On the grass with his burly dog stood a tall, beautiful woman Brighton recognized as her aftercare specialist and felt a shot of adrenaline. What was she doing here? Was there danger? Or worse?—had Cord made good on his promise to find Brighton a more permanent placement? Was Willow here to take her away
Castration might be a bit extreme, but Willow would take whatever measures necessary to get the point across to Stone that Brighton needed time to heal after six years of trafficking and, therefore, was hands-off.
“Willow.” His greeting was gruff and tight. Pretty normal for her eldest sibling, but that shadow hanging over the strong ridge of his Metcalfe brow told her he knew a lecture was coming. And deserved one.
Holstering her anger, she hugged him, getting buried in the muscled mass that was his oversized self. “I’m going to kill you.”
“Later.”
“Count on it.” She broke away and met Brighton’s worried expression. “Hi, sweetie. How are you?”
“Good.” Brighton nodded as she hefted up a box. “Donuts solve everything.” The way she held the confections between them like a barrier said she felt guilty.
Willow smiled. “It’s the Metcalfe way.” She took a bag, threaded her arm through Brighton’s as they followed her brother back to the cabin. “Mom wants us to eat together tonight.”
Stone didn’t hesitate, but irritation scratched his eyes. “I’ll cook.”
“I thought you’d never offer.” Willow stepped inside. Immediately, two things hit her??—the bags sitting inside the guestroom and the way Brighton suddenly stiffened, knowing her things had been discovered there.
Did she need to beat her brother into next week?
Setting the grocery bag on the island, Willow turned her glower on Stone. “Oh. Saw Oscar at the front desk. He was looking for you.” It was true. Mostly. “Said he needed something.”
Stone swiped a hand over his beard. Classic move that said he wanted to say something but wouldn’t. His focus flicked to Brighton, then back. “Y’all good here?”
“Why wouldn’t we be?”
He eyed the grocery bags. Stalling.
“I can put them away,” she stated. “Shouldn’t keep your desk manager waiting. Bad for morale, I hear.”
He held her gaze?—hard. Clearly didn’t like this, but he’d yield. “Understood.” Another swipe of his beard. “Grief, stay.”
When he headed toward the door, Willow rolled her eyes at Brighton, who seemed amused with the exchange. She started putting away the food, noting the strawberries. Sausage. “Thought he liked bacon.”
Brighton awkwardly helped. “Uh, that’s … for me.”
Willow closed the refrigerator, folded her arms, and met the brown eyes that had bewitched her brother. “How’re you doing?”
Shoulders bunched, Brighton pursed her lips. “Good.”
“And the ogre? He’s not making life awful, is he?” Not if that near-kiss was any indication.
“No,” Brighton said, tucking her hands in her back pockets. “I mean, it was rough at first. He couldn’t stop barking and telling me I shouldn’t be here.”
“Sounds like Stone. With that deep voice, he’s got a lotta bark.” Willow stole an orange and started peeling it. “And back there?”
The girl’s cheeks pinked. “What?”
Rind tossed, Willow slipped around the corner of the island. “You don’t owe him anything. You know that, right?”
“Owe?” Brighton frowned. “What?—” Her eyebrows winged up. “Oh. No. That’s not …” She flushed. “He’s not like that.” She touched her throat. “Neither am I.” She flinched.
“Hey, whoa there. I never meant to imply anyone was that way. I simply meant that there are times when we feel we’ve wronged someone and want to make it up to them. We’ll do anything to make the situation better or help their anger go away.” Willow held her gaze. “I do know Stone enough to know he wouldn’t want you to feel like you needed to do that. Sometimes, in the heat of a moment, things can get out of hand…”
Brighton swallowed, not meeting her gaze.
Her brother had gotten himself tangled in a very complicated situation with a very beautiful woman who was enmeshed in a nightmare. What had transpired between the two since Brighton arrived here that they had gone from him yelling at her to them being out on a grocery run that ended in a near-kiss?
