The corners of his lips curl up, and his eyes sparkle in amusement. "You can stop worrying. Knowing what's waiting for me is incentive enough to watch my back."
There is no further discussion when his mouth closes over mine again.
Chapter 13
Miller
"Didn't you leave an hour ago?"
"Hour and a half." Pierce comes in carrying two glasses and a bottle of whiskey. He pours a generous amount in each glass before dropping in the recliner.
"You forget something?"
"Nope."
I click off the TV and toss the remote on the couch next to me, grab my glass and wait.
"Ashlyn went back to the hotel?"
It's a stupid question with an obvious answer, but I give him what he's looking for. "It's her last night with her parents. They decided not to stay over Sunday night. I'll meet them at the house tomorrow morning."
"You okay with that?"
"Not my first choice, but it's important to her."
He takes a sip, sitting back like he's staying a while.
"Something on your mind?"
"There's a lot on my fucking mind."
"Are we going to dance around it or get to the point?"
"Darby talked to me."
"How'd that go?"
"Hurt like a fucking son of a bitch, but at least I know what's bothering her. I have you to thank for that."
"She would have come to you eventually."
"Maybe, or she would have internalized and figured out a way to move past it without sharing. Either way, we'll work through it."
"No doubt you will, but now that you know how she's feeling, why is your ass at my house? Shouldn't you be at home working through it?"
"Seeing as you're moving your girlfriend into your house tomorrow, figured it was a good time to get you alone."
"Pierce, say what you came to say. I'm pleased as fuck you and Darby had your heart to heart, but that's not why you're here."
"It's been bothering me since we left last week. You're no amateur. There's not a chance in hell you'd let a knock-out like Ashlyn walk away from you in a bar in Chicago. I was right there with you for over ten years, picking up women, fucking the night away, leaving it all behind. She is not the type of woman you leave behind."
I expected this. Pierce and I may not share the same twin bond that connects Darby and Evin, but we've got a strong relationship and a no bullshit policy. Therefore, he's not letting this go.
I lock eyes with him, gulp my whiskey, and admit, "You're right."
He doesn't flinch. I pour another healthy dose of liquor and lean back, studying my brother. All our lives we've been close, and when his life fell apart, I was scared to death I wouldn't be able to help him. For years, it was me who did whatever it took to help him live through his hell. Nothing got between us until Darby returned and shared her secrets.
It pissed me off beyond belief until I finally saw the lengths he would go through to get her back. Seeing Ashlyn again set the ball in motion, but this week with her gave me a true understanding of Pierce's motivation.
"That's all you're going to give me?" he asks impatiently.
"You're right. She's not the kind of woman you leave behind. She's not the woman who sits next to you in a bar for hours and you let her leave because she gets a goddamned phone call."
"I know this shit."
"Ashlyn Rhodes walked into that bar in Chicago, wearing a black cocktail dress that clung to every one of her curves, twelve-hundred-dollar shoes, with so much beauty and class that every man turned his head to get a look at her. She sat down next to me, ordered a martini, and the second the tip of her tongue rimmed the glass my dick went hard. Game over."
"What the hell happened?"
"I'm not sure you can understand."
"Try me."
I blow out a breath, scrubbing a hand through my hair and shooting back another swallow. "One time wasn't enough. Twice wasn't enough. I needed more. One night turned into the weekend. There was something there between us, something I never experienced before. For those days, she owned me. I was so wrapped up, I missed the clear signs something wasn't right. Our conversations were light, and every time a personal detail slipped in, she cut it off. The last night together, she was sprawled on top of me, and I knew I wanted more. We fell asleep. The next morning, the bed was empty and there was no sign of her but a fucking generic note. Lily ghosted me."
"Who is Lily?"
"Lily was the fictitious name known as Ashlyn Rhodes."
This gets a reaction. He bolts up, his eyes bulging. "No fucking way."
"One and the same."
He has the decency to drop his chin to his chest before his shoulders shake with his hilarity.
"Not sure what's funny."
He doesn't look at me, his body shaking harder until he's bent over.
"You're an asshole."
He nods in agreement, chuckling louder. "I am a total dick, but please tell me you heard yourself. I've had to put up with you calling me pussy-whipped for years. It feels good to finally throw it back."
"No one said anything about being pussy-whipped."
His blue eyes slice to mine, and my fist clenches with the urge to punch the arrogant smugness off his face.
"Seriously, Miller? You didn't get any details on her life in days?"
"Did you hear the part about shutting me down when personal details came up?"
"Yeah, I heard it, and it proves my point. Pussy-whipped."
"It would suck for Darby to be a widow when this baby comes."
The threat doesn't stop him. "Don't you see the irony here? You spent all your life with a shield up when it comes to women. One look at Ashlyn, you're totally into her, and she plays you at your own game. I gotta say, you've met your match."
It's not his humor that gets to me; it's the fact he's
