Page 56 of Glorious Rivals
She opened her mouth and then closed it again, and Grayson got back to business.“Of the puzzles Lyra’s father laid out for her that night,” he told Avery and Jameson both, “that just leaves the calla lily.Its meaning is still unknown, but earlier tonight, someone left a fresh one positioned just so on a rock next to the helipad.”Grayson flicked his gaze between the two of them.“I can see that I was right in assumingthatlily was not a part of the game.Eve claimed it wasn’t her doing, either.Lyra believes her, and I believe Lyra.”
Grayson could tell, looking over Avery at Jameson, that were Avery not between them, Jameson would have already surged forward to grab him by his black silk shirt.Grayson’s brother wasn’t okay with any part of this discussion.
Thiswasgoing to come down to a fight.
Fully accepting that, Grayson pushed on.“You can see why Lyra might have questions about the music box puzzle, Jamie.You know something.She knows that you know something.And I can’t protect her ifIdon’t know exactly what it is I’m supposed to be protecting her from.”
Jameson lunged forward, and Avery turned, placing her hands flat on his chest, holding him back.Jameson stilled automatically at her touch, and Avery tossed a look back at Grayson, a silentAre you done?
He was not.“Lyra is not the problem here, Jameson.She’s not the threat.Youare.”Grayson let that sink in.“Your secrets.Whateveryouhave gotten yourself and Avery into.”
Jameson’s eyes blazed.Grayson turned to Nash.“Am I wrong?”
“Would you believe me if I said you were?”Nash returned, calm as calm could be.“You’re in deep with this girl, Gray.”
“Tell me that I’m wrong,” Grayson challenged.
Nash gave a shake of his head and addressed his next words to Jameson.“He ain’t wrong, Jamie.Neither one of us can protect you and Avery from threats we can’t see coming.”
Grayson let that sink in, and then he widened his stance and met Jameson’s eyes.“I call.”
Jameson gently removed Avery’s hands from his chest.He lowered them to her side, delicately sidestepped her—andcharged.
Grayson didn’t bother planting his feet.He twisted just before impact.Jameson anticipated it.Grayson anticipated that he would.The end result still had them both airborne.That was the thing about fighting someone you knew almost as well as you knew yourself, someone with whom you were very nearly evenly matched: No one was coming out of that kind of fight unscathed—unless there was mud involved, and Grayson had known quite well at the time that that trick would only work once.
Jameson slammed him back into the wall.“I told you not to even say that name.”
“Alice.Hawthorne.”Grayson broke his brother’s hold and reversed their positions.“When have I ever given you the impression that I take orders, little brother?”Grayson locked his arms around both of Jameson’s, pinning them to his sides.
Jameson exploded, sending Grayson flying back.“You gave me until the end of the game, Gray.”
As Jameson stalked toward him, Grayson saw an opening—not a big one.But big enough.He went for it, turning Jameson’s momentum against him, but the second Grayson put Jameson on the ground, someone did the same to him, swiping his legs out from underneath him.
Avery.“Nicely executed,” Nash told her.Then he hauled both Grayson and Jameson to their feet.“And that’s enough, all of you.”Nash let loose of them.“Start talkin’, Jamie.”
With a phrase like that one, it was rarely a good thing when Nash dropped hisg.
“Telling you a damn thing could put Libby in danger.”Jameson went straight for the jugular.“Is that what you want?”
“You let me worry about Lib,” Nash said.“Anyone comes at her and the babies, they’ll have to go through me, and personally, I don’t like their chances.”Nash took off his cowboy hat and set it on a dresser.“And Libby would kick your assherselfif she knew you just played that card.”
“You don’t need to know,” Jameson gritted out.
Grayson shook his head.This was not going to end well—for Jameson.
“Just walk away.”Jameson wasn’t looking at Nash now.He was looking at Grayson.“From her.From this.”
Lyra.Jameson was asking him to walk away from Lyra Kane.“No.”
“We’ll call off the game,” Jameson said, like Grayson hadn’t even spoken.“Eve’s interference gives us a plausible reason to.”
“You could call off the game,” Grayson replied evenly, “but I guarantee you, the first thing Lyra will do is take what she learned here and start looking for answers.She is relentless, Jamie, and highly intelligent.”The muscles in Grayson’s throat tightened.“Andshe matters.To me, shematters.So you are going to tell me everything you know.”
“I will tell you nothing.”Jameson was halfway through taking another swing when Nash, who’d clearly reached his limit, intercepted it and tossed Jameson onto the bed.
Grayson stalked to stand over the bed.Tell me, Jamie.
Jameson’s jaw stayed clamped shut.
