What the fuck is he doing here?
"Let's go," I snap, the high from my new tattoo rapidly losing merit as I see my brother's crew standing there like they fucking own the town.
Jo doesn't say anything, she picks up the pace and heads for my truck. Sometimes I feel like this state isn't big enough for the two of us, and it's a big fuckin' state.
I open the door for her when I hear my brother's voice.
"Fuck you doin' 'round here, Brandt?" He's got that cocky snicker to his voice that means he’s already had a few and he's lookin' for trouble.
"I can damn well go anywhere I please, Cash." I’m trying to get Jo in the truck but she's standing there, watching us. "We really gotta get goin’. You know, dinner tonight and all."
Cash's grin slides over his face and his eyes travel to Jo. "Birthday boy gets his birthday dinner every year still?"
"Just like always," I say, hating that I'm standing here giving him the time of day.
"You enjoy that, spoiled little bitch," he says to me and grabs Jo's hand, tugging her toward him. "It ain't got nothing to do with her, so she can stay with me here. It's my birthday too, Jo. Come celebrate with a man." His arm goes around her shoulders and when she tries to duck away, he clamps his hand around her arm to keep her in place at his side.
My fists tighten at my side and I narrow my eyes at him. "Let her go," I say, not wanting to start shit with her here.
He laughs and looks over his shoulder at his boys who have stayed across the street, but they're watching us.
"You get another tattoo, pretty?" He asks Jo while his fingers slowly run down her arm and her eyes dart to me. "I'll show you a few of my tattoos. I got one right here I'd like to give you an up close look at." He grabs his pants at his belt and grins over at her.
I'd like to fucking murder the asshole when his fingers keep trailing their way up and down her arm. Rage like I've never felt takes over when his hand drops to her hip.
Without thinking, I step forward and shove him off her. "Get your fuckin' hands off her."
He stumbles back a step then starts to laugh, wiping the corners of his mouth. He always does this when he's ready for a fight.
"I'll fuck you up on these streets, little brother," he warns, his head dropped like a bull, but his eyes still on me.
"Let's fuckin' go." Jo shoves at my shoulder, but I don't move because I know when I turn my back, he'll do somethin' dirty.
Cash whistles and two of his boys cross the street.
"Get the bitch outta here. She's hangin' with us," he tells them.
"The fuck she is," I blurt, pushing Jo behind me and trying to get her into the truck so I can lock the doors. It's three against me and I'm certain he's got weapons. My brother's always got his knife on him, but I wouldn't put it past him to be carrying. I eye his two goons as they approach us. "Jo, get in the fucking truck."
"Cash, fuck off!" Jo screams at him and yanks at my arm again. "You two aren't going to fight right here on the fuckin' street. Go back to the bar. And, Brandt, get in the truck."
"Just as soon as you prance your sexy ass across that road I will," Cash says and his eyes intentionally linger down her body to piss me off.
"You can't just fuckin' take what you want because you want it, Cash. She's a fuckin' human and she ain’t interested." I want to beat his face in, but I know if I start something it isn't gonna end well for us. Jo's half my size, there's no way she can get away from these shitheads if they get their paws on her.
With a laugh, he shakes his head and walks over to her, pulling her behind him with a yank and she trips, falling to her hands and knees. Before I can move to help her, one of his friends shoves my shoulder back.
"I get and take what I fucking want," he sneers and when Jo tries to get to her feet, he pushes her back down with his boot.
My fist swings before I have a chance to register whether or not it’s a bad idea. The connection narrowly misses. "Fuck you, Cash!" The burn in my arm from my tattoo means nothing right now. I just need to get her the hell out of here safely.
Cash chuckles then cracks his neck and narrows his eyes at me. "Come on, boy." He pulls out his knife and flips it open, holding it at his side.
"Cash, put the fucking knife away." I flick my eyes to Jo who's slowly moving to stand behind him.
