Dare to Rock (Dare to Love 5)

Before she could focus on what was wrong, he braced his hands on her shoulders and pushed her against the wall protectively. “Wait here.”

Her heart rate picked up speed. “What’s wrong?” she asked Rick, but he was already on his cell, barking orders that included, “Problem. Call 911 and get over here now.”

She stepped around him, determined to see what had him so thrown. She got a glimpse of her front door, where the words whore, slut, and one other she couldn’t bring herself to even think about were scrawled in bright red. And the pièce de résistance, a note taped to the door with words printed on it—Grey is mine. Break up or die.

She gasped, a combination of horror and outrage filling her.

“Stay back,” Rick said and yanked her behind him.

“Too late,” she muttered, her stomach churning at the thought that someone had gotten so close to her apartment. And if she’d been inside, they?

??d have gotten that close to her.

* * *

Grey woke up and immediately knew he was alone. The warm body that had been beside him all night was gone, and his gut told him he wouldn’t find her anywhere in his apartment. He ran his hand over his eyes and groaned.

He’d wanted to spend a leisurely morning eating breakfast in bed, showing her the apartment next door and his plans for a sound-proof studio and a place to write and work. Instead he had Avery’s scent and the lingering smell of sex surrounding him, he was sporting wood, but the woman he wanted in his arms was nowhere to be found.

He didn’t doubt for one minute that she’d panicked and run. He was disappointed but not discouraged. He even understood. Nothing about last night had been simple or easy. Everything between them had been serious and emotional. He’d originally thought he was fighting insecurities instilled by a selfish, neglectful parent and the damage Grey himself had done by leaving and not staying in touch. Now he knew there were real psychological issues at work, anxiety she couldn’t always control. All he could do was provide a steady presence and trust she’d work through things inside her head. If there was one thing he was okay trusting in, it was Avery. Now she had to do the same.

He dressed and headed over to see her, surprised to find her door open and her brother’s raised voice from inside.

“You damn well are moving in with me, Ian and Riley, or Scott and Meg for the time being.”

“Agreed,” another male voice said. “And you can break up with that asshole who’s bringing all sorts of trouble to your door.”

The door, Grey noticed now, that had crude insults scrawled on the front. His stomach churned at the sight.

“You both need to back off now,” Avery yelled at them, and Grey figured there was another brother getting protective.

He was equally pissed at how they spoke to Avery, made decisions for her, and wanted to cut him out of her life. He pushed the door open and stormed inside.

“Grey!” Avery met his gaze, clearly startled to see him in her apartment.

“Fuck. Haven’t you done enough?” Scott asked. He stood beside Tyler, both similar in looks with their dark hair and Dare sibling violet eye color.

Grey met the man’s angry stare head on. Grey counted himself lucky he was spared Ian’s presence, because of all the brothers, he was the most volatile. Not that Grey couldn’t handle him and would for Avery, but these two were enough for now.

“I’d say you’re the one who’s done enough.” Grey slammed the door shut behind him. “Don’t you think your sister can make her own decisions? She wants to be with me, and I sure as hell intend to be with her. So how about we agree to keep her safe and stop trying to cut me out of the picture. Because I won’t tolerate it.”

Both brothers eyed him warily.

“And just how do you propose to keep her safe when you’re the one bringing the crazies to her door?” Scott asked.

Avery stepped up beside him, but she didn’t get close or give him any real indication of her feelings. He couldn’t imagine the fear and panic she must be holding inside. He wanted to pull her tight against him and promise her everything would be all right, but she didn’t seem to want the intimacy they’d already established. He wasn’t sure if she kept a physical and emotional distance because of her brothers or if she was pulling away all on her own.

“Can we all just calm down?” she asked.

Scott shoved his hands into his pants pockets. “Fine. Any idea what we’re dealing with?” Scott asked, obviously focusing on something he could control.

Grey met Tyler’s gaze. The other man already knew about the Emerald threat, and now they’d have to tell Avery. He ran a hand through his hair, frustrated at how something seemed to thwart him every time he got close to her.

Avery caught the knowing look between Grey and her brother. “What’s going on?” she asked, realizing at once they were hiding something from her.

“I got a letter from an obsessed fan. She made some noises about me belonging to her and making sure you knew that, but since you’d just dealt with the paparazzi and you had a bodyguard anyway, I didn’t want to add to your stress.” He winced as he spoke, obviously realizing his mistake.

“I’m assuming you knew?” She glared at Tyler. “And you both decided to keep it from me?” she asked, her anger and hurt building. “What? You didn’t think I could handle the truth?”