Fighting for Us: A Small Town Family Romance (The Bailey Brothers Book 2)

by Claire Kingsley

  “Hold on, Gavin.” She pulled away and held me by the upper arms. “Are you positive you’re okay?”

  “Physically? Yes. Emotionally? I’ve been better.”

  “Did an ex-con seriously threaten you?”

  “No, you’re getting the wrong idea. He just talked to me, no threats at all. Actually he asked me out for a drink. But something seemed off, so I told Asher. Next thing I knew, Asher was dragging me home, shutting the curtains, and begging me to stay here for the night. And then I woke up to these guys trying to stand guard or something. Although they were sleeping.”

  Cara’s mouth dropped open again. “Why didn’t anyone call me?”

  “Why would we call you?” Logan asked.

  She shifted in her chair to face him. “Because I’m her best friend and if anyone tries to hurt her, I’ll murder them, dump the body, then lead the fucking search party.”

  Logan glared at her. Levi went back to the kitchen to pour more coffee.

  “For the record, I suggested we call you.” Gavin smiled, looking smug.

  “I’m serious, Grace, if you need protection, I’ll get you protection,” Cara said. “One phone call and I’ll have a goddamn team surrounding this house with a sniper positioned in your attic and—”

  “Whoa.” I held up a hand. “Slow down. I don’t think we need to call in Special Forces.”

  “Technically, they’d be paramilitary contractors.”

  “Still.”

  Gavin pushed my plate of bacon in front of Cara. “Breakfast?”

  She absently took a piece. “Wait, what’s Asher doing? Why isn’t he playing bodyguard?”

  “I guess he went looking for the guy? I don’t know, he didn’t tell me before he left last night. He texted Logan this morning and told him they didn’t have any luck and to stay with me.”

  She wound her arm around my shoulders. “Thanks for covering for me, guys, but you can all clear out now. I’ve got this.”

  “Nice try, evil Ariel,” Logan said. “We’re not going anywhere.”

  “As if I’d trust you with my bestie. You fell asleep on the job.”

  “It was night.”

  “You could have at least taken shifts. What kind of a bodyguard are you? Oh, right—a terrible one.”

  He narrowed his eyes. “What kind of a best friend are you? You weren’t even here.”

  “Oh, I’m sorry I had to fly to L.A. to deal with my crazy mother’s latest meltdown. How selfish of me to be there for my family.”

  The argumentativeness in Logan’s expression melted away. He cleared his throat. “I didn’t know that.”

  “Then get your facts straight,” she said, although the edge in her voice had softened. She turned her attention back to me. “Do you have to work today?”

  “Yeah.”

  “I’ll go with you.”

  “Me too,” Gavin said.

  “Really?” Logan asked. “I thought you wanted in on the Reaper action.”

  “I do, but the girls need someone to go with them. You stay here and keep an eye on the house. Levi can catch up with Asher and Evan to give them a third.”

  Cara and I glanced at Gavin. Maybe we were both surprised. His plan wasn’t terrible.

  “I guess that might work,” Cara said slowly.

  “Of course it will.” Gavin flashed a wide grin. “As much as I’d love to get face to face with the scary prison guy, if you’re going to sit around the coffee shop all day, you’ll want company. And it’s not like you’re going to hang out with him.” He gestured toward Logan. “And if Reaper shows up looking for Grace again, I’m not even worried. You’ll claw at least one of his eyes out and then I can subdue him until the cops get there.”

  “I like it,” Cara said. “Gavin comes with us. Although I still think I should call in professionals. Can I send them with Asher? We can’t let anything happen to him.” She put a hand on her chest. “Oh my god, that’s so weird. I think I’m actually worried about him.”

  I grabbed her hand and squeezed. “No contractors. At least not yet. But I appreciate the offer. And I know, I’m worried too.”

  Truthfully, I wasn’t just worried, I was terrified. But not for myself. I was scared for Asher.

  22

  Asher

  Gasping for air, I was awake and on my feet in an instant. The room was dim, and I didn’t recognize my surroundings. Where was I? My heart beat hard, making my pulse throb in my neck.