I gotta disarm him if I'm gonna get her out of here unharmed. So I charge, taking him off guard and almost plow him over.
Almost.
I'm a lot of things that my brother isn't, but if there's one thing he has on me it’s strength and agility. It's always been that way. I've had to fight to survive against my own fucking brother more times in my life than I'd like to count, and this one day, each year, it's always the worst. Years of pent up anger against me comes out full force, simply because I was born on his fuckin' birthday. Before our mom moved away and back when I still stayed with them every now and then, he'd let it be known how much he hated me for ruining his birthday, like I could fuckin' help it.
Our boots scrape the gravel and I use all my strength to try and pry the knife away, but it's useless, and in a matter of seconds he's got me pinned against the truck with the knife pressing against my throat. The rage in his eyes is burning hot.
"I never wanted it like this." His spit sprays my face. "You just can't ever let me have something of my own."
I grunt, trying to break free, but he's got me. Narrowing my eyes, I spit right in his face. "You don't deserve her. You don't fuckin' deserve anything," I choke out the last words as his grip on me tightens and the knife pushes harder.
"Nasty sister fucker."
I blink a few times, realizing he's actually going to stab me. Suddenly, he screams and his chest slams against mine before he stumbles back, caught off guard. Jo darts around him and yanks me toward the passenger seat of the truck. We both slide in and I start the truck, pulling away as gravel flies behind us.
I grip the steering wheel tight, trying to calm my nerves as we speed away. I can't talk right now. That was way too fucking close for comfort, I should've known going to the shop today was dangerous and I wasn't thinking when I brought her along.
Jo doesn't say much on the drive. Once we reach the end of town she scoots over into the middle seat and gives my thigh a squeeze that relaxes me enough to wrap my arm around her. I can't go home this worked up so I head to the one place I go when I need to get away.
Pulling up to the creek, I park the truck and take a deep breath.
"Sorry." I’m embarrassed I'm the reason that shit show just happened.
"Shh, shut up." She pushes up on my chin and starts to inspect my neck. "Did he cut you?”
"Nah." I swipe at my neck. Even if he did, it's not bad enough to worry about. "What the hell happened back there?" I shake my head, trying to figure out how we got out of that unharmed.
She stares me in the eyes a few minutes and I don't know what she has to say, but it doesn't look good. "I stabbed him in the shoulder," she whispers and quickly scoots away from me when my face falls.
"Jo... Shit. Holy shit, Jo." I shake my head in disbelief. I want to thank her for getting us outta that situation, but she just put a fuckin' target on her back with neon fucking letters. "I... You shouldn't have done that."
With a groan she gets out of the truck and walks up to the creek, picking up a rock and throwing it as far as she can. She fucking knows she shouldn't have done it.
I watch her from the truck until my phone dings with a message from Bo.
Bo: The fuck happened today?!
I groan, hating how small-town word travels so fast. I gotta figure this shit out before it gets out of hand. It's almost to that point.
Brandt: Just the usual birthday brother shit. Keep an eye on Cash, will ya?
Bo: Sure thing
I huff and rub my face then hop out of the truck and head over to Jo, leaning on a tree close by.
"I want to say thank you," I whisper. "You got us outta that, but you have to know how much that's just lit a fire under his ass to hurt us, right?"
Her eyes raise and she glares at me. "I'll fix this." She stands up straight. "I'm sure you and your brother have long-term issues, but the problem right now seems to be me. So I'll fix it. I fuckin' stabbed him, not you. I'm outta here tonight."
"What?" I blurt. "Jo, that's stupid! You're not going anywhere. Stop saying that stupid shit!" I shake my head and step toward her. "My brother's never going to have a relationship with me. He hates me for living, simple as that. Whether you're in the picture or not ain’t gonna change things."
