a tight embrace.
“I can’t believe you’re here,” I said into his chest.
He withdrew and grinned down at me, though he stayed close. “And I can’t believe you let me hug you without complaining.”
I snickered. The times I’d allowed or initiated a hug with him could be counted on one hand. “I’ve become more okay with them over the last few months.”
His grin dimmed a little. “Is that right? I guess things have changed.”
“Yeah, like your hair,” I replied, hoping to keep the mood light. Bracing myself on one crutch, I lifted a hand to the side of his head, which was now buzzed, making the length on top more dramatic. The haircut was more stylish than anything he’d ever worn before. “It looks good.”
“Thanks. You look good too.” His gaze skimmed me from head to toe, lingering on my right leg. “Well, except for that.”
I lifted my leg to show off my bright blue cast. “What? You don’t think this trend is going to catch on?”
“You never know. You manage to make almost everything look sexy.”
A throat cleared from behind me, and I turned to find the Sharpe brothers standing there, a wall of veritable hotness. All three were eyeing Tobias like he was a cockroach they wanted to squash. Leo’s hands were stuffed in his pockets, Hayle’s arms were crossed over his chest, and Tristin’s back was ramrod straight, none of which were a good sign.
“Hey, guys,” I said with false cheeriness. “This is Tobias, my friend from Kansas. Tobias, this is Leo, Hayle, and Tristin Sharpe.”
Leo stepped forward and offered his hand. “Hey, man. I’ve heard a lot about you.”
Not exactly true. Since we’d started dating, I’d mentioned Tobias to him on several occasions. But I hadn’t gone into much detail about him or our friendship.
Tobias took his hand and gave him what could only be described as a smug grin. “Sorry to say that I can’t say the same.”
Shit. This visit so wasn’t going to go well.
“So, how did you find me?” I asked, going with the first question that popped into my mind.
“I took a bus from the airport and was planning to call you from the station when I arrived. But I quickly discovered that everyone in Moss Harbor knows where the Sharpes live—” He shot a decidedly unfriendly look at the brothers. “So, I caught a cab instead.”
“How convenient for you,” Tristin said blankly.
Good god. Too much freaking testosterone for my liking.
I started toward the front door. “We should get inside. I want to see if I can help Susan with anything.”
“You know she won’t let you lift a finger,” Hayle said, falling into step beside me.
He was probably right, but that didn’t mean I wasn’t going to try. “I’m not an invalid. I can still do things.” As long as said things didn’t require me to carry anything.
“Come on,” I heard Leo say from behind me. “I’ll show you to a guest room so you can clean up before lunch.”
“Thanks.”
It occurred to me that leaving Tobias alone with Leo wasn’t the best idea in the world. But he was a big boy. If he couldn’t handle an ambush by the Sharpe brothers, maybe he shouldn’t have shown up unannounced.
Hayle leaned in to whisper, “Who do you think would win in a fight between those two?”
Both guys were in shape, but Tobias was leaner to Leo’s bulk. And I already knew that my boyfriend had a lot of experience throwing punches. He’d probably take Tobias out in a single jab.
Still...
“I really hope we don’t have to find out.”
Chapter Forty-One
Tristin
Even though I hadn’t been invited, I felt no remorse about following Leo and Tobias up to the second story guest room. For one, I wasn’t sure I trusted my brother to be alone with the interloper. And, just this once, I was being intentionally nosy. I wanted to know why Tobias was really here. Thea had been through enough, and I didn’t like the idea of this guy showing up and throwing even more heartache at her.
Because it had only taken a single second to recognize that he felt more than friendship for Thea. His love for her was written all over his face.
A face that I didn’t have to be into guys to know girls swooned over. He had that whole dark hair, dark eyes, and pretty face thing going on that could undoubtedly earn him a job as a male model.