He sighed loudly, as he always did when he was losing patience with me, and bit out a sarcastic, “Well come on in, then.”
I did, not caring one damn bit who I was pissing off or annoying.
At the top of the stairs, Liv stood with a worried expression draining her eyes. “Ryan? Is everything okay?” she asked in a high-pitched voice.
Instead of answering out loud, I walked past her into their apartment, shook my head and slumped down heavily onto a kitchen chair. Dean took his time coming up the stairs, but I waited for the self-centered idiot to join us before I started to rant.
“How much do you know about what’s going on with Brooke?” I asked, looking back and forth between the pair of them.
They both stared at me frozen.I guess this wasn’t what they expected me to be talking about.
“What’s going on with my sister?” Dean’s head jerked back, and his eyes blinked rapidly. “Did you get her in trouble? Did you do something to—”
“You’re an idiot,” I said, raking my hands over my head. I turned my attention directly to Liv. Maybe she’d understand. She and Brooke were best friends. Maybe she knew something I didn’t. “Did you know who she was dating?”
“No,” Liv answered low. “But,” she looked at Dean concerned, “I think something bad—really bad, happened between them.”
“She was in a relationship with Captain Anderson,” I said, looking back at Dean.
He laughed.
I stared straight at him and waited.
“No way,” he said, waving a hand at me.
I continued to stare at him and wait.
His smile faded, and his eyes caught fire. “Explain.”
“There was some sort of Halloween party. She says that’s when it started. They hid their relationship for three months.” I cleared my throat and gave him a knowing look. “He would have her drive him around and take her to secret places. Kept her hidden. In my opinion, he preyed upon her.”
“But—” Dean’s mouth snapped shut.
“When she asked for a more serious commitment from him—her hit her. He’s been harassing her ever since. I think he’s the one who had the pictures taken. I think he’s the one who broke into the dentist’s office and spray-painted the walls. And I think he had something to do with the cadets.”
“The captain?” Dean questioned.
“Yeah,” I answered.
His eyes narrowed. He was a good detective. He’d help me figure out the rest. “Why are you involved?”
“You know why,” I said.
“You slept with my sister.”
“Get over it. You could either fight with me over it or help me fight for her. She deserves some good guys on her side. And I’m planning on being one of them. I think she’s inrealtrouble Dean, and she’s lost.”
Liv stood next to him smiling at me.
“And I’m supposed to believe you’re one of the good guys? That’s mysister.”
“I get what you’re thinking, but—”
“That’s my sister,” he repeated, his tone rising.
I started to pace, but kept my eyes fixed on his. “Bro, I get she’s your sister.”
“So why? Why the hell would you think it would be okay with me? It’s mysister!”
