Page 91 of Forever Relentless

He didn’t overreact; he made a sound that could have very easily been a satisfied ‘knew it,’ but he had the grace not to gloat.

“Good?” he asked casually.

“Yeah.” I took a drink to hide my smile. I wasn’t fooling anyone.

“Her brother can take you,” he warned me.

“Pretty sure she can take me,” I told him, only half-joking.

He didn’t say anything else. Putting his bottle on the floor, he leaned over and flicked on the TV. He handed me a controller.

“Game?”

“Sounds good.”

And neither of us spoke about it again. No lecture. No, ‘what are the repercussions?’ Nothing. I really appreciated that. I don’t know if he knew it, or if he didn’t care. No, that was harsh; he did care. So did Dante.

It’d been a while since I had that. People outside of my family who cared about me, not just what I could do on the field. These guys had been open with me, it was probably time I did the same.

“My brother gets bullied,” I told him carefully. “He thinks he doesn’t, but he does. He thinks now that he’s in college, it’s behind him.”

Dustin hesitated slightly, casting a surprised glance my way, but he didn’t say anything, he just nodded and kept on playing. “Same guy? Or guys?”

“Guy. He’s a dick.” I concentrated on the game. “He bullied him in high school. I kicked his ass. He stopped. But I’m no longer living two streets away.”

“Is there a reason he bullies him, or is he just that guy who’s basically a dick?”

“Tate’s really clever. His head is usually in a book or a video game.” I smirked at the fact that I was playing a video game while sharing. “For a jerk with few brain cells, he’s an easy target.”

“I’m glad you kicked his ass,” Dust said as he scored a touchdown. He leaned back as his player celebrated on screen. “This is what’s been bothering you?”

I shrugged. “Maybe. Maybe it’s part of it all.”

He gave a nod and a sigh. “Yeah. I hear that.” He stooped to pick up his water and took a drink. “Where does your brother go to school again?”

“Texas.”

Dust rose his eyebrows. “Long drive.”

My laugh was low. “Done it before.”

“I got air miles.” He gave me a look out of the side of his eyes. “Happy to use them for a good cause.”

I glanced at him as the game started up again. “You’d give me your air miles so I could go kick the ass of my little brother’s bully?”

“Man, for that, I’d come with you.”

I put the controller down. “The mean girl, from the Santo house. She said you were almost a Devil. I thought she meant the team, but then I remembered they’re called Saints. What did she mean?”

Dustin’s grin was wide and full of mischief. “The Santo guys. They’re called Devils. They’re the opposite of saints. They cause chaos — Mayhem they call it. Like they pull pranks and shit on other teams. Or in school.”

“Pranks?” I asked doubtfully. “Gray Santo does not look like he pulls pranks.”

Dustin tipped his head back and laughed loudly. “No, Gray is the more sinister of the three. He leans more toward the chaos. You’re at a party, the lights go out, and if you run, especially if you’re a girl, and they catch you, they have you.”

“That sounds—”

“It’s fun.”