"You didn't have these issues before I came. I mean fighting over a fuckin' girl. It's obvious he likes to fuck with you. He wants you to escalate things so he can hurt you. You're fuckin' stupid if you think I'm just going to sit back and be a distressed damsel while he hurts or tries to kill you. I did what I had to do, and I'm going to do what I have to do now. One less problem for you and your brother's issues."
"You leaving is a much bigger problem for me than my brother will ever be." I grab her hand and pull her to me. She rolls her eyes but doesn't fight it when I wrap my arms around her. "You can't leave, Jo. We'll figure this out."
"I'm sorry." She pushes her face into my chest.
"You did what you had to do to get us outta there. My city girl saving the day." I press my lips to hers. "That woulda been a pretty shitty birthday. Dyin' in that parking lot and all."
She chuckles and looks away. "You think he'd really kill you?"
I sigh. "I'd like to say no, but he seems to be losing his mind more and more as the years go on. When we were kids he'd wake me up every birthday telling me he wished I was dead. I wouldn't be surprised if he'd finally try to get his wish now that we're older."
Her arms slide around me and she holds on tight.
I know my brother's fraying on all ends, and I've known for a while how bad he's getting. The trick is figuring this out without calling the cops on his ass and having him taken in for the multitude of drugs and other illegal shit he's done. He's evil, but he's still my brother. My father always taught me to look out for mine before involving other people that can hurt them. As much as I hate Cash, I don’t want to see him suffering, but I’ll make him suffer before he makes Jo.
I manage to get Jo back to the house without her running out on me and I think I've talked her into not running away tonight, but the fact that she even mentioned it again has me on edge. How could she just walk away from me like that?
As soon as we’re inside, I head for the fridge, needing a beer that’s left over from last night.
"We got a couple hours till dinner," I say, falling to the couch. "I've never not wanted to go to a family dinner so bad."
She doesn't answer, she walks into her room and when I glance over my shoulder, I see at least she didn't close the doors, but I shake my head 'cause I don't know what's goin' through that girl’s head. She's probably in there packing her shit.
It’s a few minutes before she sits on the couch next to me and holds out a figure of two horses carved out of wood.
"Happy birthday." She chuckles. "It's lame, but that looks just like Lucky. I don't know who the other horse is. Just a friend of Lucky's." She laughs harder and rolls her eyes.
I take it from her hands wondering where she got this. It’s hand carved and does look like Lucky. "This is the coolest gift I think I've ever gotten," I whisper, inspecting the horses. "You make this, Jo?”
“No.” She laughs. “I bought it when I went to that convention thing with Donna. I only got it because it looks like Lucky, but I really liked it…for some reason.” Her cheeks turn pink.
“It’s cool.” I study it a minute. “You think Lucky needs a friend?" I blurt, shifting to face her. "I mean, my dad's horse is in the barn but they're never together. Maybe Lucky needs a friend." I smile wider as a plan comes to mind.
"Is Lucky lonely?" She giggles and takes the figure back to inspect it. "If I got a horse, it'd look like this one. That horse looks free." She glances at me. "Wild. But still wants to chill with his friend sometimes." That grin on her face makes me want to flip her to her back and fuck her on the couch again.
"Yeah," I whisper, watching her lick her lips. "Wild and free...just like my city girl." I lean in and press my lips to hers, reaching over and setting the horses down on the coffee table then shifting us so she's under me. Slamming my lips to hers again, she wiggles her hips and I let out a groan. "I can't not touch you, Jo." My fingertips trail along the hem of her tank.
"Then don't stop." Her lips go for my neck and she moans as I slide my hand up her shirt to her tit.
"Hey, know where I've always wanted to fuck you?" I press my lips to her neck, just under her ear and she gasps wrapping her legs around me.
"Fuck," she pants. "Where?"
"My shower.” Sitting up, I pull her with me. "I haven't been lyin' when I've said how amazing it is." I stand, gripping her hand and pressing my lips to hers when she gets to her feet. I pull off her shirt and she grips mine then pushes her hands under it, her fingers trace the lines of my hips.
