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“Jesus, you’re so dramatic.”
TJ was clearly trying to keep from laughing.
Grant huffed. “At least take it somewhere other than the barn.”
“You’re one to talk.”
TJ did laugh then. “He’s right. I’ve heard you enjoying—”
Grant pointed a finger at him. “Not another fucking word.”
We both laughed as my brother turned and stomped out of the barn.
9
TJ
Itossed back the last of my whiskey. How many glasses had I had now? Three? Four? Not enough to forget, so I was going to need another refill. Everyone else was celebrating solving our problem with the FBI and getting rid ofJacob’s evil ex.As far as they were concerned, we could enjoy some relaxing days, watching horses frolic in the pasture, but I’d gotten a call from my aunt. One that had me feeling furious and… a hell of a lot of other emotions I didn’t want to name.
My father had agreed to let my cousin appoint someone else to take my role in the family. He said it would be temporary until I got back, but I knew better. I was being pushed out, and I was going to have to fight to get my position back. Ultimately, I was going to have to either walk away from my family or assassinate my overly ambitious cousin. What would I do if I walked away? Where else would I use my skill set? Even though my father treated me like shit, I did care about other members of my family, and I cared that we had a code. All my cousin cared about was making himself richer and more powerful. It didn’t matter to him who or what he destroyed to get there. I cared about the community and so had my grandfather.
Was my father really fooled by Franco? If so, how could he be so blind?
I slumped back in my chair, tilted my head up, and looked at the stars. Grant and his brothers seemed to find nature calming. Sitting out there, I could kind of see what they meant. There wasn’t exactly a breeze, but it wasn’t as hot as it had been earlier, and there was a sense of intense quiet and openness. I’d never seen so many stars in my life.
I told myself to go in and get the rest of the bottle of whiskey. It was probably time to give up using a glass. My legs didn’t want to work, though, so I just sat there. A few moments later, I heard the screen door creak. When I turned, I saw the one person who could bring me as much trouble as my family. Rhys.
“Shit,” he said when he noticed me sitting there.
“I got here first.”
I laughed at the disgust on his face, but on the inside, I was angry and hurt. I was done with him treating me like I was beneath him. He wanted me as much as I wanted him.
I noticed the bottle in his hand. “Were you trying to find a quiet place to get drunk too?”
“I’m well on my way,” he said, saluting me with the half-empty bottle.
I held my hand out for it. I didn’t think he’d share, but he handed it over. I knocked back a swallow and passed it back.
“The porch is big enough for both of us.” I waved my hand toward a chair.
He nodded and took the seat, landing with a thump as though he expected the chair to be higher than it was.
I started laughing, then he did too. It took us both a while to catch our breaths.
Maybe I was drunker than I thought. That was dangerous as hell. This close to Rhys, I swore I felt the heat of his body. I smelled his unique scent and remembered all too well how it had felt to have him pressed against me in the barn.
My dick hardened as he took another swallow of whiskey. I watched his silhouette in the dim light. Why did he have to be so fucking beautiful?
“Are you celebrating like everyone else?” I asked, taking a turn with the bottle again. “Hell no. I’m trying to drown out the sound of Grant and Jacob fucking. I’m way too damn tired of hearing them. That’s why I had to come out here. I’m also—” He paused abruptly, and his eyes went wide. “I didn’t mean to say that.”
I frowned. “You didn’t really say anything.”
“Yeah? That’s good.”
I wanted to push, but drunken confessions were not something we needed to start. The last thing I wanted was Rhys encouraging me to spill all the things I wanted to say to him—or all the things I needed to say to someone, anyone, who would listen. We sat there in silence, passing the bottle back and forth, watching each other, letting our fingers brush each time we handed off the whiskey.
I was so hard it was painful. When we were near the end of the bottle, I let my spinning head drop back again so I could look up at the stars. They all seemed to dance before me. I needed to get out of there. I needed to go back inside the house to my own room, where I could lock the door and jerk off, imagining all the things I would do to Rhys if he’d let me.
