I grimaced as I reached my hand in and prayed nothing was in there to bite me.
“Gotcha,” I whispered.
After pulling the keys out, I headed up the driveway. I parked in front of the dented garage door that still hadn’t been repaired since my mother slammed into it one evening. She had driven home drunk after Dad called to bitch her out for not cooking dinner, so she decided to swerve her way home and crashed right into the damn thing.
So many memories.
As I turned my car off, a million ideas wafted through my mind. I wanted to call Brooks and tell him to come over. I wanted to tell him to bring Porter so I could hug that man’s neck again. I wanted to track my high school best friend down and climb back up into that tree so we could pretend that life hadn’t eaten us alive just yet.
Then, it dawned on me.
Brooks knew I was coming in today, and he’s not even here.
I dug my phone out of the cup holder and checked my text messages. And of course, he hadn’t even read the one I sent him this morning. I told him I’d let him know whenever I was on the road so he could meet me at the house. And here I was, sitting alone like the fucking idiot I had apparently become.
I quickly typed another message to him, letting him know that I had arrived in town.
Then, I opened my car door.
I tried not to feel like coming back home was a mistake. I fought my brain as it tried to convince me that my brother didn’t really give a shit whether I came or went. I blinked back tears as I walked up onto the porch and jumped, taking in how sturdy the foundation still seemed.
It was the only thing my father gave to this house—and to our lives—that had withstood the test of time.
And that included his presence in it.
“Stupid fucker,” I murmured.
I slid the key into the lock and turned it, but I still had to shove my shoulder into the door in order to get it open. But I didn’t get a chance to step inside before a bike engine revved behind me. I drew in a deep breath and tried to swallow down my anger, but I felt it working its way back up my throat just as quickly as I had drawn in my deep breath.
“You know, you really are something for not even reading my fucking text messages. I’m surprised you even know I’m here, idiot.”
The chuckle that sounded behind me wasn’t my brother, though. “His loss, I guess.”
And when Porter’s voice settled against my ears, I slowly turned around.
Allowing my eyes to take in the breathtakingly handsome man that straddled his bike just behind my car.
Five
Porter
I wrapped my hand around my whiskey glass and sighed. As I reclined back against the wall, staring out at the blank expanse of my bullshit apartment, I lifted the glass to my lips. The alcohol burned going down. It helped to drown out the voices in the back of my mind that whispered of secrets, vengeance, and bloodshed.
It helped to keep my nightmares at bay.
Just as I finished my glass, though, my phone vibrated. And when I pulled my cell out of my pocket, I groaned at the sight. Of course, Brooks was calling me. It was as if my lips had an alcohol sensor on them, and every time I took a fucking drink that man knew to call me.
But when I answered the phone, I was shocked to hear what came out of his mouth.
“Can you go meet Astrid at the house? I’m sort of indisposed at the moment.”
I blinked. “Astrid’s in town and you don’t even want to go see her?”
Brooks scoffed. “Not like I can shirk duties, man. She’s at Mom’s old place. You know, that house I still own. I left her a key in the mailbox this morning, but I figured Raven would have been out of work by now and I’m still waiting for her.”
“Won’t she be there when you get back from welcoming your sister into town?”
“You got something you wanna say? Spit it out.”
I clenched my jaw. “Yeah, yeah. I can go make sure she’s got all her shit inside and whatever.”
“Good. And remember our promise.”
I rolled my eyes. “Trust me, you won’t let me forget.”
After hanging up the phone with Brooks, I pushed myself up to my feet. My back, legs, and my head hurt, but damn it, I wouldn’t pass up some alone time with Astrid herself. I hadn’t seen that girl in years, not since before she moved to L.A. to become a bigshot or whatever. I made my way into my bathroom and brushed my teeth before gargling with way too much mouthwash.
Then, I chugged back a bottle of water before heading to my bike.
I didn’t like how Brooks treated his sister. He acted like she wasn’t important or some shit like that. But I wasn’t about to call him out on that. He’d been through enough, and I was sure his reasons for doing what he was doing were sound.
Plus, that meant Astrid could lean on me instead of him.
Which might help us get closer.
Don’t be an idiot. You promised.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” I mumbled to myself.
I got out to my bike and kicked up the engine before I looked around. I drove around town a few times, making damn sure I wasn’t being followed. Brooks didn’t think the Black Flags had any idea where his old place was, especially considering he hadn’t lived there since before he turned eighteen. So, the last thing I needed were those batshit crazy assholes following me around and figuring out where that house was.
And the fact that Brooks’ sister now lived in it.
I twisted and turned my way into the neighborhood before driving around a couple more times. Then, when I knew I wasn’t being followed whatsoever, I eased myself into the driveway of Brooks’ and Astrid’s childhood home.
Watching as she tried to open the front door.
“You know, you really are something for not even reading my fucking text messages. I’m surprised you even know I’m here, idiot,” Astrid called out at me.
I see things haven’t changed one bit. “His loss, I guess.”
I watched Astrid pause before her body slowly turned. And as she did so, it gave me a chance to drink her in. Damn it, she wasn’t the young girl I knew from my memories any longer. She had blossomed into a full-figured, sassy-ass, red-headed beauty that made my cock stiffen against my jeans. I parked my bike behind her car and kept myself attached to the leather seat. My eyes beheld her wondrous presence as her eyes connected with mine, seemingly drinking me in as they slithered down my body.
I let her have her fill before her gaze moved back up to mine.
But her next words that fell from her lips broke my heart.
“I see my brother has to send his faithful sidekick to come see me.”
I blinked. “I don’t know. I like to figure he’s the trusty sidekick lately.”
She scoffed. “What excuse does he have for not coming to see his sister after she moves back into town?”
I shrugged. “Probably Raven, for starters.”
She blinked. “Raven?”
I furrowed my brow. “You don't know?”
Her face fell. “I didn’t even know he was out of prison, Porter. What the fuck’s going on with him and Raven? Are we talking about the same Raven?”
I nodded slowly. “The one and only.”
She jammed her tongue into her cheek. “I guess it shouldn’t shock me. Those two were always meant for each other.”