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I jerked when I heard bustling at the door. I walked out of the kitchen, and there was Marjorie, obviously coming back from… Where? If she’d taken the boys all the way into town to school, she wouldn’t be back yet. She wore a fleece jacket and sweat pants, her feet clad in old sneakers.
She shed the jacket and hung it on the coatrack in the hallway.
“You still here?” she said, not meeting my gaze.
“Yeah. I have a meeting with your brothers here at nine. Remember?”
“I heard from Talon,” she said. “Jade is going to be okay, and they’ll be home later today.”
“Yeah, me too. Joe and Ryan decided to still have the meeting with me.”
“I’ll make you guys some breakfast.”
“Joe and Ryan probably already ate.”
She laughed softly, not really smiling. “Trust me. I know my brothers. They’re bottomless pits. They’ll want breakfast. You want coffee?” She walked into the kitchen.
I shoved my hands into the pockets of my jeans, shuffling my feet on the area rug between the hallway and the kitchen.
Marjorie laughed—sort of. “I get it. You want to go outside and sit in your car and then come back in once Joe and Ryan have arrived so it doesn’t look like you’ve been here all night.” Her tone was sardonic and a little hurt.
I cleared my throat. “No, that’s not what I was thinking.”
“It’s written all over your face, Bryce. You do kn
ow as soon as they drive up, they’ll see your car, right?”
I opened my mouth to respond, but she quieted me with a gesture.
“Don’t even start, for God’s sake. Just sit down at the table and let me pour you a cup of coffee. Did you ever consider the fact that maybe you got here before they did? Maybe you’re excited to hear their proposal?”
Again, I said nothing and sat down at the table as she instructed. A few seconds later, a steaming cup of black coffee was thrust in front of me.
“I’m going to take a quick shower. When my brothers get here, just tell them you let yourself in. I’ll even tell them I left the door unlocked for you. Got it?”
I nodded, feeling like the world’s biggest asshole.
“Also, tell them I’ll make some breakfast when I’m done.”
I nodded again. Then I simply sat, taking a sip of coffee that burned my tongue, and waited. Waited for two of the Steel brothers to show up for our meeting. And I knew, as soon as they saw my face, they'd be able to tell I’d fucked their little sister.
I’d made such a big mistake.
As much as I wanted to, though, I couldn’t bring myself to regret what had occurred. In fact, as much as I knew I wasn’t ready to offer Marjorie Steel anything close to what she deserved, all I could think about was getting back into her bed.
Which meant only one thing. Even though I needed the work, I had to turn down whatever the Steels were about to offer me. I couldn’t be around Marjorie. Our need for each other was too great. I would never be able to resist her, so the only choice I had was to stay away from her.
Far, far away from her.
I looked up when the door opened. A few seconds later, Jonah Steel, my best friend in the world, walked into the kitchen.
“Bryce, you’re early. What’s wrong with this picture?” He laughed.
Not too obvious. I’d never been known for my punctuality.
“Just interested to hear what you guys want to talk to me about.”
“I thought Tal filled you in a little.”