"Condom," she says before pushing up my t-shirt and trailing her tongue around my nipple.
"Shit, woman," I hiss when her teeth clamp down. Chuckling, I back away and try not to make a big deal about her willingly going up to my bedroom. "I have some upstairs. Stocked up the other day," I say, yanking her behind me as we head up.
When I turned eighteen Donna insisted on building this guesthouse to give me some space. Not that the fuckin' mansion isn't spacious enough, but it saved me from living off the ranch and still gives me an area to call my own. I got to help design most aspects of this place, but I'm most proud of this shower. Steel and black tiles line the shower walls with jets coming out of the walls that hit every muscle that's ever been sore after a long day's work. There's also a massive tub that I can saturate in, but I haven't used it in a while. After a long day workin' the ranch, this is the best thing to come home to.
Well, it used to be.
When I open the double doors to the bathroom, Jo steps in behind me and her jaw drops. With a grin, I turn on the water before pulling my shirt off. She reaches for my belt buckle and as she unhooks it she glances at the shower again. I step out of my jeans and help her out of hers, pressing my lips to every part of her I can as I stand up. I've never met anyone like her before, and I never thought I'd be able to find ink on a girl this attractive, but once the clothes are off and I'm really able to see the art on her body, it's the biggest turn on.
She reaches between my legs, gripping my dick, and presses her lips to my chest. I groan and as much as I love the feel of her hand on me, I'd rather be enjoying other parts of her body right now.
"Condom," I whisper, begrudgingly stepping away from her for a brief moment to grab one from the drawer before returning with a smirk on my face.
She reaches to her tiptoes and cups my face in her hands. Her eyes search mine but she doesn’t say anything. I pull her body to mine, my dick hard against her soft skin, and walk us back into the shower.
"What're all these buttons?" she asks, turning so her back's to me under the warm waterfall spray of the shower. I reach around her to push a green button and a jet to the left of us turns on. "Oh shit!" She laughs, spinning in my arms. "Those are all jets?"
"Every single one of them, city girl. And they're all adjustable." I reach over and push a red one and she gasps when it hits her ass after I adjust it slightly. "Turn around."
She bites her lip and turns in my arms. I reach down and spread her legs then move the jet to hit her clit. Her body goes tense at first, then she lets her head fall back on my chest and lets out a moan.
As the water hits her pussy, I grab the soap and squirt some in my palm, lathering up her body, taking my time enjoying every inch of her.
"Goddamn, Jo," I whisper in her ear, letting my soapy fingers slide over her nipples with ease. I love touching her perfect skin.
"Fuck, Brandt," she huffs, arching into my hands. She pushes her hand behind her and strokes my dick as the water flows down our bodies. I moan and reach between her legs, the water from the jet hitting my hand as I cup her and slide a finger inside her.
"Bend over," I whisper, needing to be inside her.
She moans but does as I ask, pushing her palms against the tile. I grab the condom and rip open the wrapper, sliding it on as quick as I can. I fuckin' hate these things. Gripping her ass in my palms, I slide my dick into her, watching as I sink all the way inside.
"Fuck," I moan, bringing myself out to the tip before pushing in again. "God damn, woman."
She pushes back against me to slide me back inside and her forehead lays against her arms that are resting against the wall. As I keep pumping, it's getting harder for her to stay on her toes and when I slip out, I laugh.
"Hold on," I say, pulling out to turn her around and press my lips to hers. "Now I can kiss you," I whisper, gripping her ass and lifting her. She wraps her legs around me and I push her against the wall, sliding back inside her. "Much better," I huff, thrusting my hips to get deeper.
Her hand slaps my back and she gasps as her head hits the wall. Her eyes open and she leans in, softly kissing me. The water runs down our faces but her lips don't relent and she's holding the back of my head.
