Page 14 of Shattered
Chase ran a palm over his jaw while he scanned the cluttered office. As usual, he was dressed in dark blue jeans with a khaki button down. With my brother's scrutinizing gaze sweeping over my space the familiar ache of feeling less than human settled in my chest. Growing up I'd always felt like the outsider even though nobody had treated me as such. As a young boy, I couldn't understand why I didn't want the same things out of life as my brothers did.
I still didn't understand.
"What's up with you?" Chase's voice forced me back to the moment.
"Nothing. Did you need something?"
My short answer was met with a frown. "Okay," Chase said as he crossed one leg over the other and folded his arms in front of him. "Straight to the point then. If Harper is the only reason you want to adopt a dog, I can tell you now that I'm not going to approve it. Taking care of a pet is a huge responsibility."
Biting down on my teeth, I inhaled deeply. "What? You think I'm incapable of taking care of anyone or anything but myself?" My voice came out louder and harsher than I'd intended, but I was sick of being judged by the mistakes I'd made in the past.
I was a thirty-three-year-old man still being held accountable for the actions of a seventeen-year-old boy. It was bullshit.
I saw the shift in Chase's body, and I knew what was coming. The same thing everyone always threw at me when I was in a bad mood. "Do I need to check?"
Both hurt and furious, I jumped up and stormed toward Chase. Pulling up the sleeves of my coveralls, I exposed the insides of my arms to my brother. "No, you don't need to bloody ask. I haven't used in over thirteen years. I'm just in a piss poor mood, and you're making it worse. So…"
What I needed was for everyone to just stay out of my business. Wordlessly I stalked to my door and opened it. With my eyes fixed on the dark wood instead of Chase, I said, "We'll talk later."
For a long, tense moment Chase didn't move. I didn't want to throw my little brother out of my office. But, with the mood that I was in, I just might've. Luckily Chase slowly pushed off the desk and moved toward the door, stopping in front of me, he said, "You know where to find me if you need to talk."
As soon as I was able to, I shut the door and locked it this time. Bracing both my hands against the door, I let my head hang.
If I'd known that this was how my day was going to go, I'd have stayed in bed.
The little bell above the door chimed, and I only shook my head when I saw who came waltzing in.
"I come with food." Lizzy's smile was as bright as her yellow tank top.
"No," I shook my head and laughed. "You're only here because you want information. I already told you fifty times this morning: nothing happened."
The smell of Lizzy's freshly baked quiche permeated the air, and my stomach grumbled in answer. Not being able to wait until Lizzy reached me; I rounded my desk and pulled the takeout box from my friend's grasp.
"And it doesn't matter how much food you ply me with, the facts are going to remain the same." I moved back to my desk and began tucking into my lunch while Lizzy perched herself on the desk. "Besides," I said around a fork full of food. "I'm not going to do anything with Flynn right there."
Lizzy's face lit up. "If that's the sole thing holding you back, you know I'd be happy to watch the little guy while you…" Lizzy grinned and waggled her eyebrows. "You know."
I couldn't help but laugh. "Why the sudden interest in my sex life? Shouldn't you be more focused on yours?"
"Just because I'm not talking about it doesn't mean I'm not having it."
Not interested in the food anymore, I pushed it aside and sat up straighter. "You're seeing someone?"
Before Lizzy could answer the door chimed again.
I swallowed hard as I watched him approach; scanning the room with every step he took.
Eli Jackson's gaze flitted between me and Lizzy before he tipped his head in greeting. "Ladies."
I hoped my smile didn't seem as fake as it was. "Sheriff."
Eli's eyes narrowed—as they always did when he regarded me. "Chase in?"
"No. His next appointment is at three, so he should be back before then. Can I give him a message?"
As if he didn't believe me, Eli steadily scanned the room again. "I'll just come back later." With that, he turned and left.
"Honestly, I can't believe he is related to Logan and Chase," Lizzy whispered next to me.
