“Yes, it was just likeThe Karate Kid, except with a hamburger and grill. See these?” Rhys rolls up the sleeves and shows his well-defined forearms. A couple of long burn scars discolor the skin.
Roarke blinks. “How did you get those?”
“Battle scars. Make me manlier, don’t they?” Rhys waggles his eyebrows.
Even though he makes light of it, they had to hurt. “Is this really worth it?” I ask softly.
“Of course. I’m about to make a cheeseburger that’ll melt your heart.”
I kiss his cheek. “You don’t need a cheeseburger to do that.”
After kissing me back, he places the patties on the grill and the scent of sizzling meat fills the air.
“If it tastes as good as it smells, we should be fine,” Silas says.
Xavier hands me a glass of orange juice. “For the baby.”
“How did you know?” I ask.
The brothers glance at Rhys. “He wanted to know why a woman would say they were pregnant but wouldn’t want him to do the right thing, so we pieced it together,” Xavier explains.
I flush. “I probably didn’t explain what I meant clearly. I was riding high on emotion.”
“Understandable,” Rhys says.
“I didn’t want him to stay just for the baby. I love this baby more than anything—and at that time it was my only family. I wanted it to be surrounded by people who truly loved it.”
“Not your only family anymore,” Rhys says, jerking his chin at my belly. “You have me. And these guys.” He gestures at the brothers.
“Exactly.” Finn looks at me. “You let me know if Rhys ever makes you unhappy. I’ll kick his ass for you.”
“That’ll never happen,” Rhys says. “One, you can’t kick my ass. And two, I’ll never do anything to upset her.”
“I already ordered a doghouse, but don’t worry,” Liam says. “The roof is diamond encrusted. So everyone’ll know some really rich guy messed up.”
We all laugh. At the same time, tears gather in my eyes as I look at Rhys, then his brothers, who are taking me into their fold and showing me such support and care. After Mom passed away, I felt so alone, but had to grit my teeth and keep on going because I wasn’t going to let Trevor—and others who wanted to see me stumble and fall—win.
If somebody had said that within five years, I’d gain an amazing fiancé and six brothers, I’d have scoffed and run them off, thinking they were trying to scam me.
The doorbell rings. I look at Rhys. “Did you invite somebody else?”
He frowns. “No.”
We head to the intercom. The screen shows…Sorcha?
“What’s she doing here?” Gideon hisses.
Rhys shrugs helplessly. “Dunno. She never visits.”
“Open the door before she runs out of patience and decides to sue,” Roarke says, looking worried. I’m the closest, so I open it.
Sorcha blinks as she takes everybody in. “I didn’t realize there would be so many people.”
“It’s the weekend. We’re just hanging out,” Xavier says.
Her icy-blue eyes scan around the space. “I suppose it’s more wholesome than whoring.” She turns to me. “I’m here to speak to you.”
I stiffen. Given that she’s never said anything nice to me, this isn’t going to be pleasant. I mentally gird myself for a battle.
