Total pages in book: 128
Estimated words: 119852 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 599(@200wpm)___ 479(@250wpm)___ 400(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 119852 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 599(@200wpm)___ 479(@250wpm)___ 400(@300wpm)
I’ve played out this conversation from every angle. I’ve strategized how to deal with each of my brothers’ reactions, knowing they’ll be as varied as they are. And I’ve analyzed every potential outcome, from acceptance to full-blown excommunication, which might be melodramatic, but I prefer to have every scenario accounted for. Overly prepared is the smack-dab middle of my comfort zone. And now, it’s showtime. Or time to pay the piper in my case, because one thing Kyle was correct about is that I have played mastermind for my brothers countless times before, and now they’re going to try to do the same thing to me.
Try being the operative word.
“Took you long enough. It’s been nearly thirty-six hours since Kyle sent that picture,” I tell them as I open the door, sounding bored by the sudden and unscheduled appearance of my entire sibling group. They think it’s an ambush, but I’ve been waiting for them. To the point that there’s a freshly-arranged charcuterie board on the coffee table and I just pulled the cork on a bottle of white wine.
“Oooh! Cheese!” Luna whispers, rushing past me to beeline for the snacks.
“Had to get our plan of attack hammered out,” Cole informs me, his voice flat and face stony. He’s used to everyone being terrified of him and cowering away when he gives his trademark menacing, dead-eyed stare, but I’m not everyone and I don’t flinch in the slightest. I’ve always been able to feel his heart like it’s my own, so I never doubted that he was good, all the way down to his soul. I mean, I won’t argue that he’s a little out there, but aren’t we all, given the upbringing we had? Still, his stance is clear and he’s intentionally being intimidating with a goal of putting me off-kilter.
Too bad for him, my foundation is steady and I’m completely unbothered by his scare tactics. “Poor choice on your part because you gave me time to do the same,” I counter. “And we both know who’s the more formidable foe.” He frowns at the comparison between us.
Having set the tone with the first verbal jabs, I count the faces peering at me curiously as they file into my condo, finding my five brothers and almost all their partners. “Where’s Janey?” I ask Cole as he enters last.
“Home with Emmett, and hanging with Grace. Cameron didn’t want to bring her for this discussion,” he answers, sounding like he understands why Cameron would make that parental choice for his teenage daughter given their expected conversational topic. Emmett may only be a year old, but Cole has basically crowned himself the King of Parenthood, as though he’s the ultimate knowledge-bearer of right and wrong. To be honest, it’s usually endearing for the scariest of our brood to have such an unexpected protective, nurturing streak. Right now, however, I shoot him another empty glare.
“You could’ve,” I say blandly as everyone claims various seats around the living room. I choose a chair closest to the door, not as an escape route, but in preparation for kicking them out if needed. “Because there’s not going to be a discussion. None of you were invited into my dating life, much less my sex life.”
“See? Completely delusional,” Kyle says, managing to both grin and simultaneously pop a grape into his mouth. I send an extra glance at his boots, checking for dirt and thankfully seeing none. This intrusion is bad enough without the addition of the random mud, sweat, and dust that typically surround him. “She actually thinks we’re gonna leave this alone.”
He snorts in amusement, nearly choking on his grape, which serves him right as far as I’m concerned. A bit of karmic justice in my book for throwing kerosene on this whole dumpster fire of a situation.
It's his fault this is blowing up. I could be happily on my way to the guys’ house for dinner, a hot tub soak, and mind-blowing orgasms for all if it weren’t for Kyle. Instead, I’m sitting here with my brothers, most of whom look fresh from the office and constipated with words they want to shit all over me, and my sisters-in-law, who seem various levels of curious, concerned, and maybe… congratulatory? And while I understand everyone’s interest, it’s none of their business. Not now, maybe not ever, depending on how things go.
I mean, it’s seriously early for some big intervention moment. I’ve only been seeing Riggs and Maddox for a few weeks. It’s not exactly casual, but we’re not making vows either. So really, this is all premature and again, none of their business.
“This needs to be addressed, Kayla. Before news begins making the rounds,” Cameron proclaims. As the oldest, he likely assumes he’ll be taking the role of leader for this. But realistically, he’s not the sibling we all go to for advice and wisdom. That would be me.