“What the fuck does that mean?”
Liam grinds his teeth and steals a glance at me before answering. “I have Rob Glassman on retainer if she needs him.”
“You do?” I ask.
My brother raises an eyebrow. Liam smooths his hand over my hair. “It’s just in case.”
Vince seems to have a little more respect and concern for his best friend now. “What’s that mean for you?” he asks.
Liam hesitates to answer. “Nothing. I just can’t be involved in the case.”
“Bree, can you go get dressed?” Vince asks. “I’m still trying to deal with your…relationship and it’ll be easier if you’re wearing pants.”
I cut a glare at him, and then to be a complete brat after that pants comment, lean up and kiss Liam.
Since I’m probably receiving an ass-kicking either way, I take my time kissing Bree before she trots off to the bedroom.
“I think you owe me some coffee,” Vince says.
We head into the kitchen. Once the coffeemaker’s doing its thing, I turn and face him. The emotions flickering over his face stir up guilt in my chest. We’ve been friends a long time and I never wanted to betray him.
“Tell me,” Vince says in a lowered voice that says this talk has nothing to do with Chad and everything to do with me and Bree as a couple.
“I meant to call you.”
“Yeah, I guess you’ve been busy,” he sneers. “You really couldn’t keep it in your pants? She’s not some badge bunny. You break her heart, I break your bones.” This is Vince. Blunt. To the point.
Ignoring the badge bunny comment, I answer, “More likely, she breaks my heart.”
He rolls his eyes. “I doubt that. I’ve never seen her so pissed at me.”
“You were a bit of a dick.”
“She’s my little sister. The only family I’ve got left. What’d you expect me to do, congratulate you for nailing her?”
“Are you always this disgusting?” Bree says, sweeping into the kitchen and wrapping her arms around me. “No wonder you’re still single.”
I lean over and kiss the top of her head.
“Feel free to knock it off anytime,” Vince grumbles.
“Can’t help it. I’ve got it bad for her.” It feels really good to admit that.
“The feeling’s mutual,” she murmurs.
Vince squirms in his chair. “Christ.”
“Ooo, I’ll be right back,” Bree says, tapping my chest before she goes.
Vince watches her leave before asking his next question. “What are you going to do when she goes back to school?”
“I don’t know. We’ll work something out. Or I’ll transfer to Empire PD.” As soon as I say it, a weight lifts from my shoulders. It’s the only logical solution. It’s all so clear: I want to be with Bree. Bree needs to finish school. I find a job near her school. Easy as that.
“Shit.” He sits back and stares at me. “You’re serious. You’d leave our little Mayberry?”
“Yeah, Vince. For her, I’d do just about anything.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
I take a few more days off and help Vince repair the damage at his house once we get the all-clear from the department. Sully and Jake also come over to help, so we accomplish the work in record time.
I leave Bree at my parents’ house where she spends the days baking and talking with my mom.
When we’re finished with the repairs, she asks to go to the house. She’s surprisingly calm as she inspects everything.
“You guys did a good job,” she mumbles, staring at the brand new back door and fresh, white wainscoting.
Vince gives me a look. Maybe it was too soon to bring her here. We move over to the kitchen table, which is now over by the window seat.
He reaches over and taps her shoulder. “By the way, you want to explain to me why I have a dog bed, dog dishes, dog treats, and toys in my house?” Vince asks.
The mention of Kimber seems to shake her out of her fog. Her mouth tips up in a sly grin. “We adopted a dog together,” she explains. I’m pretty sure she said it that way to shock her brother, which I think it does because he reacts like she said “kid” instead of “dog.” “A Rottweiler. We named her Kimber.”
“Well, where is she?” he asks.
I explain the circumstances of Kimber’s arrival leading up to the night she injured herself.
In the aftermath we found out it was Chris who flung the dead bird at the door, left the flowers, and followed her around the mall.
“Oh,” I say to Bree. “Keegan said she should actually be ready to come home tomorrow.”
“She can’t stay at your place,” Vince points out.
Bree turns her pleading eyes on her brother. “You want me to take her?” he asks. “I’m never here.”
“I’ll stay here with Kimber.”
I raise an eyebrow at that.
“Oh, Christ, don’t tell me. The two lovebirds can’t be apart,” Vince bitches.
Ignoring him, I reach out and take Bree’s hand. “My parents said they’d watch her. I think my mom’s pretty excited to have someone to dote on.”
Bree’s bottom lip juts out. “I guess that works.”
“It’s temporary until we get our own place,” I assure her, which earns me another grumbly face from Vince.
“Go back to this dead bird thing,” Vince says, waving his big, meaty fingers in my face to distract me from Bree.
Slapping his hand away, I explain in more detail how Chad’s brother confessed to the bird and flowers. “And he had been following you that day, Bree,” I say a pointed look.
“I should’ve known better.”
“I think you confronting him the way you did scared the piss out of him. That’s why he resorted to the sneaky-creepy shit.”
Her mouth twists into a half-smile. “It felt good to stand up to him.”
I place my hand over hers. “Chris didn’t know about…what happened to…his brother at the time he confessed all this, so I doubt we’ll be getting any more cooperation from him.”
