Drew looks at me suspiciously but doesn’t say anything. The buzzer sounds, indicating Riley’s arrival. Drew gets up from the couch to answer it. “Yeah?”
“Hi, it’s Riley.”
Drew buzzes him in and gives me a look that says, Are you ready for this?
I nod in silent acknowledgment.
RILEY
I KNOCK ON THE door, trying not to reveal how anxious I am. The door opens a crack and Drew fills the space. Why does he look so homicidal?
“Oh, hey, Dr—”
Drew flattens his palm on my chest and walks me backwards, shutting the door behind him. He doesn’t stop until I’m against the wall.
He takes a half step back but still looks like he’s going to kill me. “Listen, asshole. Devyn told me who you are. Who you really are.”
I hold my hands up. “Did she also tell you that I didn’t know? I would’ve never stayed away if I knew she was pregnant.”
He runs a hand through his hair and starts pacing. “Yeah, she told me that part too. But the fact remains that you broke her. She was one of the strongest people I knew ever since she was a little girl. When our mom got sick—when she died—Devyn was only ten years old but she somehow became the glue that held our family together. And when our dad followed, she was still rock solid and stoic as ever.
“When you…when she became pregnant with Nathan…she became a shell of her former self. Sure, she put on a brave face, but when she didn’t think I was looking, I saw how devastated she was. It took her years before she slowly started coming back to life. And I may not exactly like the guy she’s with now, but he’s good to her and he’s good to the kid. If she chooses to stay with him, you stay the fuck out of the way. You will not cause her any more grief or you’ll be answering to me.” He takes a fist full of my shirt and leans into me. “Capiche?”
I gulp. “Yep.”
DEVYN
I’M PLAYING WITH THE hem of my t-shirt waiting for Drew and Riley to come through the door. What the heck is going on out there? Drew’s an extraordinarily big guy; therefore, he intimidates people pretty easily if you don’t know what a teddy bear he is. He’s probably using that to his advantage right now and playing the big brother card, try
ing to scare the crap out of Riley.
“Where’d Unca’ Drew go?” Nathan asks.
I get up from the couch and start walking towards the door. “He just stepped into the hall for a second, buddy. I’ll go get him.”
I open the door and peek my head out. Riley is standing against the wall and Drew is directly in front of him puffing his chest out. Yep, he’s definitely doing the don’t you dare hurt my sister or I’ll break your face crap.
Drew sees me, takes a step back, and smiles. “Hey, sis! Riley and I were just having a little guy talk.”
“Uh huh,” I mutter.
Riley looks my way and smiles. “Hi.”
I return his grin. “Hi.”
Drew looks between us and rolls his eyes. “Uh, yeah. I’m going inside.” He looks to me. “You coming?”
I look at Riley. “We’ll be there in a minute. Distract Nate for me?”
Drew scowls and steps past me. “Yeah, yeah. Don’t forget what I said, Riley.”
I wait for the door to close before speaking. “Was he giving you the big brother speech?”
Riley grimaces. “You could say that.” He gives me a good once over and his eyes light up. Stepping forward, he grabs the hem of my shirt and says, “You still have it.”
I shiver when the tip of his finger brushes against my bare skin. “It’s my lucky shirt. They win every time I wear it.”
He smiles. “So I’ve heard.”