“Yeah.”
I sighed and deleted the video, then pocketed my phone.
“You both suck.”
“The mortification I’ll live with is what sucks,” Alannah mumbled.
I gnawed on my lower lip and said, “It wasn’t that bad …”
She cut me off with a stare so I said, “Okay, it was, but you were drunk.”
“Like that matters to the brothers,” she mumbled.
We sat down and watched some television, only chatting here and there in lowered voices as we waited for the painkillers to kick in. Twenty minutes after taking them, the brunt of their pain had eased off which was perfect timing as the hall door to my apartment opened and a voice shouted, “Where is my phat ass fiancée at?”
Bronagh squealed—it caused Alannah to plug her ears with her fingers—and scrambled off the bed as she ran towards the sitting room door. Nico appeared in the doorway and laughed as he caught Bronagh who jumped on him when she was close enough to do so.
Bronagh covered Nico’s mouth with her own, and kissed him long and hard. It caused me to clear my throat and say, “I’m happy for you both, but get a fuckin’ room.”
They separated and laughed, but before Nico set Bronagh down on the ground, he gave her arse a squeeze and glanced over his shoulder.
“Are you coming in or what?”
I cringed when Damien walked into the room and leaned against the doorframe.
He ignored Nico, lifted his hand and gestured with his finger for Bronagh to come to him. Bronagh practically floated over to him.
“Congrats, sis,” Damien murmured before wrapping her up in his arms, hugging her body to his.
Bronagh hugged him back and laughed when he gave her behind a squeeze purely for Nico’s benefit.
“I swear to God,” Nico mumbled to himself.
Alannah was on her feet and in the middle of pushing the sofa bed back into the chair. It went in smoother when Nico helped her. She avoided looking at him and busied herself with placing the cushions back in their original positions. When she finished that, she folded up the blanket that covered herself and Bronagh throughout the night then she laid it on the back of the sofa.
Damien remained by the doorway and followed her movements with his eyes. He looked over his shoulder when my apartment door opened. He nodded his head in a ‘what’s up’ gesture and moved aside to let the visitor into the sitting room.
When I saw my brother Gavin, I mentally snorted.
Everyone had a damn key to my place.
“What’s the story?” Gavin asked the room, grinning at Alannah and Bronagh.
Alannah flushed and looked away from him while Bronagh narrowed her eyes.
“Please don’t do or say somethin’ that will have everyone sendin’ me back to anger management.”
Gavin laughed and held up his hands. “I’m not openin’ me mouth.”
Bronagh looked to me and grinned. “You’ve taught him well.”
“It’s what I do.”
She snorted and sat down on the sofa next to Nico and Alannah.
Gavin came over to me and sat on the arm of the chair I was sitting on. He leaned down and kissed my head in greeting. I moved closer to him and leaned against his chest.
I was meaning to ask the little shite if he had backed off from Brandon’s circle, but I remembered that Keela assured me her uncle was weeding Gavin out without him knowing it. He respected my decision that I wanted what was best for my brother, and that his gang was not it.
“Damien,” Nico sighed. “Why’re you standing over there?”
Damien shrugged, still staring at Alannah who was pretending to pick dirt from under her nails.
Nico glanced to Alannah then back to Damien and said, “Come on, you two. Is this how it’s goin’ to be every time you are both in a room at the same time?”
Alannah clenched one of her hands in a fist and said, “Drop it, Nico.”
He did, but wasn’t pleased to do so.
“Hi Alannah,” Damien suddenly said.
She refused to look at him as she grumbled, “I wish we were social media accounts. Preferably Twitter.”
Damien furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. “Uh, why?”
“So I could un-follow you in real life and have zero interaction with you. I want it so you would never be able to think or freely speak of last night’s... events.”
“You could still do that,” Damien grinned, “but it would be called first degree murder.”
I snorted, but looked away when Alannah shot me a glare with her still bloodshot eyes.
“Sorry,” I mumbled.
Gavin draped his arm over my shoulder. “I’m enjoying it,” he murmured. “She was so quiet in school, I wouldn’t believe what she did if you hadn’t shown me that video.”
Damien snapped his neck in our direction.
“Aideen!” he bellowed.
Fuck.
“They made me delete it... besides, it not like it was zoomed in on their bits.”
Gavin snorted. “Still a quality video without seein’ them... I didn’t know you could twerk, Alannah.”
She couldn’t, he was slagging her.
Nico lowly chuckled, but looked away when Damien pinned him with a glare.
“I wish the ground would open up and swallow me whole.” Alannah sniffled. “This is the second most embarrassin’ thing ever to happen to me.”
“What’s the first?” Gavin asked.
I elbowed him, and he grabbed at the point of pain on his body and hissed at me through clenched teeth.
“Arsehole!”
I grinned, but Damien only worked his jaw before looking at Alannah who had her face in her hands. “Look, Aideen deleted the video. No one else will see it, and I’ll warn everyone else not to bring it up again, okay?”
Alannah was silent for a moment then she looked up. “Why do you want to help me?” she asked Damien.
He blinked. “Because I want to be your friend, Alannah.”
“Little late for that, don’t you think?”
Damien was silent. “Look, I’m very sorry for what I did—”
“Stop, Damien,” Alannah whispered. “Not here, not now.”
Damien closed his mouth and gave a firm nod.
Things got awkward then.
“I’m goin’ to go home and die in the peace of me own apartment,” Alannah rumbled.
“I’ll drive you home,” Kane’s voice suddenly stated.
We all looked at the doorway and saw Kane standing behind Damien, fully dressed. He winked at me in greeting, earning a smile from me.