Chapter 21 #3
“Stepbrother,” Wei clarified helpfully, his amused gaze flicking between Ryan’s stunned expression and the increasingly tense postures of my other brothers. “One of four, actually. The Spirit Magnet here collects them.”
I shot Wei a death glare that he completely ignored, his smile widening as if my discomfort was the highlight of his day. I’d have to remember to put something unpleasant in his coffee later.
Ryan’s friends had caught up now, flanking him like henchmen in a bad movie. The taller one—Jake or Jack or some equally forgettable name—leaned forward with renewed interest.
“Wait, so all these guys are your brothers?” he asked, his eyes scanning our group with obvious disbelief. “The ones you’re always rushing back to check on after class?” This last part was directed at Xander, whose expression tightened further.
I felt my face flame hotter than Wei’s coffee after one of his fancy brewing rituals.
So that’s how Xander referred to me to his classmates?
Like I was some helpless child who needed constant supervision?
Perfect. Just perfect. My dignity, already on life support after the changing room incident, flatlined completely.
“Yes,” Xander replied, his voice carrying a warning edge that even these idiots couldn’t miss. “My youngest brother.”
“Wow, small world.” Ryan recovered quickly, his eyes returning to me with that same interested gleam that made me want to sink through the floor. “We see Lan at the library all the time. Never made the connection.”
“Clearly.” Colt’s voice could have frozen lava. “How fortunate for all of us that mystery has been solved.”
As Ryan spoke, I noticed something strange happening with my brothers.
All three of them—Jaxson, Colt, and Xander—seemed to tense simultaneously, their postures shifting subtly but unmistakably.
There was something almost predatory in the way they watched Ryan, like animals sensing a threat to their territory.
The air around us felt charged, tense in a way I couldn’t quite explain.
Ryan either didn’t notice or chose to ignore the arctic blast, his attention still fixed on me. “We’re having a party tonight at my place. You should come, Lan.” His eyes flicked to Xander as an afterthought. “You too, of course. Now that I know you guys are… related.”
The way he said “related” carried a note of skepticism, like he couldn’t quite believe Xander and I shared any DNA (which, technically, we didn’t, but that wasn’t the point).
Something dark flashed in Jaxson’s eyes, his fingers tightening on my shoulder in a way that was just shy of uncomfortable.
That strange warmth between us flared, almost protective in nature.
On my other side, Xander had gone equally tense, while across the table, Colt’s expression had shifted from mildly annoyed to actively hostile, like he was mentally calculating how many bodies could fit in the mall dumpster.
“Did you need something specific?” Colt asked, his tone carrying enough frost to start a new ice age. “Or is interrupting people’s meals a hobby?”
Ryan raised his eyebrows at the open hostility but seemed more amused than offended.
“Just extending an invitation,” he said, though his eyes kept drifting back to me in a way that made me want to hide under the table.
“My place, tonight at eight. Xander knows the building.” He directed this last part to me specifically, ignoring the death glares being aimed at him from all directions.
“That’s very… considerate,” I managed, fighting the urge to squirm under the collective weight of my brothers’ reactions.
I was caught between embarrassment at being treated like a child and a weird flutter of satisfaction at their protectiveness.
What was wrong with me? “But we have plans tonight. Family dinner.”
“Another time, then,” Ryan suggested, either oblivious to or deliberately ignoring the tension radiating from my brothers like heat from a nuclear reactor. “I’m in the campus directory if you change your mind.”
“We won’t,” Jaxson said, his voice carrying that authoritative tone that brooked no argument. “Enjoy your meal, gentlemen.”
The dismissal was clear enough that even Ryan couldn’t miss it. He raised his eyebrows but stepped back. “Sure thing. See you in class, Xander.” He rejoined his friends, though not before throwing one last lingering glance over my way.
“Well, that was subtle,” Wei commented once they were out of earshot. “I’m surprised you didn’t just pee in a circle around the table to mark your territory. Though I suppose that’s what happens when guardians sense competition.”
“Gross, Wei,” I muttered, though the imagery wasn’t entirely inaccurate given how my brothers had just behaved. If they’d had tails, they would have been bristling like angry cats. “And what’s with the ‘guardian’ comment? They’re being overprotective, not supernatural.”
“He was being inappropriate,” Colt stated, as if that explained everything.
“He was being friendly,” I countered, suddenly irritated by the whole situation. “Which is apparently a capital offense in the Sinclair brother handbook.”
“He was hitting on you,” Xander said, his usual easygoing tone nowhere to be found. “Trust me, I know his type.”
“So what if he was?” I challenged, my annoyance overriding my usual caution. “I’m twenty-one, not nine. I can handle someone being flirtatious without the cavalry charging in with swords drawn and war paint on.”
“We were being brothers,” Colt corrected, his dark eyes fixed on me with an intensity that made my stomach do a weird flip-flop. “Which is what we are.”
The emphasis he placed on that last part made something twist uncomfortably in my chest. Yes, they were my brothers—stepbrothers—and I needed to remember that. Especially given the confusing mess of feelings I’d been experiencing lately. Feelings that had no business existing in the first place.
As we made our way out of the food court, I couldn’t help noticing how the brothers positioned themselves around me—Jaxson leading the way, Colt and Xander flanking me on either side, with Nico and Wei bringing up the rear.
It was like some kind of protective formation, shielding me from the crowds…
or maybe from the lingering gazes of Ryan and his friends, who were still watching us from across the food court.
The weird possessiveness should have annoyed me. Instead, it sent a confusing mix of emotions swirling through me—irritation, yes, but also a strange sense of security, of being valued. And something else, something I wasn’t ready to examine too closely.