“We need to worry about him bothering Bree?” Vince asks.
I’m not sure how to answer that. Chris should be scared to come anywhere near Bree, but let’s face it, the guy doesn’t seem to be very smart. “I don’t think so. They charged him with a few misdemeanors for the harassment and for violating the restraining order. Bail was low, he paid it and got out right away.”
“You fuckin’ kidding me?” Vince rages.
“He does it again, he’s definitely going to jail.”
“He does it again, he’s fucking dead,” Vince states. “Plain and fucking simple. Dead.”
Bree stands and moves into the living room. Under the table, I kick Vince. “Ow, you fuck.”
“Have some tact, asshole,” I growl at him.
He seems to finally get it. “Come here, Bree.” He wraps an arm around her when she reaches his side. “Are you okay? How you feelin’ today?”
“Better.”
My phone buzzes and I grab it out of my pocket. “Shit. I have to go in to work.”
Vince’s hold on his sister tightens. “She can stay here with me.”
My gaze goes to Bree and she nods.
“Walk me out, V.” I lean down and brush a kiss over Bree’s cheek. “You sure you’re all right?”
“I’m fine,” she murmurs against my lips.
“For fuck’s sake, he’ll be back later. Jesus,” Vince complains when we take too long saying goodbye.
Outside, I drop my best friend smile. “You two need to talk to each other. Heart to heart. Clear the air. Bond. Whatever. But I’m warning you, do not upset her or blame her or anything else. Watch your damn mouth.”
His eyes widen and he takes a step back. “So this is how it’s going to be? You’re Bree’s boyfriend now? Not my best friend?”
“Don’t worry. Soon I’ll be your brother-in-law.” I enjoy a speechless Vince for a second or two before clapping him on the back and climbin
g into my truck.
As I back out of his driveway, I throw him a cocky wave and he gives me the finger.
“Where are you?” Vince calls out when he comes back inside.
I’d been worried he and Liam were wrestling out in the front yard, so I’m pleased to see him come inside free of dirt and bits of grass when I emerge from the bathroom. “In here.”
I stop and take in his perplexed expression. “I hope you two didn’t argue outside.”
Vince throws himself down on the couch, stretching his arms out over the back. “No. Your boyfriend just told me how it is.”
“What does that mean?”
“That he’ll be my brother-in-law soon.” And no, he doesn’t sound like someone who’s thrilled with the idea.
Liam actually said that? I can’t stop the smile from twitching at the corners of my mouth. “Did he now?”
“How long’s this been going on, Bree?” he asks, wiping the smile right off my face. “Since high school?”
I move closer, sitting at one end of the couch and drawing my legs up, turning to face him. “No, you ruined that for us the night of my graduation.”
He stares at me for a few minutes. “I thought he was taking advantage of you. I didn’t know what was going on.”
“You think that little of Liam?”
“No.”
We’re silent for a few minutes. Quietly watching each other. “I freaked out, Bree. You were so fragile. I knew how much you needed to get out of this house, out of this town. Away from mom. And Liam—fuck, I love the guy, but he’s never had any ambitions beyond that badge.”
“There’s nothing wrong with that.”
“No, there isn’t. But I didn’t want you getting trapped here because of him.”
“I—” I can’t think of a response. I kind of see where he’s coming from, even if I’m mildly insulted.
“If I’d know you were going to hook up with that asshole and this was going to happen, I would’ve kept my damn mouth shut.”
“Don’t go there.”
His hand edges closer to mine. “I’ve missed you, little sis.”
I can’t meet his eyes so I gesture to the rest of the house. “The house is amazing. Liam said you did the work yourself.”
A hardened look crosses his face. “Had to.”
“Why didn’t you come home sooner?” I don’t know why I bother asking.
“Figured Liam would take care of you.” His mouth turns down. “Didn’t know he’d seduce you too.”
I snort with laughter. “Get over it.”
My brother doesn’t laugh with me. He’s stiff, almost angry. He’s always held in a lot of anger. Especially after our father died. But he was never that way with me. “What’s wrong, Vinny? We used to be able to talk more than this.”
“You’ve barely been home in four years, Bree.”
“What do you care? You’re always traveling, Mr. Big Construction Project Manager.”
He huffs a laugh. “Yeah.”
“I’m proud of you, Vince. I know how hard you work. How hard you’ve worked to get where you are.”
“Thanks. Even if I’m not here, you can still come home, you know.”
“This isn’t my home anymore.”
“No, I guess not.” He tilts his head, whatever fondness we just shared disappearing. “How long was this going on?” he asks, pointing at my bruised neck.
I don’t even pretend that I don’t know what he’s asking. “Too long.”
“Why didn’t you call me? Or if you didn’t want to tell me, why not call Liam?”
“I was too embarrassed.”
His fists ball up at his sides and he squeezes his eyes shut. “Fuck. I can’t do this with you, Bree. Already been through it with mom.”
Tears prick my eyes. “Maybe that’s why I didn’t tell you,” I snap back. “I didn’t want you to think I was like her.”
“And yet—”
“Fuck you!” My fist slams into one of the couch cushions. “That’s not fair.”
