Devlin stopped a few feet in front of me and curled his lip.
I curled mine back.
My childhood was spent competing in these intimidation games. I was a pro player. Or I thought I was. The longer we stood there staring at each other, the harder my heart pounded. It didn’t take long before each thump slapped against my ribs and traveled down my legs.
I tried to tell myself to stand my ground. I rolled my neck and held my chin up high. But my knees were starting to weaken under his stare. This was different from what I was used to. It was intense and piercing. The kind of stare down that could be felt not only in the air, but in my bones.
My grip tightened on the towel clutched around my body. Could he see the tiny cluster of freckles on my hip? Did he know about the scar sitting under my left breast? Could Devlin feel the ghosts of healed injuries and bruises?
My eyes dipped down to the pile on the floor. Right now, my worn old pyjamas seemed like a suit of armor.
Devlin snickered and stretched his foot out, pressing his boot down on my clothes to slide them closer to him.
I couldn’t stop myself from holding out my hand out and rushing forward. “Be careful with that.”
That nightgown and one picture were all I had left of my father.
I realized my mistake when a smirk curled the corner of his mouth. His foot ground into the fragile fabric. Nothing in my life had ever been harder than holding back the storm of rage brewing inside me.
Instead of tearing out his eyes like I wanted to, I cocked my hip and sighed. “Are you going to hand wash that?”
Relief poured through me as confusion knit his brows. Rule number one of new home placement. Unless you want a cherished item destroyed, never let anyone know you have an attachment to it.
“Why would I do that?”
“Well…” I rolled my eyes up to his. “It was clean.”
“Uh huh.” He folded his arms over his chest and kicked the nightgown towards me. “Go ahead and get dressed, then.”
I glanced down and tried not to linger on the panties splayed next to his foot. “Thanks, I’m good.”
Devlin’s brow pulled up in a judgmental arch. “We’ll see about that.”
I stood there, listening to drops glide across my skin and gently drip on the floor. The soft tick, tick, tick reminded me of how exposed I was. I couldn’t stop my muscles from tensing.
The way that red polo shirt was hugging Devlin’s broad chest wasn’t helping any. The guy was an insufferable ass, but goddamn, did he make a pair of jeans look good. I couldn’t help but pull my eyes over the tribal lines crawling up the left side of his neck.
They were just as intricate and flawless as the ones inked into his arms. I didn’t remember seeing those before. Then again, I was more concerned with getting away from the three assholes accosting me than I was with inspecting them.
Was that one big tattoo, or a bunch of separate designs?
“Are you a virgin, Sydney?”
My wide eyes snapped back to his. “What?”
“It’s not a hard question.” Devlin took a menacing step towards me. “Are you a virgin?”
“You can’t just ask someone that.”
Technically, I was. I’d done some stuff with one guy, though it never got as far as actual sex. We didn’t make it past the foreplay stage. Twelve seconds in my mouth, and he was done. Awkward wasn’t a strong enough word to describe that encounter.
“Answer the question,Bréagán.”
“Why?” I shot him a sweet smile. “Are you going to be a good brother and give me the birds and bees talk?”
“No,” he stated flatly. “I want to know if I’m going to have to waste my time teaching you how to suck cock.”
My jaw dropped.