"I love you, Brandt," she moans into my mouth, but being inside her feels too good to pause because she said it.
"I fucking love you," I grunt, her words sending me over the edge and I come hard. "Fuck!" I groan on her lips. Holy fuck, she loves me! I keep pumping, not losing my hard-on yet, needing her to come.
I clamp my teeth to her perky nipple and flick my tongue, thrusting deep, trying to push as far as I can because she's getting louder and louder. When her nails dig into my flesh and she lets out a cry, her body erupts into those vibrations I swear I can feel against my body hours after we fuck.
Her head drops to my shoulder and I hold her here until I slip out of her. Setting her feet back on the shower floor I press my lips to hers, finishing the shower without words. No words are needed. She fuckin' loves me!
As we dry off and start to get ready for dinner, I glance over at her in the mirror.
"It was in the bathroom when you were pissing, you know," I say, laughing. She glances over at me like I've lost my mind. "When I realized what I was feeling was love. Is that weird?"
"God, it's so fucking weird." She laughs hard and turns to face me. "So now what?"
"Now we get dressed and try not to get found out at dinner time. We’ve made it this long, city girl." I hold my arm out and look at my tattoo in the mirror. "Does this make me look badass?"
Her laughter erupts again. "No. You were badass before that." Picking up the lotion bottle, she carefully wipes it across the fresh ink.
"I'm a branded Brandt now." I grin, unable to wipe the goofy smile from my face. Yanking her against me, she’s grinning. "You love me."
"Fuck I do." She kisses my chin. "It didn't even take me having to watch you pee to figure it out."
I laugh and let her go, attempting to figure out how we're gonna keep hiding this from Donna and my dad.
"I think I knew way before that. The feeling was there, but it's not something I've ever felt before so my head had no clue that my heart had already fallen. I just thought I was really horny." I laugh.
"I think you still are. Sex confuses a lot of things." She glances back at me then turns to the mirror again to put black paint on her eyes.
"Hey," I say, waiting for her attention. She’s still holding the pen to her eyelid, but her gaze finds me in the mirror. "I'm not confused about how I feel about you. The sex is great and all, but so is just being in the same fuckin' room as you." I grab my toothbrush. "Which, by the way, tonight's gonna be real hard keeping my hands off you."
She snorts a laugh and rolls her eyes. "None of this has been easy. That’s why I don’t want to hang out with your friends and I’d rather stay home all the time. It’s not easy watching girls like Fi all over you, Brandt." Her eyes lock on mine in the mirror and we stare silently until she looks away.
I finish brushing and wipe my mouth, then walk over to her and wrap my arms around her, pressing my lips to her neck. "It's worth it though. We’ll figure this out." I smack her ass and head to my closet. "Now, if only I had a shirt to wear tonight..."
She chuckles and starts down the stairs. "I need to get dressed. Hey, I'll just meet you there, okay?" she calls up the stairs. "It's less weird that way, and if I show up on time or early, Donna will definitely know something's up."
I glare at my closet. "Yeah, that's fine," I yell down to her then clench my teeth, actually hating that idea. I should be able to show up somewhere with my girlfriend at the same time. "See ya there," I mutter, trying to pick out a shirt. I have enough of them this shouldn't be too hard, but I really liked the red one she stole from me.
I also really fucking love that she stole it from me.
By the time I head out of the house it’s about to be five on the dot. Good thing I just gotta take a few steps to get to my destination. Jo's door is still closed when I leave and I want to drop in and taste her again, but I need to learn how to distance myself when our family is included. I also need to figure out how to tell our family about us without them freaking out.
"Hey, dad," I say, walking into the kitchen.
"Brandt, happy birthday," he says, smiling as he tosses a beer cap in the trash. "Come on, we got a little surprise for you."
He walks me into the main room and my face falls. Everyone's here. And by everyone, I mean my aunts and uncles from my dad's side. People Donna's talking to that I've never met before. Other people hanging around like they’re waiting on me. The room's packed.
