Eventually, the conversation shifted to sports, which didn’t surprise him, seeing as there was a Patriots banner hanging over the sliding door. The Conlon men were football nuts, and soon they were throwing out statistics and making predictions for the upcoming season like they were ESPN correspondents.
As the sports talk dragged on, AJ noticed that Brett’s expression had completely glazed over. She’d found a pen and sketchpad somewhere, and was in the process of doodling what looked like an elephant wearing ice skates and a teeny crown.
AJ had to chuckle as he glanced over her shoulder at her handiwork. “I think we’re boring Brett,” he announced to the guys.
Rob gave a careless shrug. “Ah, she’s used to it.”
“Doesn’t make it right,” Brett muttered under her breath.
AJ experienced a pang of sympathy as Jimmy and his boys went back to chatting without a single look at Brett. Obviously it was a common occurrence for her, but he still felt bad watching her sit on the sidelines while her family ignored her.
Though it made sense now, her single-minded determination to show her family she’d changed. But he also wondered if her attempts at pleasing them had less to do with the tattoo parlor she wanted to run, and more about wanting her family to pay attention to her. To notice her.
He, on the other hand, found it impossible not to notice her. His gaze tracked her like a missile as she went to the cooler to grab a beer. Dark blue jeans hugged her ass and a loose cardigan covered her arms, which was a damn shame. Her tattoos were too spectacular to hide.
They’d slept together less than forty-eight hours ago, yet it suddenly felt like an eternity since he’d last seen her naked. His cock went semi hard as he imagined stripping her clothes off and licking every inch of her body again.
He gave his growing erection a silent reprimand, then walked over to Brett and rested his hand on the small of her back. “I like your family,” he confessed. “They’re a lot of fun.”
Brett’s gaze shifted across the yard to where Rob and Mike were engaged in a loud argument about the benefits of a nickel defense.
“They’re okay, I guess,” she said grudgingly. Then she smiled. “My brothers can be a pain in the ass, but at least they’ve always got my back. Do you have any siblings?”
His shoulders tensed. “No.”
The second the word left his mouth, guilt exploded in his gut. Fuck. It felt like a betrayal to Joey’s memory to deny his existence.
“When I was growing up I used to wish I was an only child,” Brett said, oblivious to his current state of turmoil. “I felt like my dad gave so much attention to my brothers, and not enough for me. I wanted him all to myse—”
“I had a brother,” he blurted out.
She froze. “What? But you just said—”
“He died,” AJ admitted, swallowing a lump of pain. “So technically, I don’t have any siblings. But I used to.”
Her voice softened. “I’m sorry. How did he die?”
It was difficult to answer when his throat had closed up to the point of suffocation. “Accident,” he mumbled. “And not something I want to get into right now.”
To his relief, Brett rerouted her line of questioning. “What was he like?”
Bitterness promptly joined the eddy of emotions in his stomach. “He was perfect.”
She offered a wry look. “Nobody’s perfect.”
“Trust me, Joey was. Football star, straight-A student, perfect manners, hero complex. He followed the rules, didn’t get into trouble, charmed everyone he met. My parents worshipped the ground he walked on.”
“How old were you when he died?”
“Eight. He was sixteen.”
“That’s a pretty big age difference.” She paused. “It makes sense that you think he was perfect. Little kids always put their older siblings on a pedestal. But your parents must be really proud of you, too. You own a successful club, you fought professionally, and probably made tons of money…”
His chest had gone so stiff he was surprised his ribs didn’t crack when he drew a breath. “They’re not too thrilled about Sin, and they were even less thrilled about the fighting.” Before she could respond, he rapidly changed the subject. “Why isn’t your mom around, if you don’t mind me asking?”
Brett’s expression went sad. “She died of breast cancer when I was seven.”
“Ah, shit. I’m sorry to hear that. Were you two close?”
“Yeah. I was her little girl and she spoiled me rotten. Said I deserved it since I had to grow up surrounded by those three idiots.” Brett raised her voice as she gestured to her brothers.
“I heard that,” Jordan shouted.
“You were supposed to,” Brett shouted back. Grinning, she reached for AJ’s hand and gave it a little tug. “Come on, let’s go see what these boneheads are arguing about.”
The second their skin made contact, heat spread through his body in long, pulsing waves. “Actually, I think I’d like another tour,” he drawled. “You didn’t show me the upstairs last time.”
Her breath caught when he rubbed his thumb over the center of her palm. “You wouldn’t,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper.
“Wouldn’t what? Keep tormenting you?” He chuckled softly. “But I promised you I would—and I always keep my promises. I’m going to tease you all day, angel. All. Fucking. Day.”
She visibly swallowed. “You’re evil.”
“Damn straight.” He stroked her wrist, then laced their fingers together and turned to address the Conlons. “Excuse us for a second. Brett wants to show me some of her old drawings…”
AJ stayed true to his word. For the next two hours, he found three more excuses to get Brett alone. Three more opportunities to coax her to the edge of orgasm before cruelly wrenching her back. By the time they were preparing to leave, she looked ready to explode, which would have been funny if he weren’t hovering over the same lust-filled powder keg. He just hoped her family hadn’t noticed how many times he’d had to rearrange the front of his pants. He doubted it, seeing as they’d been bickering about sports, cars, and tattoos the whole time.
Despite their three-track minds, though, he’d genuinely enjoyed hanging out with the Conlons. They were entertaining, interesting, and incredibly easy to talk to.
But AJ was tired of talking. It was time to put him and Brett out of their misery before they both went up in flames.
Since Brett had arrived in her own car, they drove to her apartment separately, and even the act of pressing his foot on the gas pedal made his cock ache. Miraculously, he managed to make it to Brett’s place without coming in his pants.
As he hopped out of the Jeep, he was greeted by the scent of garlic and ginger wafting from the Korean general store. The door had been propped open by a milk crate to let the fresh spring air in, the same warm breeze that brushed AJ’s bare arms like a teasing caress.
When Brett’s car pulled up behind his, his pulse took off in a gallop. Christ, he wasn’t leaving her side until both of them were sated and sweaty and limp from pleasure. The club didn’t open until seven and he’d already told his bartenders he might show up late, so he had nothing but time on his hands.