Beast Brothers 2

by Stephanie Brother

  “If you want to ask me any questions, now’s the time,” she says.

  “About?”

  “What it’s like. From a woman’s perspective.” My mouth opens and closes again without a single word escaping, and her eyes get mischievous. “I don’t mean the sex; I’m pretty sure you all can figure that part out without help. I mean the rest of it.”

  My head feels like it might explode. “So many questions,” I say, “that I can’t articulate any of them.” At least that was polite.

  “Ask me too,” Cody says, his fingers capturing a strand of Megan’s hair and toying with it.

  For whatever reason, that’s easier to do. I tilt my head between him and his brother. “Was it … difficult?”

  “You mean did we fight over her? No.” His gaze intensifies, and if I believed in any of that woo-woo shit I’d think he was looking into my soul. “Brock and I have always been more like one person in two bodies than two completely separate individuals who happen to look alike. You and your brother have a harder path to walk.”

  25

  One More Piece

  Alex

  I blink. “We do?”

  “You do.” He releases Megan’s hair and leans forward, bracing his elbows on his knees. “Both with each other, and with Zoe.” A pause, and he gives me a deep, wise, knowing look that — again, if I actually believed in all that dippity-doo stuff — might freak me out a little. “You can get there, though.”

  “Well. Thanks.” There’s nothing else I can say right now that won’t either sound rude or send me off the deep end, so I hope he’ll take my response at face value.

  Megan puts her hand on his thigh and squeezes, and it seems to be some sort of unspoken signal because he pushes to his feet and starts toward the kitchen. I look around to see Zoe coming back from the bathroom, Lucas behind her, and then turn the other way to see that Deke is out of his chair and on a collision course with Zoe.

  Before I can think, I’m in between them, my hand inside my jacket to hover near the butt of my gun. Deke’s face goes hard. “Is there a problem?” he says.

  “You tell me.” I don’t move, don’t take my eyes from him. This guy is an unknown quantity, and there’s been no chance to find out more about him, let alone do a background check. I know without looking that Lucas has put Zoe behind him and is ready to do whatever’s necessary if the situation escalates.

  “They do that,” Cody says mildly into the tense silence. “It’s kind of their thing.”

  “It’s kind of our job,” I retort, still watching Deke.

  His eyes narrow. “You’re her guards?”

  “At the moment.” I’m not sure why it feels so important to qualify that statement, but it does.

  Deke examines me a few seconds more, and whatever he sees on my face must satisfy him that it’s nothing personal. He lifts his chin to indicate the area behind me. “I was told the bathroom was over there.”

  Bathroom. Right. Where Zoe just came from. Of course he’d be heading that way.

  I sense movement behind me, and then Lucas leads Zoe past on the left, keeping his body between her and Tara’s date. I jerk my head to the right to tell Deke he’s clear, and he moves past me without another word. Turning, I watch him go, and though I’m certain he’s aware of my scrutiny, he doesn’t look back. I wait until he’s disappeared down the hallway before I shift my attention.

  Brock’s out on the patio adjacent to the living room, visible through the floor-to-ceiling windows, grilling steaks. Megan’s in the kitchen, and Zoe and Tara are standing with Lucas and Cody. “Sorry about that,” I say when I join them. I’m not sorry for doing my job, but it’s the polite thing to say, and I don’t want to make things harder on Zoe than they already are.

  But Tara and Cody both shake their heads. “It’s all right,” she says. “I’m glad you’re taking care of her. I’ll explain things to Deke.”

  “If it were Megan,” Cody adds, “I’d probably lock her in a tower and no one but me or Brock would be allowed within a country mile. So no arguments here.”

  That leaves Zoe. I wait for her to look at me. She gives me that strained smile that was on her face earlier, and I try to tell her with my eyes that it will all be over soon. Lucas and I are close to locking down the situation; we just need one more key piece in place.

