“Something or a good cold beer?” Kane asked.
“Beer’s fine,” Tyler replied.
“Be back in a minute. Make yourselves at home.”
Kane disappeared inside the house. About the same time Coco sped up the driveway and came to a screeching halt in her Volvo station wagon.
They all scattered and Tyler said, “I never have understood why all the rest of these girls drive around in sports cars and she’s still driving around in that old station wagon.”
“It was her mother’s,” Kane told them, returning to the porch and passing around bottles of beer.
Coco threw up her hand and made her way to the side of the house, likely entering the kitchen so she could avoid small talk with them. Jax didn’t really want to talk to Coco anyhow. On a good day she was a real bitch. The rest of the time, she was waiting around for Brandon, a man who wasn’t worth a cuss, much less a mention.
Kane took a long drag from his beer. “Take it the big sister doesn’t like you boys much.”
“She doesn’t like us or anyone else,” Tyler said.
“Any particular reason why?”
“We’ve never asked.” Jax exchanged quick glances with his brothers. “We’re interested in Brianna.”
“You are, huh?” Kane retrieved a pair of sunglasses from his shirt pocket and took great care putting them on. “Interested how?”
“Romantically,” Jax said without missing a beat.
Kane pulled on a poker face, a poker face that might have worked somewhere else, but long ago Brianna had tried to convince the Jackson brothers that she could handle them, that one day soon they’d realize there wasn’t anything wrong with their attraction to her or the way she felt about them. At that time, she’d thrown a name down like a played Ace of Spades—Cartwell. “You mean all of you are interested in Brianna?” Kane dragged his hand around his firmly set jaw. “Romantically?”
“Kane Cartwell, you stop it right now.” A little spitfire of a woman barreled outside and shook their hands. “I’m Peyton Cartwell. I’m married to Kane and two of his brothers.” She shook her head rapidly. “Don’t let him get the best of you.” She smiled. “You boys hungry?”
“No, ma’am,” Tyler said, removing his hat.
“Thank you, though,” Flint said, his hat already in his hands. Blushing like crazy, Flint was probably standing there trying to imagine the little woman sprawled out on the bed with three men towering over her in one way or another.
Jax looked away from them to keep from laughing outright. He’d bet enough to buy a year’s supply of condoms for a whorehouse that Peyton Cartwell had given her husband a run for his money back in the day.
“Is Brianna inside?” Kane asked out of the corner of his mouth.
“She told me she was going to the store.”
“We saw her at that feed and seed, Mrs. Cartwell,” Flint said, catching a sourly look from Tyler.
Kane frowned as he studied Jax with more interest. “Brianna have anything to do with that split lip?”
“No.”
“Don’t lie, son. We’ll get along a lot better if we start shooting straight with one another right from the beginning.”
“Brianna didn’t punch me if that’s what you’re asking,” Jax said.
“I’m not asking that,” Kane assured him. “Anyone with half a brain can take a look at your lip and your brother’s swollen hand and tell the two of you were in a recent brawl.?
?
“We ran into a bit of trouble this morning. Nothing we can’t handle.”
“Anything I can help you handle?” Kane asked, motioning for Peyton.
“Nope.” Tyler answered this time. “Between the three of us we’ve got it under control.”