Chapter Forty-Two

Grayson

 

Everett was standing in Cal's living room and the only thing I could think to do was say, "Hey man," as I moved to cover my dick with my hands

Everything was moving so slowly that I felt like I had fucking superpowers. I could hear the clink of glass in the white plastic bag he'd brought over, probably a bottle of Patron since he knew it was my favorite. He was still dressed in his polo and khakis, so he'd headed over right from work, eager to help me celebrate my first day at the new job.

And fifteen minutes ago my cock had been inside his sister's ass.

My superpowers extended to Harper and I swore I could hear the rapid pulse at her throat, and see the fluttering of her heartbeat under the thin fabric of Cal's shirt. I could read her fucking mind, too, as she wondered whether she should bolt out of here, or stay and see it through. Instinctually, I moved a little closer to her, just a fraction, but it was enough to make her roll her shoulders back and look her brother full in the eye.

Rett cleared his throat. "Gray, man? Could you put some motherfucking clothes on?" he growled. "Maybe you too, Cal?"

Cal and I looked at each other. I twisted and grabbed his jeans from the floor and tossed them to him, then grabbed my own. I could hear Harper's breathing getting faster and faster. She was close to hyperventilating and I knew she wasn't going to be able to take it much longer. "Rett?" she squeaked, then caught herself. "Can we talk about this?"

"Yeah," Rett said, and I'd never heard that tone of voice come from his mouth. Nor did I ever want to again. I always thought the idea of your blood running cold was an expression but I swear my veins were actually flowing with ice. "We can talk later. Right now? You —" He stabbed a vicious finger in my direction, and it felt for all the world like he was trying to stab me right in the heart. "—and you. Outside."

"Rett," Cal started.

But Rett whirled on him. "My sister? My baby fucking sister? The fuck were you thinking?"

"Rett," I didn't know what I was going to say, but it wasn't like he was going to give me a chance.

"Get the fuck outside, right now, or so help me god, Gray..." he didn't finish his sentence, but then again, he didn't really need to.

Harper hiccupped a quiet sob. Without really thinking, I brushed my hand up her back, trying to comfort her, but Rett's murderous eyes landed on me right as I was caressing the small of her back. "Get your fucking hands of her!" he roared.

I snapped my hand back and lifted my chin. "So it's gonna be this way?" I challenged him. "All these years and you aren't even interested in hearing what we have to say?"

Rett was pacing, running his hand over the back of his head and then dragging it down his face. "Both of you?" he whispered, shaking his head like he was trying to dislodge a particularly nasty image. "One of you I could maybe handle, but both of you?" He spun in a circle like a trapped animal, and then stabbed his hand to the door. "Outside."

Cal shot me a glance and in that I saw everything that I needed to do. That we needed to do. There wasn't any way Rett was going to be able to make this right in his head until we gave him something to do with his fists.

I took a deep breath and then nodded back.

"Where are you going?" Harper demanded. "You don't have to listen to him!"

"We owe him, baby girl," I said softly. "Don't you think?"

"No!" she hissed, vehemently. "No I do not think!'

I snatched up her hand. "Clear the air. Get it out in the open. No more sneaking around." I kissed the tips of her fingers. "For our baby."

Her green eyes snapped fire at me and then suddenly filled with tears. Her hand went to her sweet little belly. I could already see the swell starting there, a round little curve that was brand new and perfect. She needed to concentrate on making that bump bigger. And that meant I had to fix this.

Cal had been watching, but when I turned away, he nodded again. Rett was already out in the driveway, his shoes crunching on the icy gravel.

I followed Cal outside. The late February cold wasn't enough to cool the adrenaline that was pumping in my veins. For a moment there was only the drip-drip sound of the snow melting from the pine trees that hid Cal's place from the road.

Then there was the sharp sound of boots on the gravel and the whoosh of a fist in the air. Rett caught Cal with a punch straight to the gut, sending Cal's breath out in a whooshing grunt. I winced as I watched him double over and then fall back, stumbling to catch himself with his left hand.

Fuck this is gonna hurt, I thought. "Rett, man, listen," I started to say...

But he caught me with a wicked right hook. It was the kind of punch that should have flattened me. Hell, I'd thrown the same damn thing in fights before and I knew the damage it could do. But at the last minute he must have pulled back because it glanced off my jaw, snapping my head back but mercifully didn’t drop me like a rock.

"Fuck," I hissed, and spat blood on the ground.

"That's for fucking around with my sister. Any other girl in the world you could have picked to run a train on, and you chose Harper?" Rett spat at my feet. "The fuck were you thinking?"

Cal was bent double, coughing and sounding like he wanted to either puke or murder something, but Rett wasn't done yet.

"And what the fuck were you thinking?" he snarled, whirling on Harper. All the color drained from her face and she stared at him, stricken, her mouth a perfect 'o'. “You're smarter than this, why are you acting like a fucking idiot?"

"I'm not," she shot back, stepping towards him. She was at least a foot shorter than Everett, but she got right in his face as she shoved him back. "You are! What the fuck are you doing, you don't own me! Go help Cal up, I think you really hurt him."

"Good," Rett snarled. "Fucker deserves it."

"No, he doesn't!" Harper shouted, shoving Rett so hard he took a step back. "I love him, Rett! I fucking love them both! And I'm having their baby!"