  26

  So Close

  Alex

  The rest of the evening passes without incident. The steaks are delicious, and so are the veggie and bacon skewers Brock grills along with them. Megan puts a big bowl of crisp green salad on the table to be passed around family style.

  The conversation flows easily, despite the fact that some of us have just met. Megan demonstrates a special knack for coaxing Zoe out of her uncharacteristic reserve by telling one outrageous story after another about their escapades growing up together. Tara joins in too, and the three of them keep us men either busting our guts laughing, shaking our heads in disbelief, or groaning at Zoe’s juvenile puns.

  “And then Mr. Chalmers said, ‘Miss Kelleher, please summarize the plot of Romeo and Juliet,’” Megan recounts, her eyes sparkling. “And Zoe, right off the top of her head, said, ‘Feuding is dumb, sex is a winner, secretly wed and dead before dinner.’”

  We all clap, and Zoe executes a mock bow in her chair. “Thank you, thank you very much. I’ll be here all week.”

  “Ba-dum cha!” Tara says, and the women collapse into giggles. It lightens my heart to see Zoe so relaxed. The fun-loving side of her is one Lucas and I haven’t gotten to experience nearly enough of, and I make a silent vow to encourage it once the security issues are resolved.

  “Time for dessert,” Megan announces. “We have homemade chocolate fudge brownies — some with nuts, and some without. And vanilla ice cream, in case you want your brownie warmed and a la mode.”

  “Decadence!” Zoe exclaims. “Well, you know I’m the nutty type.”

  “And I like my brownies pure and unsullied,” Tara adds, and the two of them are off on a teasing but spirited debate about the proper way to make brownies.

  Across the table, Deke catches my eye. I’ve noticed him watching me a few times tonight, but only for an instant, and nothing about it set off any alarms. Now, he jerks his head to the side, and as everyone gets up to stretch, the two of us step away.

  “Tara explained your situation,” he says without preamble. “She Randolph Kelleher’s kid?”

  My eyes narrow, but it’s not exactly private information. “She is.”

  “Her old man’s got himself a reputation.”

  “That he does,” I agree, wondering where this is leading.

  “He the one who hired you?”

  “That information is confidential.”

  “He hired you.” Deke nods, like that’s settled. “At least he’s man enough to not want his shit to blow back on his kids.”

  “Where are you going with this?” I say, since he seems to be a man who appreciates directness.

  He crosses those massive arms on his broad chest. “Happens I know people who know people.”

  Suddenly, everything about him snaps into focus, and the last name Tara didn’t supply is there in my mind. If I hadn’t been distracted, I would have realized it sooner. “You’re Deke Abbott. You and your brother lead the Brimstone Friars Motorcycle Club.”

  “Yeah.” If he’s surprised that I’ve heard of him, he doesn’t show it, just waits while I flip through my mental file on him. It only takes a moment because there’s not much there. The Brimstone Friars are the largest motorcycle club in the area, and while there are rumors that they may be connected to illegal activities, no one knows anything for sure.

  “So, these people you know, who know people …” I prompt him.

  “I got no use for Kelleher. His girl …” he turns to look at Zoe, who’s standing with Tara and Megan, laughing, head thrown back, eyes shining. “She ain’t like him.”

  “No, she’s not,” I say, remembering the arro
gant, thin-lipped, autocratic man who hired us.

  “Not right she’s caught up in this. Might be some of those people know something that’ll help you put this problem to rest.”

  Every instinct I have says he’s right. His connections could well supply our missing piece. Am I willing to put myself and my brother in debt to a possible outlaw biker for Zoe’s sake? Damn straight I am.

  “We’d owe you a marker, if so.”

  He holds out his hand. “You got a card?” he says after we shake, and I pull one out for him. “I’ll be in touch.”

  With that, he ambles back to the table. I do too, wishing I could tell Deke to go find out now, dammit. But he’s clearly not a man who takes orders from anyone.

  Damn, I hope this pans out. The end is so close I can taste it. And then I’ll be free to taste Zoe.

