Is this what having a brother is like?
Take me back to being an only child, I beg of you!
“Stop driving!” I scream. “Take me back!”
“No!” He barks.
His eyes do a double-take at the rearview mirror, any ounce of civility draining from his face. I stop kicking and peer over my shoulder. Out the back glass, Rowan’s truck speeds towards us.
Reassurance eases into me as I try to move my bound wrists.
“Sit back,” Logan commands. “Before Kingsley does something reckless.”
“He’s going to kick your ass,” I gloat as Rowan’s truck inches to the right side of us. The driver takes the shoulder, and I see Theo giving a cocky smirk from the driver’s side as he tries to get even with us.
“Sit back, Addison!” Logan shouts as Theo picks up speed, and I can see into the truck bed.
What the fuck is he doing?
Rowan’s truck leaves us in the dust, only making my confusion deepen as dirt is kicked up from the shoulder. It doesn’t take long before I see for myself exactly what he’s doing.
The truck drifts, never changing speed as the tail end spins until the headlights face us and we’re staring down the hood of the black truck.
“Fuck!” Logan shouts, slamming on the brakes as the other vehicle heads straight for us.
I brace myself for the impact, my back slamming into the seat as I see someone hang out of the passenger side window. Rowan rolls onto the hood, his eyes hard with concentration as the vehicles collide and he sends his boots through the windshield of Logan’s truck.
The glass shatters, sending fragments dancing across the console as a heavy boot plants in the center of my half-brother’s chest. Logan’s arm is lifted as he blocks his eyes and grunts in agony at the kick. He’s quick to recover as he grabs a fistful of Rowan’s jeans and uses his other hand to keep the wheel steady. He’s distracted enough that his foot is easing down on the gas, causing the vehicles to strain against one another.
“Get off!” Logan hisses in a shout.
Rowan ignores him, grabbing a fistful of Logan’s hair and slamming his head into the steering wheel repeatedly in an attempt to get him to relent.
Rowan’s legs shift over the console, probing into the backseat as I try to stay out of their range. I’m crammed against the door, wincing at each sickening smack of Logan’s head against the wheel.
My brother must have had enough of it, because in his haste to pull away, he veers the truck hard into the other lane. The motion takes us, and my ass is airborne for a split second before the weight of the truck teeters and we’re flipping across the blacktop and right into the trees.
Rowan makes a last-second call and slides into the backseat with me. He braces his hands on either side of my head clumsily as we roll. With the first impact of the truck flipping onto its roof, his head is knocked forward, and panic grips me at the hard hit.
Luckily, I’m belted in, but that doesn’t stop me from being thrown around as the vehicle finally stops roughly, and we’re upside down.
My head spins, and I can hear my frantic panting filling the cab as I take in Rowan’s curled form over mine. His back ispressed to the hood, and he wastes no time reaching for me as blood drips from his temple.
“You’re okay, Sunshine.” He rasps, groaning as he sits up, and his hands work to pry the seatbelt off of me. “I’ve got you. I’m not going to let you fall.”
“Your head…” I mumble weakly as my limbs begin to shake.
Gentle hands help me as gravity pulls my body forward. I land on top of him and quickly try to pick myself up so I don’t hurt him further.
“Don’t move,” Rowan commands softly. “I’m gonna get us out of here.”
I nod, burying my face in his chest as he uses a foot to kick out the back window. My eyes stray to the front seat, and I make out Logan’s hanging form. He’s dangling, but as he begins to stir, I know he’s okay. Beat up, but okay nonetheless.
Rowan wraps an arm around my back, inching us out of the truck until we roll into the grass. The cool air hits me instantly, and I feel like I can finally breathe. I register tires slowly crunching across gravel behind us, and as the headlights of Rowan’s truck flood the shoulder, the passenger and driver side doors swing open before Theo and Dom stalk towards us.
“Sit up slowly,” Rowan mumbles as he situates me on his lap.
My fist curls into his shirt as his scent washes over me. I lift a quivering hand to his temple, my fingers numb as I collect some of the blood. My face drains of color before he takes my appendage and covers it with his, so I don’t see the red trail left behind.
