Garret raised his eyebrows. "You sound like dad."
"What? No I—"
"Honey, it wasn't anything serious. It was just this one time. It'll never happen again."
"That's not fair." Brooks swallowed. He might have had the same devil-may-care attitude with his love life as his father had had, but he'd kept his promise to himself.
He'd never been unfaithful. He'd always been clear. He'd never lied about loving someone.
Which, as a side effect, meant he'd never told a woman he loved her.
But if that was the truth, then where was the harm?
He'd done good. If he and Natalie had had a deal, he never would have looked twice at Debbie.
Even though they hadn't had a deal, he didn't want to look twice at Debbie. He just couldn't sit there and have another man drag his woman out from under him. He couldn't—
"So, let me get this straight. You were angry because you were under the impression that the loving relationship between Natalie and her former brother in law was a sexual one, and your way of solving that problem was to do the same thing to her?"
"You're oversimplifying." Brooks glanced at the pug. Was it his imagination, or had the tiny beast howled a laugh?
"Maybe," Garret said, "but I think you'll have trouble making it sound any less stupid."
"If it hadn't been for Franco--"
"If it hadn't been for Franco, you'd be in hand cuffs."
Brooks glanced at the picture of Natalie and Rachael on the mantel. The two women looked so happy together. The smile on Natalie's face reminded him of the one she'd worn on the beach the day he'd skipped the auction.
Free and content.
Self-assured.
He closed his eyes.
Where Franco was concerned, Garret was right. He'd stepped up to the plate, explaining to the police that Brooks had gotten involved to defend Natalie. Luckily, Dominic hadn't gotten off so easy.
When they let him go at the station, he'd expected to final Natalie there waiting for him, ready to talk things through. Instead, he'd found a blood-thirsty Debbie and a disappointed Garret, both ready to pepper him with a slew of questions.
"I still stepped in for her. I saved her from that bastard." Brooks' argument came out weaker than he would have liked, and his brother shrugged in response.
"Do you really think that's enough?"
"I was there when she needed me."
"No, she needed you before anything happened."
"How was I supposed to know her crazy ex-husband was lurking in the crowd? Am I a psychic?"
"No, but you're not supposed to bail when things get tough."
"You don't know what you're talking about. You're going to sit here and tell me you wouldn't lose your fucking mind with Rachael was flirting with some guy right in front of you?"
"That's not what I'm saying. But I love Rachael. Are you saying you love Natalie?"
"I—"
"And I would ask Rachael for the truth. Maybe you should think about doing the same."