"Jesus, dad. I thought this was a small dinner?" I glance out the window and notice a motorcycle parked beside my truck and my stomach drops. "Whose bike is that?"
"Your brother's here." He nods. "Y’all share a birthday and your mom's not in town anymore, I figured we could include him. And me and Donna figured getting everyone together to meet Jo would be easier this way too."
I groan when I notice Cash on the other side of the room in the nicest fuckin' shirt he probably owns, talking to my uncle Ronnie. My eyes narrow and I clench my jaw to stop myself from saying something I don't mean.
"Great." I sigh. "Perfect."
My dad looks around the full room and lets out a breath of air before chuckling. "It'll only be a few hours. But looks like I'm gonna have to drag Jo over kickin' and screamin'," he says looking around for her.
"She'll be here. She was gettin' ready when I left." I don’t let my gaze leave Cash.
"There she is now," he says with pride, like he's surprised she actually came. I just want to say 'she's my fuckin' girlfriend, she's here for me', but I'm not pissed at my dad. I can bet Cash snaked his way here tonight.
I pull my eyes from my brother to look behind me at Jo and Donna standing in the dining room doorway. My favorite flannel, the one she stole from me, is on her back and she has it tied so it fits, and also shows a peek of her stomach while she wears low-low rise jeans. My eyes trail her longer than I probably should and when my gaze lands on the cowboy boots she's sporting I have to look away before I end up hard.
Holy fuck.
Holy shit, she's wearing cowboy boots! When the fuck did she get those!?
And now I have to act like a fucking brother and not a man in love tonight. I need a fuckin' drink.
"Hey, you two," I say, walking into the kitchen and heading for a Coke. I need something stronger than fucking soda, but with all my family here tonight my dad won't have it.
Donna looks at me like she's so proud that Jo got out of bed. All I can do is try my hardest not to stare at how fuckin' sexy her daughter looks tonight.
"Hey, happy birthday. Didn't know it was your birthday." Apparently that's the lie she's already told Donna, so I gotta play along.
"Yeah. Didn't realize it was gonna be this big of an event." I flick my eyes across the room to Cash who just spotted us. Trying to shift, to block Jo, I briefly squeeze my eyes closed. "All my family's here, apparently."
My dad doesn't know of the troubles I have with Cash. He knows we used to fight, but he always just assumed it was brother problems. I’m not a snitch and I never wanted my dad to hate him because of it so I've never divulged just how bad it's gotten over the past few years. The fact that he invited him here tonight tells me they have more of a relationship than I ever thought and it scares me because the only types of relationships Cash has with people are when he's trying to get somethin' out of them.
"Jo, whose shirt is this?" Donna asks and when I look at Jo, I see she's noticed Cash. "Is it Bo's? I heard you two have become an item."
"It's my shirt," Jo blurts and looks at me. "That's your fuckin' brother," she whispers.
"Jo, please watch your language." Donna rubs her arm.
"Donna, do you mind if I take Jo to introduce her to my brother?" I ask, taking Jo's elbow. "We'll be quick."
"You two go mingle," she says giddily. "Jo, this is your family now too."
Jo groans and rolls her eyes but turns toward me.
"We need to get you out of here," I whisper, pulling her out the side door. The party's mixed into the back yard now and there are more people here than I thought. "I don't know why he's fuckin' here right now, but you gotta go home and lock the doors, Jo." I'm panicked, and not because he's here, not even because there's other family around because I know he wouldn't do anything when everyone else is watching, but I know him. He's sneaky and he'll go to dangerous lengths to get her alone.
"Fuck you," she quietly scoffs. "I'm not leaving you here." Just as quickly as she steps toward me and grabs my hand, she backs away and puts distance between us. "Fuck, Brandt, this is hard. This is fucking hard and stupid," she barks at me like it's my fault.