  Who was here? Where were they?

  I tracked movement to my left and my body tensed, ready to spring into action, but I stopped short when I realized what it was.

  A dog.

  I let out a long breath. A huge German shepherd stood a few feet away, watching me. He seemed to be waiting to see what I did, as if he were still deciding whether he was going to allow another animal in his territory.

  That’s right. I was at Evan’s house.

  “Hey, Sasquatch.” I sank down onto the couch where I’d been sleeping. “Did you wake me up, or was it the other way around?”

  He sat, his keen eyes fixed on me. Apparently he’d let me stay for now, but he wasn’t finished watching me.

  I rubbed my face and ran my hands through my hair. I must have been having a nightmare. Again. I wondered when I was going to get over that shit. I’d woken up so disoriented, I’d forgotten where I’d gone to sleep last night.

  After sending my other brothers to watch over Grace, I’d come out here to pick up Evan. By the time we’d gotten back into town, there’d been no sign of Reaper. Or whoever the guy was. We’d checked a bunch of places—asked around to see if they’d seen a man with a bunch of tattoos. No one had seen him.

  Eventually we’d given up. Most places had closed, and we’d already checked the ones that hadn’t. Walking around the streets looking for him didn’t make much sense. So I’d taken Evan home. He’d suggested I crash here and we could go out and look again in the morning.

  Which was how I’d wound up almost jumping out of my own skin and coming face to face with Evan’s guard dog, Sasquatch.

  Leaning back against the cushions, I waited for my heart to slow down. I still felt on edge—ready to jump up and defend myself.

  Evan came out of his room and Sasquatch stood, his tail wagging furiously.

  “Hey big guy,” Evan murmured, his low voice scratchy. He rubbed Sasquatch between the ears, then glanced at me. “Morning.”

  I nodded. “Morning.”

  “We still on?”

  “Yeah.”

  “I’ll throw some clothes on and we can head into town. You want a shower or anything?”

  “I’ll take one later.” I rubbed my hands up and down my thighs. The anxious energy running through me made it hard to stay still. I wanted to get going.

  “Sasquatch, let’s go outside,” he said, patting his thigh.

  His dog’s gaze swung back to me.

  “He’s okay, big guy. He can stay.”

  Sasquatch looked unconvinced. He didn’t move.

  Evan shrugged. “He’s really territorial.”

  “He scared the shit out of me this morning.”

  “Yeah, he was probably watching you sleep off and on all night. Sasquatch, outside. Now.”

  At the sharp tone of command in Evan’s voice, the dog finally obeyed, walking to the back door to be let out.

  While I waited for Evan to take care of Sasquatch and get dressed, I texted Logan, telling him to stay with Grace. He replied with a shirtless selfie in Grace’s kitchen. Gavin was in the background grinning and flipping me off.

  At least they were there.

  When Evan was ready, we left, me in my truck and him on his bike. He lived a couple miles outside town, up a steep dirt road that I wouldn’t have seen if I hadn’t known where to look. He’d fixed up a small cabin and built a huge shop on his property. After dropping out of college, he’d moved home and started working on old cars and motorcycles. He’d turned it into a full-time business, building cust
om motorcycles and restoring classic cars.

  I didn’t have much of a plan, other than checking breakfast places—and bars—to see if anyone had seen a guy with neck tattoos. We got one hit, but it was someone who’d seen him yesterday afternoon. Other than that, no luck.

  After a while, Evan talked me into taking a break for breakfast. My head didn’t agree with him, but my stomach did, so we stopped to grab some food at the Bigfoot Diner. Plus, as he pointed out, this was the busiest and most popular breakfast spot in town, and it had a view of the Steaming Mug.

  I kept a vigilant watch on the street outside, as well as the front door, while we ate. No sign of Reaper.

  But I did see Grace.

  She was with Gavin and her redheaded friend. She was dressed for work, in a black shirt and cropped pants. Her hair a little wavy. God, she was so beautiful. Every time I saw her, even just a glimpse, it hit me how different she was. We’d been so young before, and she was all woman now.

