29. Brooke
29
***Brooke***
W hen we got back to the house the sun was coming up and Noah and Logan were both up and getting ready for work. I was in my ripped dress and Colt’s shirt, leaving no room for mistaking what we’d been doing.
I stood there, in the middle of them, and felt the tension rising. After the night with Colt, though, I was feeling shy and embarrassed. Knowing they knew I’d been with him all night was enough to engage all of my running tendencies. I stared at the floor, scared of what I’d see on their faces. Would Noah and Logan understand or be angry? The rules had changed and I didn’t know what was happening.
“Gotta go!” I tried to run to the stairs but Noah caught my arm and pulled me to a stop. I squeaked and covered my face with my hands. “I’m not leaving. I’m just running and hiding in my bedroom upstairs. Let me have that, please!”
He let out a low laugh and then I was wrapped in his arms as he held me tight. “Before you run and hide, I have a question for you.”
“I’m not sure I’m ready for marriage yet.”
Noah sputtered. “W-what? Brooke? I was just going to… What the hell happened between you two last night?!”
I let out a childish giggle. “Just kidding.”
Logan stroked the back of my head. “Go easy on him, little bunny. He’s had a long, jealous night. We both have.”
I felt guilty instantly. “I’m sorry.”
“No.” Colt’s one word was said like a declaration that was going to be obeyed, no matter what. “You’re not sorry. You had a good night and that’s okay.”
“Of course, it’s okay. You don’t need to feel sorry for anything, little bunny.” Logan tugged me from Noah’s arms and held me. “You’ve done enough apologizing.”
“I just wanted to ask if you’d come with us to Sinclair’s birthday party in the park tomorrow. I want you there and so does Sinclair. She made it clear that if I didn’t bring you, I wasn’t trying hard enough.” Noah flashed me a bright smile. “So? What do you say to a kid’s party?”
I nodded before a thought occurred to me. “What about Kelly? She doesn’t like me and I don’t want to cause trouble. It’s her daughter’s birthday party and if she doesn’t want me there, that’s fair.”
“Kelly’s not an issue for you to worry about.” Colt gripped the back of my neck. “Right?”
Noah nodded. “If I thought it’d be a problem, I wouldn’t have brought it up. I’d never chance traumatizing Sinclair with a big messy fight.”
“I don’t think you could traumatize that child. She’s fierce.” Logan slowly let me go and then gently pushed me towards the stairs. “You’re coming. Now go get some rest.”
I fought a yawn. “Don’t need rest. I need to go paint.”
The three of them turned on me with stern looks on their faces.
I groaned. “I forgot how bossy you three could be when you team up. Not fair.”
I decided I was too tired to argue with them so I went upstairs and crawled into bed. I slept until noon and then took a shower and went to the diner to get lunch. I ran into Aunt Karlene, holding court there, and had to roll my eyes as I watched her tell a tourist wearing a t-shirt with a skinnier body in a bikini on it that she was cursed but that burning the shirt would remove it. I sat with her when the woman left, sans her t-shirt.
Aunt Karlene held up the novelty t-shirt and grinned. “I’m going to give this to your mom for Christmas.”
“You’re terrible.”
“And you’re having more sex than most of the people in Beaumont. Except for me and your mom. Although I don’t know how she’s having so much sex with that Jimmy. He’s terrible. He keeps his compression socks on during sex. Your mom won’t admit it but I saw them.”
I shuddered and tapped my head, mimicking her. “Don’t you have better things to see?”
“No, I actually saw them. Butt naked and getting rug burns in places you can only imagine. Don’t walk barefoot in your momma’s living room.” She shook her head. “I just thought the women in our family had more sense. You do. You’re getting it three ways from Sunday by the three hottest bachelors in town. Big dicks, hard abs, and asses that just won’t quit. You’re lucky I never figured out how to Freaky Friday your ass. I’d be swinging those men from the chandelier over my bed.”
I heaved out a giant sigh. “You’re a monster.”
“Yeah, well, at least I don’t screw a man in his medical accessory socks.”
Mom seemed to appear out of thin air. She slapped her hand down on the table and glared at her sister. “Jimmy gets restless legs!”
I tried to quietly get up and remove myself from their vicinity so I didn’t get arrested with them when they started wrestling. Mom was too quick for that, though. She turned on me immediately.
“And you! You kept poor Johnny Stolks up all night with your screaming on Colt’s boat.” I would’ve sworn she’d raised her voice on purpose. Then she thumped me on the back. “Good job, girl. You’re a screamer like your mom.”
“I’m leaving!” I stuffed my fingers in my ears and stumbled out of the booth. “I should call CPS on you. Even if I’m closer to thirty than thirteen, you should still be booked for abuse for that statement alone!”
“You!” Johnny Stolks himself was standing in front of me when I turned to leave. He had dark bags under his eyes and the little hair that he had was standing on end. He smelled like fish and saltwater and I absently wondered why Colt never smelled like fish. “You need to have sex somewhere else!”
The entire diner was watching and I knew I was bright red. I rolled my lips between my teeth and winced. I should’ve known I didn’t need to fight my own battles with my mom and aunt behind me. Before I could think of a way to apologize to the man, they were both at my side.
“You don’t tell my daughter where to have sex, Johnny! She can have sex wherever she wants. She hasn’t had good sex in a decade and it was starting to give her wrinkles!” Mom slapped me on the back hard enough to make me wheeze. “Maybe if you’d ever made a woman scream, it wouldn’t have been so shocking to you.”
Aunt Karlene high-fived Mom, their tiff behind them as they focused on a common enemy. “I rode him one night in ninety-three. It was mediocre at best.”
“I was nineteen!” Johnny turned red under his beard. “You three are demons. And I know how to make a woman scream. There’s this thing I can do with my tongue that’s called the apple pie and it makes women scream. I just didn’t know it back in ninety-three.”
“What’s the apple pie?” I asked and then immediately held up my hands. “Nope. Sorry. Forget I asked.”
“Tell me in my ear. I want to know if I know it.” Mom moved in closer and I watched in horror as chaos erupted. I’d been gone long enough that it somehow shocked me.
Johnny cupped his hands around Mom’s ear and started whispering and she let out a loud giggle and did a full body shudder. A loud shout blessedly distracted me from the shudder but when I saw who was shouting, I winced. Jimmy. He was deep red and raising his fists.
“You’re trying to steal my woman!” He came at Johnny. “Put your fists up and fight me, asshole!”
“Oh, my gosh. Don’t fight over me, guys!” Mom pushed her breasts out and climbed onto one of the booths. The people sitting at it weren’t thrilled. “But I liked the sound of that apple pie thing so I guess the winner gets to take me home and gobble me up!”
Jimmy gasped. “Daisy!”
“I see the need for EMS.” Aunt Karlene tapped her forehead even as we all watched Jimmy grab his chest and stumble into Johnny. “God, I’m good.”
“Are you kidding? I’m pretty sure someone was already dialing 911 when you said that.” I shook my head and stepped around the two men who were then hugging because Johnny couldn’t seem to get Jimmy off of him. “This place is absolutely insane.”
“It’s your family!” Several of the diners shouted in unison.
“Oh, Jimmy! Baby, I was only kidding! I only have eyes for you! Don’t die on me!” Mom put her hand over her forehead and acted like she felt faint. “Jesus, don’t take my man!”
Jimmy, having a miraculous recovery, punched Johnny in the stomach and they both went down. I saw they were rolling around on the floor, knocking over chairs and tables before I left.