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I straightened my spine. “Fine. Let’s tell her. Right now. And I’ll show you that you are wrong.”
“Max,” she said with a sad shake of her head. “I know this is going to be hard.”
“No, Mom. You don’t know anything, but I’ll show you.” I turned and lifted my arm toward the bar. “Let’s go so you can see what my little treasure is really like.”
16
Delaney
Nova and I weren’t sitting there long before a shadow appeared on the table. Lifting my head, I met the startling blue eyes of Max’s sister, Lexa, and his adopted sister, Tavia. Both women and their families were in pictures on the walls of the apartment, so I knew exactly who each one was.
Lexa looked a lot like her brother with her long, glossy black hair, those amazing metallic eyes I loved so much, and the beautiful facial features that belonged on a runway model. Not even the scar on her cheek could distract from how utterly gorgeous she was.
Beside her, Tavia, just as beautiful but looking nothing like her honorary siblings, was assessing me with narrowed eyes.
I gulped, because neither one of them looked particularly welcoming. My heart dropped into my stomach, and I knew they were thinking all the terrible things I’d known they would.
That I wasn’t good enough for their brother. That I was just using him.
And even though I’d known down to my bones this was exactly how his family would react, I’d held out hope they would see that what I felt for Max was real.
Disappointment and hurt had me pushing away the plate of food Ryan’s guard had placed in front of me, and I quickly dropped my gaze to the table as shame burned my face.
I felt Nova shifting beside me and chanced lifting my head to find my new friend standing. Her angelic face was scrunched up in displeasure as she confronted the two women in front of her. As tiny as Nova was, they both towered over her, Lexa more so than Tavia, but they each seemed like Amazonians in comparison.
Ryan moved in behind her, his hand going to her shoulder, whether to comfort or to urge her to calm down, I wasn’t sure, but his stance was nothing but protective.
Not wanting to watch them—mostly because I didn’t want to read the taller women’s lips in case they were calling me names, I glanced over to where I’d left Max and his mom now that my view was no longer blocked by Ryan. But Max was no longer there. Neither was his mother or the woman she’d been keeping back.
My gaze went around the room, my heart starting to pound when I couldn’t find him anywhere. No, he wouldn’t just leave me, I tried to assure myself. He cared about me. He wouldn’t abandon me with all these people who so obviously didn’t want me there.
But he was gone. I couldn’t see him anywhere.
Tears burned my eyes, and I jumped to my feet, needing to be alone. I didn’t want anyone to see me break down. They’d already gotten enough of a show on my behalf.
I took two steps, but that was as far as I got before there was a wall of muscle standing in front of me. Blinking in surprise, I looked up into three sets of faces that looked so similar to Max’s, my lips fell open in gaped-mouth wonder. These three had to be related to Max, yet I hadn’t seen pictures of any of them on his walls at home.
All three of them were taller than the majority of the other men in the bar, their shoulders just as wide as Max’s. The one in the middle seemed to be the oldest, and the one to his left looked more like him than the one on his right, who had three earrings in his left ear and a stud in his nose. At a glance, they were just as beautiful as Max was, but with a second look, I could see they weren’t anywhere as close to being as perfect as Max Reid was in my eyes.
It was their eyes that had me completely mesmerized, however. That incredible blue that I could so easily drown in if I weren’t careful.
But they didn’t belong to the guy I wanted to be wrapped around at that moment. As if they could see the apprehension in my eyes, they stepped closer, blocking me in. But it was the taller of the three, the one standing in the middle, who smiled reassuringly.
To my surprise and complete delight, he lifted his hands and began signing to me. “Hi, I’m Reid.” His hands didn’t move quite as smoothly as Max’s or Nova’s did, telling me he wasn’t as comfortable or as fluent in ASL as they were, but I was just happy to have someone actually speak to me.
“Delaney,” I offered with a small smile.
“Max told me about you,” he said, his signs slower, a frown pulling his brows together as he concentrated on the words.
“I can read lips too,” I tried to convey, and relief filled his handsome face. “Just talk slowly.”
“This is my brother, Elias.” He indicated the one on his left, then the one on his right. “And our cousin, Chance.” I glanced at the two of them, offering each a tiny smile. Elias gave me a head nod in greeting, but Chance only stood there, his eyes drilling into me, unable to hide his suspiciousness. Just like Tavia and Lexa, only…more intense.
Cautiously, I took a step back from him, and Reid slapped him on the back of the head. “You’re scaring her, dumbass,” I thought he said, but his lips moved too quickly for me to be sure.
Chance glared at his cousin. “She doesn’t belong here. What is Max doing with…”
My tears had dried when these three had appeared in front of me, but they returned at his words. I took another step back, looking away so I didn’t have to read the rest of what he was saying. I started to move around him when someone grasped my wrist, turning me to face them.
