Chapter 30
Tobias
“This feels weird.” Brooke stands next to me at the island in my parents’ house, looking over the portion of my family attending tonight’s dinner. “Why are your brothers being so quiet?”
“They’re trying to avoid being noticed, because without Titus and Mariah here to distract her, they know my mother’s going to start thinking about how single they are.
” I give her a grin. “And there’s only so many brilliant, beautiful runaway brides to go around, so she’s going to have to get creative.
For some reason, they don’t seem to think it will benefit them. ”
So far, my mother is two for two, so the odds she’s not going to strike again aren’t in their favor. It’s not a matter of if she’s going to meddle in their lives. It’s a matter of when.
It’s going to happen, I’m just not sure who she’s going to set her sights on next.
Walker is the least likely, even though he’s the oldest. It’s possible he hasn’t told my mother he’s digging up the past, but I doubt he wouldn’t give her a head’s up.
And I don’t see her trying to add a romance into that mix.
Tucker is the youngest, and while he would be the easiest to put on the path of tripping over a woman, he will also be the most difficult to keep from tripping over a few more.
So maybe my money’s on Trevor.
That’s going to be a shitshow, and I’m kind of excited I’ll have a front-row seat for it.
“Come on, everyone.” My mother claps her hands before waving them around the piles of pasta and platters of roasted vegetables lined down the island. “Let’s get this to the table.”
“I think you made too much.” I pick up the bowl of penne in vodka sauce, grunting a little as I heft the weight to the table.
My mother shoots me a look, like she can’t believe I’m questioning her grasp on serving quantities. “You’re going to take all the leftovers to Titus and Mariah on your way home.”
I shoot Tucker a smirk. “Because I’m the favorite uncle.”
“No.” My mother picks up a platter of roasted broccolini, her eyes not going near any of my brothers.
“Because you have Brooke, and I’m sure she’ll want to see Mariah and the babies.
” Her eyes slide past the three men who’ve been doing everything they can to stay beneath her radar.
“Especially since she’s the favorite aunt. ”
Tucker, in a move I’m sure he’s going to regret the second his lips close, pipes up way too loudly, “She’s their only aunt.”
My mother gives him a slow smile. “She is, isn’t she?” Her eyes move over him. “We’ll have to do something about that, won’t we?”
Tucker’s skin pales a little as he realizes what he’s done.
And what could come of it.
When the driveway sensor goes off, he wastes zero time turning and running from the room, calling back over one shoulder, “I’ll see who’s here.”
My mother perks up immediately, shoving the prepared vegetables at Trevor before going to collect more plates and silverware. “Maybe Mariah and Titus decided they felt like getting out after all.”
But the noise coming from the entryway doesn’t sound like Tucker talking to our brother and his wife.
It sounds a lot like Tucker starting a fight.
“Who the fuck do you think you are?” My baby brother’s words get louder, like he’s coming our way.
Quickly.
I have a split second to react before Tucker and a man I’ve never seen before come barreling into the kitchen. On instinct, I step directly in front of Brooke. And thank God I do. Because the overly-polished, suit-wearing intruder locks in on her location immediately.
His bleary eyes narrow on where she stands at my back and he sneers, “You fucking bitch.”
I scan the island beside me, hoping my mother left a knife out. She didn’t, which is probably for the best, because I would have used it.
Since there aren’t any easily obtainable weapons, I guess that means I’ll get to feel Matt’s facial bones break against my knuckles.
I’m straightening to my full height, shifting my feet so I have a steady base to start throwing punches from, when Tucker makes a move, beating me to the literal punch.
As the baby—and smallest of us until recently—Tucker had to learn to fight dirty unless he always wanted to lose. And Tucker doesn’t like to lose.
He’s kicked Matt’s feet out from under him and has him on the floor before I can blink.
Once they’re down, the strength difference between the two men becomes real pronounced, real fast. Matt is working hard to get loose from my baby brother's hold. Unfortunately for him, Tucker is not only faster, but also stronger than he is, and it’s not long before he’s got Matt in an arm bar, looking ready to break a bone.
