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My hair was heinous, but that was what messy buns were for.
I grabbed my bag and hurried down the stairs and out the front door, checking my phone. There were two messages from Kathy already. Shit.
“You come into town, thinking you can just have a good time. Some of us have more to worry about.”
My eyebrows shot up. I wasn’t sure I’d ever heard Dare raise his voice. So, it hadn’t been a dream after all. And they were still arguing.
“Who said anything about a good time? I’ve had sheetrock dust on my clothes for days, fuckhead.” Gage’s usually smooth, flirty voice was harsh and stressed.
Yeah, I didn’t want anything to do with sibling fights. I’d had plenty with my sister.
Besides, I needed to save my energy to deal with Kathy.
I tried to sneak past, but caught Dare’s attention. His face went from snarly to a cool, chilled mask.
“Don’t mind me, guys.”
Gage turned around. “Rylee.” His eyes still fired with temper, but exhaustion lined them. Maybe he wasn’t getting any sleep either. And a beard was quickly forming out of his perpetual scruff.
“I should probably thank you. Your little argument was quite the alarm clock.” I tapped my wrist. “I’ve got to get going.”
Dare’s ears went pink. “I don’t have time for this shit.” He turned on his heel and headed back to the garage.
Gage sighed and turned back to me. “Can I walk you to work?”
“No, I’m good.” I secured my purse on my shoulder and the sidewalk suddenly shifted under me. I tried to catch myself on the back panel of the silver car parked on the street, but a swarm of black dots and Gage’s sharp, “Jesus,” were the last things I was aware of.
Next thing I knew, my cheek was pressed into a very warm neck and I was definitely not on my feet.
“I’ve got you.”
I pre
ssed my lips against the whiskers hidden in the soft material of a collared shirt. The sweet scent of cherries dented the fog, followed by the sharp tang of his cologne.
I knew that scent.
I’d practically climbed inside of it that one night. I couldn’t get enough of him. “Gage?”
“That’s right. You all right?” He shifted me closer. His strong arms strained under my weight.
Oh, God. Too many mocha lattes. The guy was gonna tumble under me like a redwood. “What happened?”
“I think you fainted.”
“I did not.”
“Okay, you just gracefully folded into a human accordion on the street.” He shifted me again. “Is there some sort of way to get into your building? Key or something?”
“I’ve got to go to work.”
“Yeah, well, it’s either up into your place or I bring you into the café.”
“Upstairs.”
“What I thought.”
“Where’s my bag?”
