Total pages in book: 68
Estimated words: 67490 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 337(@200wpm)___ 270(@250wpm)___ 225(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 67490 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 337(@200wpm)___ 270(@250wpm)___ 225(@300wpm)
CHAPTER 13
Brothers are good for two things. One, making sure that they make your life as miserable as possible. And two, making sure that you smell their farts for the rest of your life, whether you want to or not.
-Ande to Keene
ANDE
There was nothing quite like having your brothers, your very overprotective brothers, meet the man you were quickly falling for.
The bar, which was only a few blocks away from the apartments that my brothers had been drooling over since they were old enough to have adult money, was crowded. But not so crowded that you couldn’t breathe inside the walls.
In fact, it was open at the top, the ceiling slid back to let the cool breeze of the night in—a rare night in Texas that was neither too hot, nor too cold. There was what looked to be a fire pit at the top floor, with people milling about the area, making it even cooler looking.
“Have you ever been here?” I asked.
“No,” he answered. “I have neither the time nor the inclination to go out to bars.”
I smiled at him apologetically. “I’m sorry. I didn’t even think to ask if you had a problem going to a bar.”
“It’s not the ‘going to the bar’ aspect of it. It’s the people aspect of it. There’s just not any desire in me whatsoever to be around this many people all at once. My job is rather suffocating. People are just… everywhere. All the time. And sometimes it’s nice just to be able to breathe. Plus…”
“Oh my God!” I heard someone say from beside me. “That’s him!”
Keene sighed, and his hand tightened on my hip.
“Can we take a photo with you?” two girls in the tiniest dresses I’d ever seen asked, waggling their phone at Keene.
Keene was already shaking his head. “I’ll take one later on the way out if you’re still here. But I’m on a first date with my girl here.”
“Oh, that’s so sweet,” one said. “Yes, we’ll totally be here all night. Come find us!”
Then they were both gone.
“Umm,” I said. “Are you popular or something?”
“Or something,” he grumbled, pushing me through the crowd of people near the front entrance. “Apparently, some girl came to the show the day that we had a new fire juggler. Usually, Hades does that when she’s in town, but this chick we hired promised us that she could do it. And she could… during practice. However, during the performance, she got stage fright and dropped one of the fire batons and accidentally caught my shirt on fire. I had to rip it off in front of everyone, and apparently there was a huge TikTok star there that day and things went ‘viral.’”
I frowned. “I’ll have to look that up later.”
There was more whispering and pointing, and I felt like I was on a date with a celebrity by the time we found my brothers, no surprise, at the top near the fire pit with their backs to the wall, sitting on an outdoor sectional.
The first to see us was Quaid.
Then Quinn, who was sitting next to Quaid. Followed by all of them.
Every set of eyes related to me trained on first me, then the hand holding mine, then Keene.
Even Gable was there, though he looked rather inconspicuous in a hat tucked low over his eyes and long hair. His clothes were plain and blended in nicely.
I felt my chin start to quiver at the sight of him—the only one that I hadn’t seen that day—and I ran.
He caught me before he could even stand all the way and crashed back onto the couch with an oomph of escaping air.
“Gable,” I cried into his neck. “I’m so glad that you’re here.”
And alive.
I hadn’t seen him in so long that I couldn’t count the days.
“Ande,” his deep voice rumbled underneath me. “It’s okay, sweetheart.”
My brothers weren’t usually this nice.
A hug from them was like pulling teeth sometimes, but they allowed it begrudgingly because Addison and I loved it so much.
We were touchy feely people, and hugs were the most fun things to give to brothers who hated them.
I continued to sniffle into his neck, loving the hug, for so long that it became rude because I’d brought someone with me who didn’t necessarily know my family, but when I finally pulled myself together, it was to find Keene talking quietly to my other brothers.
“I can’t believe you brought the circus clown,” Gable muttered as he pulled me close into his side.
I leaned against his solid chest—he’d gotten bigger in the time that he’d been gone—and sniffled.
Keene was nodding at something that Quincy was saying, but his eyes kept periodically coming to me to make sure that I was okay.
Satisfied that I was, he’d go back to his conversation.
Something about a rescue organization.
“Don’t call him a clown,” I said. “And if you’re going to go for circus titles, he’s technically the ringmaster.”