Page 40 of Reckless
“Winter?” Theo’s voice is softer, a little gentler than the other two. “You okay?”
My eyes widen at him. “Okay?” Disbelief bleeds into my voice. “No, Theo. I’m not okay. That dog is yapping nonstop, and you are not allowed to live next to me.”
The other men chuckle and get back to unloading the moving van, but Theo’s perfectly shaped lips curve up as his head tips, revealing the incision along his collarbone. “Oh, yeah? I guess I’ll have to check the by-laws. Find the rule that says I’m not allowed to live next to you. I must have missed it. And Peter?” He motions down at the dog, whose forehead is way too big and whose tongue lolls out of his mouth. It appears to have cataracts, which explains why it’s regarding Theo like he hung the moon. “He’s deaf and going a little blind. He’s just stressed. He’ll settle once we move all our stuff in and it feels like home. He doesn’t usually bark at all.”
Nausea roils in my stomach as I wonder what the hell he’s playing at here.
“Theo,” my voice cracks. “Why are you doing this?”
All three men look up at the tone in my voice and I realize this isn’t the place to have this conversation.
Theo’s brows knit together. “Jasper offered me this house. It’s close to the gym. I’ll train there while I recover, hopefully make it back on the circuit before fall. I won’t be here for long.”
The knife in my gut twists harder.
“Are you kidding me right now?” I sound breathless, weak. I soundshockedand Theo looks forlorn, totally confused by my reaction.
“Winter, suck it up. You barely know the guy,” Beau calls out, muscles bulging as he carries an armchair toward the front door. “You don’t have to be friends.”
I want to pick up a rock and throw it at Beau’s stupid GI Joe head.Friends.God. We are much more than friends. And nobody knows except us. The shreds of dignity I kept in my grip when I left Rob were all I had and admitting to anyone that Theo didn’t want me either was more pain than I was equipped to handle.
So, I told everyone I had a one-night stand and didn’t remember who the guy was.
The problem is, I remember that night in vivid detail. And it haunts me.
I shake my head at Theo, for the first time feeling like I might truly hate him. Tears well in my eyes, which is my signal to get the fuck out of here.
Theo steps closer to the fence, his face etched with concern. He lifts his good arm like he’s about to stop me. Like there’s something he wants to say.
But I don’t want to hear anything he has to say. And I don’t want to break down here with the guys watching.
So, I turn away and toss out over my shoulder, “Shut your dog up, Theo. If it wakesmybaby up, I’ll castrate you.”
Then I slam the door on them in a fit of frustration.
Then I hear Vivienne’s startled cry.
Then I sink to the floor and cry too.
11
Theo
“Hard to believe Summer came out so nice when her sister came out likethat.” Beau shakes his head as he comes back down the front steps with empty hands.
“Winter is nice.” The sentence comes out with more force than intended, more than is appropriate for the situation. But I think I’ve felt protective of that woman since the first night I laid eyes on her.
I didn’t know then how desperately she needed someone to be. That no one hadeverbeen that for her. That she’s been fending for herself since before she should have needed to.
Beau scoffs. “With those moods I’m surprised she found someone willing to knock her u—”
“Beau, shut up,” Rhett cuts him off. “She’s done a lot for you. She’s family. If we’re gonna talk about her moods, maybe it’s time we talk about yours, hmm?”
The two brothers stare each other down in the front yard of the house I’ll be renting for the next few months. My chest vibrates with tension, partially because if these two go nuts on each other, I will not jump in. I’m smarter than that.
But tension builds in me all the same as I fixate on thewilling to knock her uppart. I don’t know how old the baby is, and I don’t know the specifics of how long that process takes beyond that nine-month marker, but I suddenly have the urge to pull out a calendar and check.
Beau stares but says nothing. Since going missing in action on an assignment overseas, he hasn’t been the same. He’s physically healed, but he’s different. Darker.