  27

  Going Public

  Zoe

  This has turned out to be a really good evening. I’m glad I went through with it. I thought I’d be worried the whole time about the dynamic between my guys and Megan’s, but it turned out just like one of our normal evenings, only with a few more people.

  Tara’s date is an eyeful. His dark hair is thick and worn a little long, and his eyes are the deep blue of a shadowed mountain lake on a clear summer day. All that muscle, all that leather, all those tats … I have to say I’m surprised, because Tara’s never dated anyone like him before. But given that her boyfriends have mostly been assholes, maybe that’s a good thing.

  Between dinner and dessert, I sidle up to her. Deke and Alex are talking a few feet away, which makes me curious, but it doesn’t look tense so I’m not worried. Cutting my eyes in Deke’s direction, I raise my brows. Tara smiles a little. “I was not coming tonight without a date,” she says.

  “Of course not. But where did you find him?”

  “At Wheels.”

  My eyes get big. “That explains a lot. But I can’t believe you went to a biker bar.”

  “Where else was I going to find someone who could hold his own with these men and wouldn’t freak out about the living arrangements?”

  “Good point.” Despite being surrounded by the Beasts and the Wolf brothers, Deke’s completely at ease, and he hasn’t seemed bothered at all by Megan and her men. “You are a clever woman, Tara Jordan.”

  Her smile gets bigger. “Thanks. Now I just have to get rid of him.”

  I choke on an unexpected laugh. “Are you sure you want to?” Deke’s damn good looking. If I weren’t already preoccupied and semi-claimed by a hot set of twins, I might be tempted myself.

  “He has a very specific purpose, which is nearly concluded. I am so not getting tangled up in that … biker lifestyle.” She waves a hand in the air to simultaneously encompass and dismiss all “that.”

  “And you explained his limited purpose to him ahead of time?”

  Her eyes drop. “Not exactly. I told him I needed a date for the evening, someone open-minded and not easily intimidated. And he just smiled and said, ‘I’m your man, darlin’.’”

  She gives a little shiver, and I give her a nudge. “Come on. You know you want to take him for a spin before you let him go. Kick his tires. See if he’s a good ride…”

  Tara giggles and doesn’t deny it, but then shakes her head slowly. “I don’t want to give him ideas.”

  “Isn’t freedom supposed to be the whole biker ethos? Freedom and brotherhood? Seems pretty unlikely he’d be bothered by you wanting to go your own way.”

  “Hmm, you’re right.” She purses her lips, regarding Deke thoughtfully. “I’ve just been influenced by your and Megan’s experiences, with men meeting you and then immediately getting all possessive. After my crap luck with dating, I’m not getting tied down to anyone. No matter how hot he is.”

  “I don’t blame you. You can just have fun for a while.” I shoot another glance at Deke. “And he does look like he’d be fun.”

  Tara smirks. “You bad girl, leading me astray.”

  “Hey, you only live once.” I grin at her as Megan brings us our brownies. “Here’s to the nutty and the nut-free transcending their differences and bonding over the true religion of chocolate.”

  “Amen, sister,” Tara says with a laugh. Megan joins us after delivering more brownies, and before long she has me laughing so hard I forget to eat my brownie. Life is good.

  Cody gives Megan a quick kiss as he passes, and it reminds me of when he picked her up at the sushi restaurant. “I saw some PDA the other day. Are you guys going public finally?”

  Megan bites her lip and nods. “I’m nervous about it, but the guys aren’t. We’re not making a big announcement or anything; we’re just going to stop pretending.”

  Tara takes one of her hands, I grab the other, and we squeeze. No matter what happens, we’ll have her back.

  28

  Dreamless

  Zoe

  When it’s time to go, I’m still riding the happy glow of the evening. Even listening to Lucas check in with the security team can’t dim it altogether. “Thanks,” I say when we’re in the car. “That was nice.”

  The brothers look at me, then each other. “Yeah,” Lucas says. “It was.” There’s more that he’s not saying — I can feel it — but I just don’t care right now. I want to stay in my happy place a little while longer.

