A fight on a Friday night was almost a Stenberg tradition.
An hour later, Reaper tossed a bag of frozen peas onto the kitchen table in front of his brother then pulled out another and took a seat opposite Sammy. Without speaking, because he really didn’t want to start a shouting match, he squeezed the bag between his hands to loosen the frozen vegetables. Then he set the bag on the tabletop and rotated his fist to rest his swollen knuckles against the icy-cold pack.
“Maybe you should put that on your cheek,” Sammy said, lifting a finger to point at Reaper’s right cheek.
“Need my hands more than I need this face,” Reaper said, his voice dead even. He was still pissed his brother cost him a huge chunk of change for the damages he’d caused at the bar.
Sammy grunted and placed his own bag against his left eye, which was swollen shut and beginning to blacken. They both sat in silence, until Sammy released a long, loud sigh. “Sorry about the bar bill. I’ll pay you back.”
Reaper shot him a glare. Don’t lie to me. Fuck, don’t say anything.
His brother glanced away. “Maybe I should head back to my place.”
“Your bike’s back at the bar, and you’re still drunk.” Reaper tipped his head from side to side to ease a knot forming in his neck. Talking to his brother always made him tense. “Why the hell did you pick a fight with McNally?”
“He took the first swing.”
Leaning forward, Reaper shot him a glare. “You grabbed Danielle’s ass. Do you think he was gonna let that slide?”
Sammy shrugged.
That gesture always fried Reaper’s ass. Blood roared in his ears. “What?” he bit out. “You don’t give a shit? Did you want him to kick your ass? What is it with you, lately?”
Sammy shoved back his chair. “Got a headache. Since you’re not gonna take me back in town, I’ll sleep on the couch.”
Reaper watched as his brother pushed up from the table and turned to go. “I’ll be up early. You want a ride, you be ready.”
His brother didn’t answer as he walked away.
For a few moments longer, Reaper sat in the kitchen, rolling his sore knuckles on the bag. He didn’t like the direction his brother was heading, and he placed the blame squarely on Sammy’s association with his bike club. The roadside bar didn’t exactly attract the most upstanding citizens. They were a brawling, boozing bunch of ex-cons and misfits. As an ex-con himself, Sammy should have known better than keep that kind of company. Many of those losers worked at McNally’s garage, Sammy included. The few times Reaper had dropped in, he hadn’t liked the seedy atmosphere.
More than once, Reaper tried talking to Sammy about dropping his membership and finding another job, but Sammy remained stubborn. He didn’t want his advice. Didn’t need it, he’d said. The last time Reaper asked him about the club, they’d ended up fighting and hadn’t spoken for a month.
If Sammy wasn’t the only family he had, he might have let him learn some more hard lessons on his own. As the situation now stood, he was enabling his kid brother to continue his downward spiral. Tonight, he’d picked up the tab for the splintered furniture, broken glasses, and the six-foot mirror behind the bar.
Sighing, he lifted his hand and balled his fist, wincing at the tug of bruised muscles stretching over his knuckles. Well, hell. Tonight was clusterfuck. Tomorrow, he still wouldn’t catch a break—not with an overeager ride-along asking questions and getting in his way. If he ignored her, he wondered how long she’d last.
His lips twitched. Yeah, he’d have Brian find the dirtiest, low-down target on their list and make sure she got muddied along the way. Nothing too violent, but something to make her reconsider hanging out with him for the rest of the week. Then maybe, he could talk his brother into riding shotgun and let him see what happened when dirtbags made stupid mistakes. Maybe he could rattle Sammy hard enough to help him see his current path would only lead to shit.
Reaper let out another deep sigh. With his adrenaline crashing, he was ready for bed. Feeling better about the next day’s challenge, he tossed the thawing peas back into the freezer and smiled, which caused him to wince. Maybe he should have iced his cheek.
Nah. Maybe his face would make the author-ess think twice about sharing his SUV.
Also by Delilah Devlin
Montana Bounty Hunters: Dead Horse, MT
Cage
In the Wild (short story)
Preacher
* * *
Montana Bounty Hunters
Reaper (#1)
Dagger (#2)
Reaper’s Ride (#3)
Cochise (#4)
Hook (#5)
Wolf (#6)
Animal (#7)
S*x on the Beach (related)
Big Sky Wedding
Quincy (#8)
Brian (#9)
* * *
New Orleans Nights
Hot SEAL, New Orleans Nights (Prequel)
One Hot Night (#1)
* * *
Uncharted SEALs
Watch Over Me (#1)
Her Next Breath (#2)
Through Her Eyes (#3)
Dream of Me (#4)
Baby, It's You (#5)
Before We Kiss (#6)
Between a SEAL and a Hard Place (#7)
Heart of a SEAL (#8)
Hard SEAL to Love (#9)
Big Sky SEAL (#10)
Head Over SEAL (#11)
SEAL Escort (#12)
* * *
Texas Cowboys
Wearing His Brand (#1)
The Cowboys and the Widow (#2)
Soldier Boy (#3)
Bound & Determined (#4)
Slow Rider (#5)
Night Watch (#6)
* * *
Cowboys on the Edge
Wet Down
Controlled Burn
Cain’s Law
Flashpoint
* * *
Triplehorn Brand
Laying Down the Law (#1)
In Too Deep (#2)
A Long, Hot Summer (#3)
* * *
Night Fall
Sm{B}itten (#1)
Truly, Madly…Deadly (#2)
Knight in Transition (#3)
Wolf in Plain Sight (#4)
Knight Edition (#5)
Night Fall on Dark Mountain (#6)
Frannie and the Private Dick (#7)
Sweet Succubus (#8)
Truly, Madly…Werely (#9)
Bad to the Bone (#10)
Long Howl Good Night (#11)
First Knight (#12)
Big Bad Wolf (#13)
* * *
Texas Billionaires Club
Tarzan & Janine (#1)
Something To Talk About (#2)
Who’s Your Daddy (#3)
Love & War (#4)
Some Standalone Stories
Hot SEAL, Decoy Bride
Begging For It
Hot Blooded
Raw Silk
Warrior’s Conquest
Rogues
Enslaved by the Viking Short Story
Conquests
Smokin’ Hot Firemen
About Delilah Devlin
Delilah Devlin is a New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author with a reputation for writing deliciously edgy stories with complex characters. She has published nearly two hundred stories in multiple genres and lengths, and she is published by Atria/Strebor, Avon, Berkley, Black Lace, Cleis Press, Ellora’s Cave, Entangled, Grand Central, Harlequin Spice, HarperCollins: Mischief, Kensington, Montlake Romance, Running Press, and Samhain Publishing.
* * *
You can find Delilah all over the web:
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evlin, Preacher (Montana Bounty Hunters: Dead Horse, MT Book 2)
Preacher (Montana Bounty Hunters: Dead Horse, MT Book 2) Page 13