“For fuck’s sake, look at you!”
“He didn’t drink.” I think of how to explain why I didn’t see the similarities between our parents’ turbulent relationship and my relationship with Chad. “There were times when he was so sweet. Good to me. It wasn’t like… It didn’t feel the same. At first,” I add.
“You should’ve left him sooner.”
“Thanks, I hadn’t thought of that.”
We stare at each other for a few seconds.
“I’m sorry,” he finally says.
“I didn’t know what to do,” I explain. “He always said it would never happen again.” I shake my head and stare at our almost-touching hands. “I couldn’t come back here.”
He snorts. “Yeah. Got that loud and clear.”
“You’re mad at me?”
“No.” He squeezes his eyes shut again. “Yes. I wanted you out of here as much as you needed to be out of here. But fuck, that first year after you left? Mom was a fucking nightmare to deal with. Then she got sick.” He shakes his head. “I wanted you away at school. Was happy you were doing so good. But I was also pissed as hell I was the one who got stuck taking care of her. And I know that’s unfair. It’s not your fault.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t know it was that bad.”
“I didn’t want you to know.”
“Do you want to talk about it now?”
“Not really.” He looks around the house. “I gutted this place. Erased it all.”
“But it still haunts you.”
“Don’t fucking head-shrink me, smartass.” The corner of his mouth pulls into a half-smile. “You been up to see Liam’s parents yet?”
“Yes.” My eyes water. “A couple times. I missed them a lot.”
“Yeah.” He smiles fondly. “Amanda was a big help toward the end. Helped me get mom into hospice care. Made sure I was eating.” He huffs out a laugh. “Mom stuff.”
“I always wished she was our mom.”
“I know.” After a second he adds, “So did I.”
Speaking of things that haunt us, I have a question for my brother. “Did she ever ask for me?”
He rolls his lip and closes his eyes. “No.”
“I figured.”
He turns my way, dark-blue eyes snapping with fire. “She was a bitter, angry drunk, Bree. The woman drank herself to death and blamed everyone else around her for her bad decisions right until the very end.”
It all clicks into place. Why Vince didn’t call me to come home until my mother had slipped into a coma and was close to death. He knew there would be no loving, I’m-sorry-I-wasn’t-a-better-mother-but-I-loved-you moment between us. He knew she’d only tear me down. My big brother wanted to protect me from the additional heartache seeing my mother would have caused, even though it meant he had to shoulder the entire burden on his own.
“I’m so sorry, Bree.” His voice breaks and that’s when I can’t hold the pain in any longer.
He pulls me into his arms, rubbing my back, and lets me cry on his shoulder until I’m drained. “I’m sorry it all fell on you,” I whisper.
His hand never stops moving over my back. “That’s what big brothers are for.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
What I didn’t tell Bree and Vince was that I wasn’t called in to my unit. No, I was summoned to headquarters to meet with the Chief Deputy.
I arrive at the station on time and am immediately directed into his office.
Chief Deputy Cain greets me with a grim smile and nods at the chair across from him. “Have a seat, Hollister.”
I haven’t been in here in a while, so obviously this has something to do with Bree.
“We got a problem,” he starts.
I don’t answer because I don’t think he expects me to.
He taps the folder on his desk. “How well do you know this Avery girl?”
“Very well. We grew up together.”
“Are you involved now?”
“Yes, sir.” I’m not hiding our relationship from anyone.
“That why you went down to the jail and roughed up her ex?” He drops the question in a casual way, expecting me to be surprised he knows about my visit.
“I didn’t rough him up,” I explain. “I told him to stay away from Bree. That’s it. I had to get a restraining order against his brother because he wouldn’t leave her alone.”
“I saw that. Entitled little prick that one.”
Thank God this is finally going my way.
Or so I think.
“The victim—” he starts.
“He’s not a victim. He’s the attacker,” I correct.
Cain raises an eyebrow. “The deceased’s family,” he continues. “have raised concerns.”
“I’ll bet they have,” I grumble. “Maybe they should’ve been more concerned about raising their sons to respect women instead of turning out two psychos and unleashing them on society.”
He ignores my outburst and continues. “They claim Bree lured Chad to the house. Then shot him in cold blood.”
Fury shoots through my veins and I jump out of my chair, knocking it backwards. “That’s fucking bullshit. You saw her. You saw what he did to her.”
“Sit down.”
I stare at him for a few seconds before taking my seat. “Where’s the proof? A text? Phone call? How did she invite him over? Telepathy?”
Ignoring my sarcasm, he flips open the folder. “They haven’t said yet.”
“Right. They’re not going to either, because it’s a lie. A million pictures of her injuries were taken.”
“They contend she got those injuries when he fought for his life.”
“Oh, please. Nothing. Not one thing at the scene supports that.”
He sighs and sits back. “I know. They won’t get far, but until they accept reality I think you need to keep your distance from this girl.”
“No.”
“Excuse me?”
“No. I’m not abandoning her when she needs me the most. Absolutely not.”
“Hollister—” he warns.
I unsnap my gun from its holster and set it on the desk. It’s not meant to be some dramatic gesture. I’m dead fucking serious. I set my badge down next to the gun.