Page 21 of Protect and Serve

“I was,” Claire grumbled.

“I thought I heard a thud,” Cade said.

She glared at her brother. “It’s an office. Things thud.”

“No they don’t.”

She crossed her arms over her chest—surely not a defensive move. “What would you know about it? You’ve never spent a day of your life in an office.”

Cody sent Cade a cheeky glance. “That is true.”

Cade grumbled something beneath his breath and he pinned his sharp gaze on Charlie. “Can I see you a minute?” he said an overly cordial tone, one that was wrapped in barbed wire.

Charlie glanced at Claire. “Um… Sure?”

“In private?”

She narrowed her eyes on her brother. He had a tendency to be overprotective and chase guys off. It had come in handy with Dustin, but for some reason, she didn’t want him to screw things up with Charlie. Not yet. And certainly not now. “Cade—”

He held up an imperious hand. He pinned her with that mulish look he got when he would not be changing his mind. “This needs to happen, Claire.”

She looked at Charlie and when he nodded, she gusted a sigh. “Well, all right. But be gentle with him.” She leaned against the desk, but Cade kept staring at her. When he had her attention again, he cocked his head toward the door.

“Wait. You’re kicking me out of my office?”

“Go.”

Lisa hooked arms with her and tugged her toward the hall. “Come to the kitchen. We’ll make donuts.”

She loved donuts, but she hated leaving Charlie alone with her brothers. They could be such assholes sometimes. She glanced at him over her shoulder with an apologetic expression. He tried to smile, but she saw the resignation in his eyes.

That was all she saw before the door closed in her face with an echoing knell of doom.

Chapter SEVEN

“So,” Cade said.

One word. One fucking word.

Charlie glanced at the brothers, one after the other. They both looked ominous.

“You need to be more specific, buddy.”

Cade moved a little closer than was precisely necessary for a conversation, but Charlie was familiar with tactics of intimidation. He excelled at them too.

Trouble was, he didn’t want to intimidate Cade. He wanted to reassure him. It was just a tad awkward, them being fully dressed, and him wearing rip-away pants and body glitter and all.

Cody was the one to answer. “What’s going on with you and Claire?”

Yeah. He figured as much. “Claire?”

“I saw the glitter on her blouse just now.”

“There was some on her cheek too,” Cade muttered.

“I wasn’t the one who insisted on glitter.”

“Were you kissing her?”