  I’m startled when Alex, who’s sitting in back with me, takes my hand. He doesn’t say anything, or do anything else, just links his fingers through mine. All the jagged edges of awareness that were clustering at the perimeter of my consciousness smooth out again, and the sense of well-being I had earlier returns, stronger than ever.

  I’m happy, in this moment, right down to my bones. So I can’t help leaning my head on Alex’s shoulder and closing my eyes to savor the sensation. Maybe Lucas will get mad at us, but again, I can’t bring myself to care.

  He doesn’t say a word, though, and the miles melt away until we’re back at my apartment. Once I’m inside, the brothers go outside to confer about something. I get ready for bed, feeling strangely unsettled as my happy buzz fades slowly away.

  The door opens and closes again. “It’s Lucas,” he says, as the brothers always do if they come in when I’m where I can’t see them. There’s no need to answer, so I don’t, just finish brushing my teeth and go out to the kitchen to check the coffeemaker.

  Lucas seems … off. He’s fidgeting with his phone, picking it up and setting it down again. He’s not the fidgety type. Something makes me go to him. “Are you all right?”

  He looks at me, and his eyes are unhappy, but he doesn’t say anything. “Is something going on? With the … situation?”

  After a moment’s hesitation, he shakes his head, which I take to mean something is going on but that’s not what’s bothering him. I turn the last hour over in my mind, and my memory ricochets off the moment with Alex in the car.

  Maybe that’s it. I cuddled with his brother but not him, and he can’t ask for equal treatment without being unprofessional. “Do you want a hug?” I say, adding hastily, “I’m not … I’m not trying to tease you.”

  His eyes search my face, and then he opens his arms and I go into them. He tucks me close, and it feels so good to just stand there with him, soaking up his warmth, his strength, his solidity. After a few long moments, I say, “If you …” I have to swallow and start again. “If you wanted, maybe, to hold me … until I fall asleep … I’d like that.”

  At first he doesn’t respond, and I’m sure he’ll say no. Then he presses his lips to my hair, says “Okay,” and lets me go. Five minutes later, he joins me in the bedroom, where I’m sitting up reading again.

  Without a word, Lucas gets in on the other side of the bed. I turn out the light, scoot down and turn to him, and he puts his arm around me so I’m up against his side, my head on his chest, my arm on his stomach, my leg draped over his. I breathe in his scent, his fingers trace lazy circles on my skin, and once again I drop into a deep, dreamless sleep.

>   29

  Armor Around My Heart

  Zoe

  When I wake in the morning, he’s still there. My eyes drift open, taking in the sunlight slanting over the wall at the same time as I register the warm body against mine. Oh. Oh.

  I haven’t done this before, woken up with one of them. After that first night, they were both up before me. It’s so good, lying here with him, that it throws me into turmoil.

  It feels right when I’m holding Alex, and when I’m holding Lucas. Could it ever feel this right to wake up with both of them? For the first time, lying here in the soft sleepy morning, my worry isn’t about them wanting to control me. I’m suddenly afraid I could fall for the Wolf brothers … and get my heart utterly broken.

  Last night notwithstanding, they’re not Brock and Cody, and I have no idea what they think of Megan and the Beasts’ arrangement, let alone the possibility of the three of us having more than fun. They’ve given no indication of wanting more than sex, and neither did I when I told them it was over.

  Our little games are just that, games. Soon — I hope — they won’t be guarding me anymore, and then they’ll fuck my brains out but good. And that will be that.

  Closing my eyes, I try to make myself believe it. That will be that. We’ll go our separate ways, and I won’t get too attached to them, or miss them when they’re gone. And who knows, maybe I’ll keep them both as friends with benefits.

  That thought cheers me a tiny bit, and I shift against Lucas. Only a little, but he must have been lying awake waiting for me, because he rolls me onto my back so he’s above me, his cheeks rough with stubble, his silver-blue eyes so beautiful in the pale light.