“You were a little troublemaker in your youth,” Nico said. “But you haven’t done anything bad in years.” He turned to my sister. “I don’t think he needs to give it time. I think he needs to do whatever the fuck he wants, and your brothers need to get over it.”
I sure did like Nico.
And obviously Waylynn did, too, because she was beaming at my brother-in-law as if his words were gospel.
“He’s agreed to move in with me,” Waylynn announced. “And help me with repairs to my house. I have a spider problem, too, he’s promised to eradicate for me.”
Georgia began to chuckle.
“Funny, that’s what Nico does for me, too,” she teased. “Waylynn, what do you do for a living?”
There was a long pause before she said, “I graduated with my degree in architectural engineering with Darby. I’m still looking for a job, though. For now, I’m helping Gibson get the Apache up and running again.”
“The Apache?” Georgia asked. “What’s that?”
“Come on, Georgia,” Nico chuckled. “You don’t remember the adult drive-in theater?”
Georgia frowned, eyebrows lowered as she thought.
Then understanding hit her.
“The one that shows porn!” she crowed. “You’re working there?”
Waylynn didn’t look embarrassed in the least as she explained what she was doing and how she was helping Gibson.
By the time she was done, Georgia was convinced that she needed to go check the place out.
“We’re not going to that,” Nico said. “No way.”
“But why not?” Georgia asked. “There’s nothing wrong with going to an adult store. Why would there be anything wrong with going to a drive-in that showed porn?”
Nico didn’t have anything to say to that, and I honestly didn’t want to think about porn and my sister in the same thought.
So I changed the subject.
“Nico, do you care if I stable a couple of horses at your place?” I asked. “I need to get a rescue out of the barn at the farmstead, but it needs more attention than I can give it right now, so I was hoping you’d work your magic on her.”
Nico’s eyes went hot.
“I heard about the one you rescued last week,” he said. “And for sure, anything you need. We’ve got plenty of room.”
I was already nodding.
“I’ll be out there to clean out her stall after I get my work done at the homestead. Also, she bites. I should’ve told you that earlier. So when you go to give her a treat, beware. Because she straight up almost took my finger off the first time I fed her out of my hand,” I explained.
Nico and Georgia both chuckled.
“That’s not surprising,” Georgia teased. “You make many females want to bite you.”
I snorted at my sister’s attempt at humor.
“Amen,” Waylynn agreed under her breath.
I reached over and pinched her.
“I heard that,” I whispered quietly.
She turned her gaze to me and shrugged. “I wasn’t trying to hide it.”
Lips twitching at her indifference, I changed the subject once again to Georgia’s work.
An hour later, we’d consumed half of our body weight in carbs, and were on the way outside when my brother—Ace—pulled up outside the feed store.
“Do you think they noticed you over here?” Waylynn asked curiously.
“Maybe not him, but definitely her,” Nico hooked his thumb in Georgia’s direction. “She had to have that flashy thing. It sticks out like a sore thumb.”
‘That flashy thing’ was actually a bright, blood red truck. It was lifted with thirty-five-inch tires and had color-matched wheels.
Nico was right, though. There definitely was no hiding that truck from anyone.
So no, it wasn’t a surprise when Ace turned his gaze to where we were standing out front.
“And that’s our cue to go,” I said as I held out my hand for Nico to shake.
He gave me a quick handshake, and I turned to my sister.
Grabbing her up in my arms, I squeezed her tight.
“Love you, George,” I teased.
She pulled back and placed her hand on my cheek.
“I like her,” she said, glancing at Nico and Waylynn. “You did good.”
I opened my mouth to tell her that we weren’t anything yet, yet being the operative word, but was interrupted by my brother arriving.
Looking pissed.
“Where the fuck have you been?” Ace barked.
Georgia grinned at Ace.
“Why, if it isn’t Mr. Ace. The man who can never make a breakfast date with his sister now that he’s married,” Georgia teased.
Waylynn poked me in the side. When I looked at her, she was gesturing to an alleyway.
I looked back at my truck that was parked in front of the restaurant, but decided ‘fuck it.’
Following her and slipping away unnoticed by everyone but Nico, Waylynn made her way down an alley.
“Do you know where you’re going?” I questioned.
She shrugged, leading me deeper and deeper into the shadows.
I could make out light on the other end, but I couldn’t place where we were.
“I’ve seen this before,” I admitted. “But I can’t remember why.”