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“Yes I did.”
“I’m impressed,” he said.
“Thank you.” She pushed her hair out of her face and rolled up the window so she could tell Bradley her truths. “I dropped out for a while, but I wasn’t strung out, Bradley. I had a good time—if you could even call it that—drank, smoked pot, tried coke, the typical.”
“That’s typical?”
“Considering the colleges I’ve attended? Yes.” She sighed. “It didn’t take long to figure out that lifestyle wasn’t for me and never will be.”
“I’m glad to hear it.”
“I still made bad choices,” she said. “If you guys hadn’t found me, I…well, I don’t want to think about it.”
Bradley reached across the seat and gripped her wrist. “Then don’t.” He then took a weighted breath and said, “Heather, we need to talk about Trouble. It’s a haven for abused women. We keep our own safe. I want you to live there. I can keep an eye on you and…well, I think there are a few fellas who may want to keep a real close eye on you also.”
“I know,” she said, giddy.
“How do you feel about that?”
“About?” She wasn’t letting him off that easy. If he wanted to pry in her personal life, he’d have to spit it out.
“There’s no easy way for a brother to say this but Gabe, Curt, and Justin are interested in you.”
“Just interested?” She looked out the window and tried to hide her smile. “I think there’s more than a smidgen of interest in play there.”
“Any idea of how you’re going to handle the situation?”
“This coming from my brother who shares his woman with three other men?”
“It’s not an easy arrangement.”
“You’ve made it work. Besides, Ellie has four men in her bed. I just want three.”
“Too much information.”
“You started this,” she reminded him.
“You need to know something before you make a decision. The way some of us choose to live in Trouble is frowned upon in other communities.”
“I can see that.”
“Heather, I just want you to be sure before you make any life-altering decisions. It’s…difficult…to, um…go back once you’ve experienced certain things.”
She laughed and patted his cheek. “Listen at you, big brother.” She shook her head and put her hands over her ears. “Actually, I’ve heard enough. You’re my brother. I don’t want to think about you having sex, let alone tag-teaming Ellie.”
“Any more than I want to think about you with those three lugs,” he said, pulling through Trouble’s gates and waggling his fingers at the windshield.
“They’re already standing outside waiting on me.” She grinned at Bradley. “Man oh man, they sure look anxious, huh?”
“Really?”
“You were the one who wanted to ride back with me.”
“I just wanted to say, ‘Be careful’ and… I love ya, kid. That’s all. I want you to be happy.”
“I will be.” She opened her door. “I’ve known Gabe for four years. I’ve known Curt just as long. Justin and I grew up together. It’s not like I’m going to bed with men I don’t know.”
“So you’ve already made up your mind?” He didn’t seem okay with that, but then again, Bradley was her brother.