"It'll be fine." I sigh, because it is fucking hard but it's not my fault all these people are here. I assumed it'd be a sit down meal then we’d go on our way. By the looks of it, this party's gonna be going all night. "We just stick by each other then, okay? I'll get Bo and Kinlee and some other people here just to cushion us." I pull out my phone and send a text, letting them know it's a party and not to bring booze. "We'll be fine."
She snickers and looks around. "He's right there," she whispers, her eyes locked behind me.
I turn slowly and see Cash, watching us from about twenty feet away, and narrow my eyes. I walk over to him, smiling at family members and friends as I pass, stopping right in front of him.
"The hell you doing here?" I ask, back rigid and ready to defend myself.
"I was invited, brother." He drapes his arm around my shoulders. "Wasn't sure if I could make it. I needed to get a few stitches this afternoon." His arm tightens around my neck. "But I didn't want to miss your twentieth birthday. Might be your last," he quietly says and I shove his arm off me.
"Yeah, well you're not welcome here. Garrison's oblivious to how much of an ass you turned out to be. I’m trying not to cause more trouble for you, Cash, but you ain’t leaving me many options. I’m gonna have to tell my dad.”
“Tell your dad,” he taunts with a laugh. “You tell anyone, and everyone gets hurt. Starting with your incest girlfriend.”
I step away and glance back at Jo who's standing with my dad and forced into talking to my aunt and cousin, but her eyes keep darting to me.
"You showed your face. It's time for you to leave."
"How about I just go wait at the guesthouse? That's where Jo sleeps, isn't it? You perverts haven't moved her into your room yet. Probably to save your asses. Gonna be a pity when I tell everyone here tonight you're fuckin' your sister."
"Step-fucking-sister, you dipshit. No blood relation," I grunt, cursing. "Is that why you came tonight? Just to boast to people some dumb ass theory you have?"
"Theory." He barks out a laugh and shifts to stand in front of me, his hands landing on my shoulders. "I came for the bitch, and I'm gonna get 'er," he whispers before walking away.
Chills run down my spine as his words register. I glance over at Jo, a horrible feeling sinking into the pit of my stomach before I walk over to her, taking her wrist.
"Sorry, dad, cousin Mary, we gotta go check somethin' out. We'll be right back." I don’t even wait for her to say goodbye as I yank her away and to the side of the house, away from everyone. "He's got that gleam in his goddamned eye that tells me he's about to pull something so fuckin' stupid."
"Let's just tell your dad, Brandt. About him. We can tell him everything. Even that I stabbed Cash this afternoon. If I have to go to the police station, whatever. I don't know your brother or what he's fully capable of, but if he hurts you, or any of these people here because of me..." Her wide eyes peer at me.
"We're not doing that. I'm not getting you in trouble for this shit today.” I pull her into a hug. “Bo and the guys will be here soon. Just stick in the crowd."
"Brandt," she says and I follow her gaze toward Cash who's walking up to us.
"Mother fucker," I growl, storming over to him. "Go the fuck home, Cash. I told you you're not welcome here."
"Hey, you three, party's here," Bo says, walking around the corner of the house. His fists are tight at his sides and I notice he's got a few more people following him.
"Party's here," I say to Cash through grit teeth.
"I'll get you, city girl." He winks at Jo and heads for the backyard.
When I look, she looks like she wants to cry. I glance at Bo, Chase, and the others. "Don't let her leave your sight all night," I tell them then turn toward Jo. "Stay with Bo. He's here for you." I fuckin' hate this, but that’ll be more people looking out for her without others realizing we're an item.
When she walks up to Bo, she pushes her face into his arm and I think she's crying. Bo looks at me worried, but slowly puts his arms around her to comfort her. I look at the guys at Bo's back. They expect her in his arms so I can't pull her to me even though jealousy is raging from the inside.
"Let's get this party over with," I mumble, walking around the corner, not waiting for them to follow.