  But why was Gavin the only one with her?

  “Grace just went into work and I saw Gav, but where are Levi and Logan?” I pulled out my phone to see if I’d missed an update.

  “Logan’s at her house. Levi just texted asking where to meet us.”

  I had the same text. I didn’t like that she only had Gavin with her, but it was smart to leave someone at her house. And her friend Cara was probably as good a bodyguard as one of my brothers. She was kind of scary.

  I replied to the group text, telling Levi to go check on Gram.

  No guys with neck tattoos came into the diner, so we finished our breakfast and left.

  Something across the street caught Evan’s attention, and he paused, narrowing his eyes. A couple stood chatting outside the Steaming Mug. I knew the guy—knew who he was, at least. Luke Haven. The girl looked familiar. She was blond, wearing a pink cardigan. Why did I recognize her? Then she smiled at Luke and I remembered. She was the girl who’d tried to give Evan her number that night at the Caboose.

  Luke was clearly flirting with her, although it was hard to tell how she felt about it. Grinning, he said something and shifted closer, but she took a small step back.

  Evan eyed them for a second, then started walking across the street toward them.

  I took a couple of quick steps to catch up. “What are you doing?”

  “Cockblocking that asshole.”

  “Why?”

  “Because he’s a dick and he deserves it.”

  I stopped a few feet away while Evan approached Luke and the girl. Her eyes widened when she noticed him coming, and she crossed her arms.

  “Hey,” Evan said, his low voice rumbling. He acted like Luke wasn’t there. “I was hoping I’d run into you again. You gave me your number a while back and I don’t know what happened to it.”

  She blinked and the defensiveness melted from her expression. Her arms dropped to her sides. “Oh. You lost it? I thought you weren’t interested.”

  Luke looked dumbfounded. He held out his hands. “Dude, seriously?”

  Evan ignored him, subtly shifting closer to the girl. “Not interested? Are you kidding?” He made a show of looking her up and down, as if he liked what he saw. “No, I lost it and I’ve been kicking myself ever since. So what do you say? Can I have another shot? I’ll take good care of it this time.”

  Her eyes flicked to Luke, then back to Evan, and her mouth moved like she wasn’t sure what to say. “Um… yeah. Sure, why not?”

  Evan took out his phone and handed it to her. “Here. Put it in my contacts. Then I can’t lose it.”

  She nibbled her bottom lip as she typed. Evan inched closer to her.

  I couldn’t tell if Luke was about to hit Evan or not. His hands clenched into fists, but his gaze moved to the girl and back again. I had a feeling he didn’t want to start a fight in front of her.

  But he definitely wanted to punch my brother in the face.

  I didn’t blame him.

  The girl handed the phone back to Evan, and when her gaze lifted to meet his eyes, she sucked in a little breath. He’d moved closer, towering over her, and his face was fixed on hers.

  She bit her lip again and gave him a shy smile.

  Without breaking eye contact, Evan pocketed his phone. They stared at each other, and I wondered if he was going to kiss her.

  Instead, she popped up onto her tiptoes and kissed him, a quick brush of her lips against his cheek. Her eyes widened again, and she looked shocked, like she couldn’t believe she’d just done that. “Oops.”

  Evan shrugged, as if in resignation, grabbed her by the waist, hauled her against him, and kissed her back.

  Only his kiss wasn’t light or quick. He invaded her mouth, kissing her deeply, like he was checking her fucking tonsils. Luke stared at them, open-mouthed, rage burning in his eyes. If Evan hadn’t already made a personal enemy out of Luke Haven, he certainly had now.

  He broke the kiss slowly and pulled away.

  The girl’s eyes fluttered open. She looked drunk. Her cheeks were as pink as her cardigan, and she blinked slowly, like she was coming out of a trance. Her legs trembled and I wondered if she was going to need help to remain standing. “Whoa.”

  “See you around,” Evan said. He cast one quick glance at Luke, then nonchalantly walked back toward me.

  I fell in step beside him. “What the fuck was that about?”

  “Nothing.”

  “Are you actually going to call her?”

