Page 34 of Breaking the Alpha
Her voice was steady, but her fear was ratcheting.
What was she thinking?Birch’s weekly jewelry order was a huge boost to her bottom line.He was consistent, he paid right away, and his selections were always quality.Kissing his younger brother could rightfully destroy a solid business relationship.And she had no idea how Birch felt about River’s ex-wife.What if he adored her?What if he thought she broke them up?What if—
“Whatever is going through your mind, kill it now,” River murmured into her hair as he took her hand.“And remember the code phrase.”
With a nod she let him take the lead, holding his hand tight and stepping closer to him while a gorgeous young guy with long blond hair and the Baker cheekbones ushered them in, announcing their arrival as one might announce royalty.
For such a small group there was a lot of noise and mayhem in the limited space.She was introduced to Grey right away, and the youngest brother gave her a smile she knew would drop many panties over the years.
A beautiful blonde woman strode over and held out her hand, her steel-blue eyes holding a hint of exasperation while an older version of her called instructions from the back of the shop.“So nice to meet you, Angelina.I’m Jocelyn, thede factowrangler of that bundle of hormones over there,” she said as she gestured at Grey, her husky voice as warm as her smile.“Care for a glass of wine?I just broke open a rosé I’m dying to try.”
“I’d love one,” she replied, slipping away from River after a whispered reassurance and following Jocelyn to a table covered in snacks and drinks.“Thank you for putting this together for him.I know he appreciates it.”
With a quick introduction to her parents outside the shop’s back door manning the barbecue, Jocelyn handed her a glass almost overflowing.“I have an obsessive need for organization, so it’s best for everyone if I channel it into things like this instead of world domination.”
A long arm draped over Jocelyn’s shoulder and Angelina looked up to see Epson’s infamous tattoo artist appraising her.“My hope is that if she stays busy enough planning parties for the others, she won’t notice she’s tethered herself to the ugly brother.”He grinned at her.“So you’re the landlady.”
“Yes.Yes, just his landlady,” she said on an exhale.“River is renting my basement suite.It’s perfect, really.He was looking for something small, I was looking for a trustworthy tenant.I guess you could say the stars were aligned.He’s an ideal renter.Very quiet, no parties.”She looked to Jocelyn to avoid the teasing glimmer building in Birch’s eyes.“He’s told me a lot about you.”
Birch was still smirking at her like he knew something while Jocelyn excused herself and ducked out from under his arm.He leaned against a desk, its top cleared off to make room for a colorful collection of paper plates and cups.“Wish I could say the same.”He glanced over at River and Grey, his lips turning up at the sight of the two of them hunched over Grey’s phone.“You’re the only woman River’s ever brought around to meet us.Even if you are just his landlady.”As River and Grey burst out laughing at something on the screen, his hazel eyes turned to her.“You and Jocelyn probably have a lot in common.”
“I suspect we’re both skilled at spotting good men in a sea of bad ones.”
The words were out before she could stop them and she winced.Her heart pounded as she waited for his response, but she received nothing except the lift of his brows and a smile before he excused himself to help Matthew Carter at the grill.
In that moment, she got the feeling that she’d passed some unspoken test with the father figure of the group.It was both exhilarating and terrifying.This was a true family, connected and looking out for each other.Despite all the work she’d done on herself to heal from her childhood, she’d never learned how to act in situations like this, where she was—intentionally or unintentionally—being brought into the fold.A part of her wanted them to like her, wanted them towanther to be in River’s life.But that piece of her that knew better was still there.It was always there to remind her just how fast people could turn on her, how painful it was to be blindsided by the very people who’d once made her feel happy.
She took a long sip of her wine and joined Jocelyn at the table, where the beautiful blonde stood arguing with her mom about how to arrange the candles on the cake.
*
River rolled hiseyes as Jocelyn pinned a glowing ‘Birthday Boy’ pin to his shirt and handed him another envelope.Reading the card, he looked over to Matthew and Janie Carter.“Wow,” he exhaled, scanning the info packet for the expensive workout app they’d purchased for him, the download code in bright blue across the top.“You really didn’t have to do this, but thank you.I can’t wait to put it to use in my hotel room tomorrow night.”
Janie shushed him from across the room, the wine in her glass sloshing.“We certainly did have to do this.You work hard to look that good.The least we could do is to make it easier when you’re on the road.”
“Mother!”Jocelyn laughed, glancing over at Angelina.“I’m sorry.She thinks River is cute.”
“You aren’t wrong, Janie.”Angelina grinned, her hand sliding across his back as Jocelyn nudged a large box with no card toward his feet.
The moment he popped open the top and saw what was inside, he burst out laughing, lifting the hand-carved purple giraffe out.“Angelina, my darling, wonderful landlady, you shouldn’t have.”
“Oh, I most definitely should have.”She wrinkled her nose at him and smiled.“Do you reluctantly appreciate it?”
Kissing her before he remembered they had an audience, he pulled back, cleared his throat, and looked at the atrocity again, barely able to contain himself when he heard Grey sputter.“Yeah, I definitely reluctantly appreciate it with all my heart.”Examining the finish, he patted the strangely bulbous head.“I reluctantly appreciate it so much that I hope you’ll let me keep it on your porch so it welcomes me every night.”
He saw Birch lean in close to Jocelyn, his speech slightly slurred by the four beers he’d had.“Is it just me or does that thing look like a big, purple, glittery dick?”
Although River suspected his brother had intended to whisper it, there was a breath of silence at the exact same time he’d spoken.Grey gasped in for air, the music switched to a new song, and the Carters politely held their tongues as Birch’s question rang through the air.
While the rest of the guests lost all composure, Angelina pulled a small box from her purse and handed it to him.“And here’s your real gift.”
He opened the simple brown box to find a black leather necklace, the dual thin strands knotted around onyx beads that led to a pendant.He lifted it out, examining the contrast of the deep green gemstone against the bloodred that ran through it.The leather strands were woven tightly around the stone, perfect replicas of the Bowen knots inked on his skin.
“Jesus,” he breathed.“You made this, didn’t you?”
She nodded as she took it from him and undid the clasp, securing it around his neck.“It’s bloodstone.Some people claim it boosts intuition and strength, others say it repels negative energy and contains protective properties.”Her fingers grazed the stone.“I placed the order for the stone the day we met, so I think it was meant for you.”
Taking her hand and ignoring the R-rated jokes flying through the room, he led her to the back of the shop to the mirror.The stone sat between his collarbone, just above the neckline of his shirt.The green was so dark it appeared almost black, blending seamlessly into the leather knots and onyx beads and drawing his eye to the rich red embedded in it.“I love this.”
