His lips met mine in a closed-mouth kiss. I closed my eyes and instinctively, my arms wrapped around his neck. I ran my fingers through his thick hair, still damp from the ocean. He kissed me softly and sweetly, over and over. Then he pulled back, and I nearly wept, thinking he was going to stop before I’d even gotten my first real taste. But he seemed to have made up his mind about something because his lips were on mine again. His arm snaked around my waist and he tugged me closer.
His tongue swept out against my lips, and I let him in. He filled my mouth, stroking the most sensitive parts, retreating only to return again. I arched into him, my breasts pressed against his hard chest and the unmistakable feel of his hard length against my stomach let me know that he was just as affected as I was. I couldn’t hold back the moan and he let out something that sounded like a growl.
His hands glided down my back and cupped my ass. He lifted me up off the ground and I cinched both legs tightly around his waist, our bodies molded so closely together that I could feel his heart thumping against my chest.
My feet hit the floor with a thud as the front door swung open. Shane took a step back, putting some distance between us, and ran his hand through his hair. I couldn’t look at his face. I was too scared I’d see regret. Or guilt. Or something I didn’t want to see. So, I didn’t look at him. I leaned against the wall, my legs trembling, and tried to control my breathing. My heart was beating too fast. Half-dazed, I swept my tongue over my lips, tasting him. He tasted like the sea and like something else—something intoxicating. Heady.
Dylan paused in the doorway and his gaze swung from me to Shane before he strode past us. My brother had the best sense of timing.
“What happened to you?” I asked, taking in the bruise on his cheekbone and the dried blood on his knuckles.
He ignored my question and picked up the check on the coffee table, accusation in his voice as he asked, “Where did you get this, Rem?”
He knew the answer. “Shane.”
Dylan stalked over to us and held the check in front of Shane who crossed his arms over his chest and made no move to take it.
Dylan ripped the check into tiny pieces and tossed them in the air. They rained down like confetti. “We don’t need your money. I got it covered.”
Shocked at his words, my mouth dropped open. “Where did you get the money?”
“Don’t worry about it.”
“Dylan. Where did you get the money?”
My question was met with stony silence.
His gaze was narrowed on Shane. They were locked in a silent battle of wills, and I had broken our code, airing our dirty laundry in front of Shane, an outsider in Dylan’s eyes. “I got it covered,” he repeated, in case Shane had missed it the first time.
Dylan’s body was coiled with tension, his gaze hard and jaw locked as he stared at Shane. This was ridiculous. Dylan was waiting for Shane to leave, his body language screaming that he wasn’t wanted here.
Shane glanced at me then strode out the door. I sighed as it closed behind him and turned my attention to Dylan who was rooting through the dresser for some clean clothes. He was shirtless, his six-pack and the ink on his skin on display. Lyrics from Eminem’s “Love The Way You Lie” were tattooed across his ribs.
He didn’t even have a space of his own. That was why he only came home for a shower or the occasional meal. But when Mom was gone, he stayed here. Slept on the sofa so I wouldn’t have to be alone in the apartment. He never said it, but I knew that was why he did it and I loved him for it. But he was keeping so many secrets from me. I’d heard so many rumors about him at school, that he was banging the housewives of Costa del Rey for money.
My twin. The one who should be confiding in me. Yet I knew next to nothing about his life or where he went or what he did. Now he looked like a human punching bag. Why?
“I’m gonna hit the shower.”
I grabbed his arm to stop him. “Whoa. Hang on. Please tell me you didn’t do anything illegal.”
He exhaled loudly. “We fucking needed the money and I got it just like I said I would. It’s you and me. We’re in this together. We don’t need help from anyone else. Remember?”
I took a deep breath and released it. This was Shane we were talking about. Not a stranger or an outsider. But Dylan was right. It didn’t feel good accepting charity from anyone, not even Shane. Bad enough he had paid our utilities. I hated that he did that for us. Hated that he needed to. If I told Dylan, he’d find a way to repay him. I didn’t want that either, so I kept my mouth shut about it and I nodded. “Yeah. I remember. Are you okay?”
“You don’t need to worry about me and you don’t need to worry about the rent anymore. I’ve got it covered.”
“Dylan—”
“I’m doing this for us. Mom’s gone, and I don’t give a shit if she comes back. It’s just you and me. Are you with me or not?”
“I’m with you.” But where we would we be if he ended up in juvie? He hadn’t assured me that whatever he’d done was legal.
“Nobody else needs to know our business. As long as we have each other’s backs, everything will be okay.”
I nodded, not because I actually believed that everything would be okay but because I knew he needed me to be on his side. To know that I had his back as much as he had mine. And as he walked away, I wondered when my brother had grown up. When had he become a man? Only a year ago, he’d been a surly sixteen-year-old boy scowling at me for going to the beach without him. Now he was shouldering the weight of the world. He’d gotten bigger and stronger and far more dangerous.
Desperation drives people to do things they’d never dream they were capable of doing.