“What?” How did he know that?
“Anyone with eyes can see it.” He smiled at my shocked expression. “You definitely don’t have a poker face. It’s why I win whenever we play cards.”
“Fucker.” I laughed after he hit my arm again, shaking my head because he was right. I wasn’t as good at hiding my emotions as I thought. It was probably the reason Maddie felt comfortable telling me she loved me. She probably picked up on my feelings toward her, believing I felt the same way. Don’t you?
“She’s hot.”
“Who?”
“Maddie.” My grip on the steering wheel tightened. “Don’t get any ideas,” I growled.
“Why would I hit on your girlfriend?”
Oh shit! That’s right. I called her my girlfriend, more in anger and annoyance than anything else, without a doubt confusing her more than she already was.
“You wouldn’t.”
“Exactly. But you better get your head out of your ass because if you don’t man up, someone else will.”
“What makes you think my head’s up my ass?”
“Because I’ve known you forever.” He tapped his window. “Turn right up there.”
“What did Mom say about you movin’ out?” A change in subject was necessary.
“She asked me why I wasn’t takin’ you with me.” He chuckled, which in turn, spurred my own laughter.
“She probably did.”
“Speaking of, why the hell are you still living at home? It’s not like you can’t afford a place of your own.”
“I dunno. Never had a reason to before.”
“Now you do.”
“What do you mean?”
“Don’t tell me you want to stay at the clubhouse with Maddie forever.”
“It won’t be forever. Only until the threat is gone.”
“Then what? You bring her home, where you still live with your parents?” I pulled into the driveway of a single house, the place that Zander and Luke would call home for the foreseeable future. Turning in my seat after I threw my truck in Park, I caught the moment my brother rolled his eyes at me. “I’m sure she’ll love that.”
Instead of making up some excuse, I responded with, “Maybe you’re right.” That was the extent of mental energy I was givin’ the topic right now, too much other stuff running through my head to give it the proper amount of weight it deserved.
“Damn right I am. Now, come on. I wanna show you the place.” Our parents, as well as Luke’s, Tripp and Reece, had splurged on furnishing their house with whatever they needed, which basically meant a house full of new stuff.
Instead of a porch, there was a small stoop in front with an overhead covering, two white pillars on each side. The front door was a rich mahogany color, the maroon shutters on the white-sided house a nice contrast. A small foyer was what we walked into, the staircase off to the right. Hardwood floors spread throughout all the rooms, which was perfect because these two could be messy sometimes, and it was easier to clean floors than carpet.
“Zan, that you?” Luke yelled from somewhere else in the house. The place wasn’t huge, but it wasn’t tiny either. There was a nice-size living room, which was all decked out with a comfy-looking sectional, as well as curtains, lamps, a large-screen television hung on the wall, and a few other pieces of furniture.
“When did you move in here?” The house looked like it had been inhabited for years.
“Two days ago,” he answered, walking ahead of me toward the kitchen.
Luke removed dishes from a moving box and put them right into the dishwasher. “Hey, man,” he greeted, stepping forward and clasping my hand before giving me a side hug.
Luke was only two months younger than me, and while I hadn’t seen him as much as I’d wanted over the past year, we picked up right where we left off.
While Luke took after Reece in the looks department, he’d inherited Tripp’s height. He wasn’t quite six four, but he was a couple inches taller than me, putting him around six two. Where I was lean and ripped, Luke was bigger. Again, not as big as his dad, but he had the potential to be so if he spent his life in the gym, which I doubted he had interest in.
Lightly tapping him on the back of the head, I said, “You need a haircut.” His ash-brown strands hit the top of his collar, waving out and looking like he just got out of bed. “Call Riley. Tell her to hook you up.”
“Call me for what?” My sister walked into the kitchen, Kaden two feet behind her. She gave Zander a hug before greeting Luke. We’d all seen each other at Roman’s birthday party a couple weeks ago, but it seemed like life was getting back in the way again, so any time to spend with each other was always welcome.
“Linc says I need to get it cut,” Luke answered, pushing his fingers through his hair and making it stick up in places.
“He’s right,” my sister agreed. Kaden leaned into her ear and said something, her eyes darting around the room before her face turned a light shade of red. My eyes connected with Kaden’s right after he said whatever he did, and he winked.
“Gross.”
He laughed as did I. I didn’t even want to imagine what he’d told my sister, so I focused on getting a tour of Zander and Luke’s new place. But before I could ask to see more, Reece and Tripp came walking around the corner. “Where did you two come from?”
“Upstairs,” Tripp answered, his arm slung over his wife’s shoulders and pulling her close.
“Doin’ what?” Luke’s eyes narrowed as he looked at his parents.
“Putting up the rest of your curtains.” Reece adjusted her ponytail to include the chestnut-colored pieces that had somehow come loose. I wanted to