“Stop.” Brooke steps around me, her heels clicking against the floor in the suddenly silent room.
“He’s not worth getting in trouble over.
” Her expression is hard as she stares down at the man who tried so hard to break her.
“And he loves filing frivolous lawsuits, so hurting him will also end up costing you money.”
Tucker tips his head from side to side like he’s weighing his options, squeezing Matt’s arm a little tighter. “I’ve got some money to spare.”
“We’re not doing this.” My dad once again steps in to take control of a spiraling situation. “Let him go, Tuck.”
Tucker sighs, rolling his eyes. “Fine.” He does as my father asks, but not gently, giving Matt a shove and possibly a kick with his steel toed boots as he gets to his feet.
Matt coughs, taking a second before managing to get upright. Once that happens, he finds himself face-to-face with Ted Bradshaw. And while it takes a lot to piss my dad off, once he’s there, the best thing you can do is run like hell.
And I’m pretty sure Matt can’t walk in a straight line, let alone run in one. If he’s not drunk, the guy should probably go to the hospital, because the way his body is swaying from side to side isn’t normal.
“Now.” My dad stares Matt down. “What the fuck are you doing in my house?”
I don’t think I have ever heard that word come out of my father’s mouth, and it stuns me almost as much as Matt’s unwanted appearance.
“I came to talk to my fiancée.” He leans to look around my dad, but barely gets his eyes on Brooke before my father steps right back into his path.
“There’s nobody in this house that is your anything.” He points toward the door. “The best thing you can do now, is go home, sober up, and figure yourself out.”
Matt smirks, huffing out a laugh. “You don’t know who I am, do you?”
“I don’t care who you are.” My dad’s voice is steady and strong. “What I do care about is that you are interrupting my dinner and upsetting my family.” He tries once more to get Matt to leave voluntarily. “So I’m going to repeat my earlier recommendation, and tell you to go home and sober up.”
Brooke’s hands circle my arm as she inches closer to me, whispering quietly in my ear, “Should he drive like this?”
I tip my head toward her, keeping one eye on my dad and Matt. “He won’t make it off the property.” I jerk my chin toward where Walker has his phone out, talking on it quietly. “Pretty sure the cops have already been called.
“You think you’re so fucking smart.” Matt’s voice gets louder, and I put my full focus on him, discovering he seems to be directing his words at me. “But she’ll use you the same way she used me and then run away the second you expect something from her.”
I take a deep breath, trying to channel my inner Theodore Bradshaw, because right now I’m the only thing standing between Matt and Brooke. “I guess it’s a good thing I don’t expect her to give me anything she doesn’t want to.”
Matt scoffs. “Then you’re just as dumb as she is.” He tilts his head, making a show of pretending like he can see the woman almost completely hidden behind me. “And don’t think I can’t tell you’ve gotten fat.”
“I’m done with this.” Trevor slams down the drink in his hand, going straight for where Matt stands.
Tucker makes a whooping noise, grinning from ear to ear as he begins aiming the same direction.
Matt—reading the room and thinking there’s only one man in here he could best—attempts to turn his drunken rage at my father, pulling back an arm as he aims for my dad’s face.
But before anyone can accomplish anything, there’s the distinct sound of glass breaking.
Matt seems weirdly frozen in place, and at first I think it’s because the sound startles him.
Then, the dark liquid running from the top of his head down over his face and neck before soaking into his suit registers.
He manages to stay on his feet all of two seconds before collapsing into an unconscious heap on the floor.
My mother stands behind him, the neck of a shattered wine bottle clutched tight in her hand as she looks down at the mess of a man.
Her eyes lift, moving around the room. “I was not expecting that to break as easily as it did.” She drops what remains of the bottle of Deidre Bradshaw presents Birch and Berry onto Matt’s unmoving body. “Totally worth the cleanup though.”