Grayson clenches his fist. “Or I could just beat the shit out of him for hitting on my baby sister.”
“Ev’s is right, G.” Dom says coming up beside me. “Come on, come downstairs and calm down and have a beer. Don’t beat Owens’ face up, he’s already an ugly fucker as it is.” Dom jokes, trying the humorous approach.
“Thanks, fucker.” Owen tells him with a frown before his wary eyes return to Grayson’s.
“Come on.” I tug on his hand. “Let’s go down and take a minute to breathe.”
I let out a sigh of relief when Grayson lets me pull him from the room, but his eyes don’t leave Owen and the anger is coming off him in waves.
Grayson stalks into the kitchen and walks straight to the fridge and grabs a beer. Izzy looks at me wide-eyed with shock. She clearly did not see that one coming. I gesture to her and Dom with my head to outside and they both quietly leave us alone.
Grayson sits himself down on a stool at the kitchen island and glares down at his beer. I jump up onto the island and shuffle myself over until I’m sitting in front of him with my legs dangling over either side of him. I lift his chin with my finger, forcing him to look at me.
“Look, you’re not going to like what I have to say, but I’m going to say it, Gray. If she dated, would you rather it not be someone you know, someone who you know is a good guy?”
Grayson scoffs at me, his eyebrows arched. “Owen’s the biggest player I know.”
I smile. “I think you’ll find you owned that title before I came along. People said the same thing about you and look at you now. Maybe Owen cares about your sister.”
Grayson glares at me. “The only thing he cares about is getting his dick wet.”
I shrug. “Maybe at one time, but do you really think he’d risk your friendship for something casual or for a one-off hook up?”
Grayson’s frown deepens, and he remains silent, which gives me hope that I’m getting through to him.
“My little brothers out there and I don’t want him to see my boyfriend with his fist in our friend’s face.”
Grayson sighs. “You’re playing that card? That’s low.”
I half smile. “Well, I’ll try anything to stop you doing something you’ll later regret.” I lean down and raise his face and kiss him softly.
“Are you trying to distract me Manchester?” He says against my lips.
I grin against his mouth. “Yeah, is it working?”
He shrugs his shoulders. “I think you need to try harder.”
I shuffle my bum to the edge of the island and drop myself on to his lap, so we’re both sitting on the stool together. I kiss down his neck and he groans. “Just relax and loosen up, baby.” I tell him softly as I rock my hips against his.
The sound of someone clearing his or her throat pulls both our attention and we look up to find Ems and Owen stood lingering in the doorway. Grayson’s eyes immediately zero in on to where they hold hands. With a deep breath, I lift myself back onto the counter-top and gesture them over.
“Come sit.” I drop myself down onto the stool beside Grayson and they come and sit opposite us.
“How long?” Grayson asks, his voice cold and hard.
Ems and Owen share a look before Em’s answers. “About two months, but its kind of been bubbling for a while. I think the first time I realised there was something there was when we went to the local pub that day, remember when that band was on?”
Grayson nods, still looking like he is fighting hard not to jump over the worktop and lay into his friend.
“Have you fucked my sister?” Grayson growls out.
Owen shakes his head. “No man, what you walked in on upstairs we were just fooling around. We haven’t— “
“I‘ve wanted to though,” Ems blurts out, sitting a little taller in her seat. “I wanted to take it further, but it is Owen who held back and said he wanted us to date and wait.”
Grayson scoffs, clearly not believing her.
Ems shakes her head, looking exasperated with her brother. “It’s the truth, Grayson. Owen has been the one to make us take this slow. Look, I know you’ll always think of me as a child, but I’m not. I’m not a virgin. I mean for Christ’s sake Grayson, I’ve had a fucking abortion. I’m hardly the sweet innocent girl you make me out to be.”
Grayson’s eyes flash with surprise. “He knows about that?”
“Yeah, he knows,” she replies firmly, “He knows because I feel I can talk to him and open up. He makes me laugh. He makes me feel cherished, and I really like being around him.”
“You don’t know him like I do. Do you know how many girls he’s slept with?” Grayson asks gesturing with his hand at Owen who, up to now, has remained silent.
Ems cocks a brow. “I bet it’s not as many as you have, big brother. Besides, I don’t care who he’s been with before he met me. We all have history, me included.”
“G, I know you’re mad,” Owen pipes up, he holds a hand out. “Just hear me out okay. I tried to fight this,” he confesses. “I tried not to like her, to not want to be around her, but I just couldn’t fight it anymore.”
“I made the first move.” Ems’ confesses. “I was the one to kiss him and at first he rejected me and said we couldn’t because of you, but I was the one who pursued him until he admitted he felt the same about me.”
She looks over at Owen and they both share a smile. “Look Grayson, whatever your feelings are, this is happening. I like Owen, like a lot, and what we have is good. He makes me happy and god knows, I deserve some of that in my life.”
Grayson stares at Owen. “You care