  He cast me a sidelong glance. “No.”

  “Dude, that’s cold. She seems like a nice girl. Why would you fuck with her just to cockblock Luke Haven?”

  “She’ll live.”

  “I know she’ll live, but that was a dick move.”

  He stopped and faced me. “Luke Haven’s an asshole who deserves worse than me stepping in when he’s trying to hit on some chick. And why do you care? Most girls seem nice. Doesn’t mean they are. You just don’t get it because Grace is a fucking unicorn. Not that you realize it.”

  I was about to bark at him not to talk about her when someone approached us, slowly clapping.

  A guy covered in tattoos.

  23

  Asher

  I stared at him for a second while he approached, slow clapping with a grin on his face. Short blond hair. Button-down shirt with cuffed sleeves. Tattoos everywhere. On his forearms, down over the backs of his hands. Covering his chest and crawling up his neck.

  I’d done time with him. But he wasn’t Reaper.

  “Holy fuck,” I said. “Declan?”

  “I don’t know who that guy is or what he did to you, but that was impressive,” he said.

  Evan was tense, eying him like his dog had eyed me this morning.

  “You son of a bitch, what are you doing here?” I nudged Evan with my elbow. “It’s okay. I know this prick, but he isn’t Reaper.”

  Declan laughed. “Reaper? Why the hell would that crazy asshole be here? Nice town, though.” He took a deep breath. “I’ve been enjoying the fresh mountain air.”

  I should have been relieved—if Declan was the tattooed guy, it meant Grace wasn’t in danger—but I wasn’t convinced yet. I had to be sure. “Did you talk to a woman in that coffee shop last night?” I gestured toward the Steaming Mug.

  His forehead creased. “What’s with the interrogation?”

  “Did you?”

  “Yeah, I guess I did. She turned me down, though. I take it you know her?”

  “Ash, what the fuck is going on?” Evan asked.

  I gestured toward Declan. “This is Declan Wallace. We did about five years together. He got out—what, two years ago?”

  Declan nodded. “About that, yeah.”

  “What are you doing here?”

  “I heard you got out. Figured I’d look you up.”

  There was something in his voice. He wasn’t here just to look me up. Declan had been the closest thing I’d had to a friend in prison, but not someone I’d expect to come find me so we could catch
up and shoot the shit.

  “Give me a minute.” I nodded to Evan to follow and we moved a short distance down the sidewalk.

  “So this isn’t the guy?” he asked.

  “No. Declan’s fine. I have no idea why he’s here, but he’s harmless.”

  Evan’s expression didn’t change, and I couldn’t tell what he was thinking. He simply looked like he didn’t give a shit. About anything. “You better call off the rest of the wolf pack. Gavin’s probably driving Grace crazy.”

  “Yeah, I’ll let them know.”

  He cast one more glance at Declan. “Okay, I’m out. Work. I’ll see you.”

  “Thanks, man,” I said as he started to walk away. I was going to say more—try to tell him that I appreciated him having my back—but he just lifted a hand and kept walking.

  Evan had changed. I felt like I didn’t know him anymore.

  I turned back to Declan and he grinned at me again. “Can I buy you a beer?”

  “Now? It’s morning.”

  “So?”

  I shrugged and pulled out my phone. “Sure, what the hell. I just need to text someone first.”

  Declan waited while I texted my brothers, letting them know I’d found the tattooed guy and it was someone else. I sent Grace a text too, although my quick message didn’t seem close to adequate. I’d probably scared the hell out of her.

  But this had scared the hell out of me too.

  We weren’t far from the Caboose, so we walked over and found a table. The waitress gave Declan a funny look when he ordered two beers, but didn’t comment. She left with our order and Declan glanced around.

  “Is this town even fucking real? You’ve got an old-school barber shop, and that little corner store that looks like it’s straight out of the fifties—”

  “The Sugar Shack?”

  “Yeah. And this place. A railroad restaurant? I swear to god, this place is fucking adorable. No wonder you came back.”

  I wasn’t interested in talking about my hometown. “Declan, why the hell are you here? I’ve been going out of my mind.”