“How do you know?” I hesitantly whispered. “Maybe you’re just comin’ down with somethin’, I heard the flu is goin’ around.”
Ryder’s lips twitched. “I know I love you because I think about you all the time, I want to be with you all the time and fuck me, but your smile makes my whole day. Your laughter is my favourite sound. I could listen to you laugh all day. I love it. I love you. Everything about you blends perfectly with me, and I know that if I didn’t have you around me all the time, I’d go crazy. You’re my one, I know you are.”
His one, I thought. I was Ryder’s one.
“Omigod,” I whispered as my palms became sticky with sweat.
He leaned his face down to mine. “Don’t feel pressured to say it back, I didn’t intend to have this conversation right now, but after everything I told you, I wanted you to know that I’m very serious about you.”
Screw that.
“I love you, too.” I blurted. “I’ve been terrified of how deeply I feel for you because it has happened so fast, but I feel how I feel, and I love you.”
Ryder brought his face to mine and I swear the smile that was in place on his face was bigger than I’ve ever seen before.
“You know I’m never going to let you go, right?” he murmured.
Good, my heart countered, because I’m never letting you go either.
I rubbed my nose against his. “I’m countin’ on it, sweetheart.”
He kissed me deeply and once more, I was lost in him.
I awoke when I heard a scream, a scream that belonged to my little sister.
“Bronagh!” I shouted and scrambled out of Ryder’s bed, kicking his bed covers off my body.
“Branna, she is fine,” Ryder’s raspy voice—which told me he had just woken up, too—assured me. “Dominic would never hurt her, I promise you.”
I rushed around the room as I pulled my clothes on.
“I want to see that for meself, Ry!”
Ryder reached out and grabbed hold of my arm. “I know your sister, she has done this before. She is probably just arguing with my brother, that’s all.”
He knew Bronagh?
I turned and stared at Ryder. “You knew Bronagh was me sister?”
Ryder blinked. “No, wait a second—”
“You knew who she was and you let me date you while knowin’ what your brother was doin’ to her? Did Dominic know, too? Did all your brothers’ know? Were you all laughin’ at me behind me back because I was too clueless to see what was right in front of me?”
“What? Fuck, no, baby—”
“Don’t baby me, arsehole!” I spat.
I turned and ran out of the bedroom with Ryder cursing as he got out of bed and hurriedly dressed himself. I ran up to the top floor of the house, and banged on the bedroom door that I knew belonged to Dominic.
“Bronagh!” I shouted, wrapping my fists against the door just as Ryder jogged up the stairs and came to a stop behind me. He sighed and placed his hands on my hips, but backed off when I slapped his hands.
I heard a pained groan from inside the bedroom then Dominic shouted, “We’re busy!”
Busy? I gasped. Fucking busy!
I heard Ryder laugh from behind me, so I jabbed my elbow into his gut causing him to yelp.
“Get away from me sister you pervy little fucker or I’ll end you!” I bellowed.
It took a few seconds, but eventually the door to Dominic’s room opened wide revealing my eighteen-year-old sister who looked hung-over as hell, and a half naked Slater brother lingering across the room with his eyes glued to her arse.
Typical man.
“I can’t remember anythin’ or how I got up here, but I didn’t do anythin’ with him. I swear!” Bronagh gushed to me.
I let my eyes roam over her looking for any sign of injury, and luckily I saw none, but what couldn’t be missed were the love bites scattered over her neck. I felt heat crawl up my neck and spread out over my face.
“You better not have touched her without permission—”
“I didn’t!” Dominic cut me off, his anger evident. “I’m not a fucking rapist!”
I growled. “You better not be because I’ll fuckin’ rape you if you harmed her in any way!”
Dominic’s smirk put an instant scowl on my sister’s face, but his reply had her flat out glaring at him.
“You can rape me anytime you want, gorgeous.”
He was a Slater brother, I thought, there was no denying it.
“You’re a prick!” My sister snapped at him.
Dominic flicked his eyes to my sister and rolled them. “I’m kidding, don’t be mad at me for that. Even though your sister is smoking hot, you’re hotter.”
Did he really think that was a smart thing to say? I wondered, because it really wasn’t.
Bronagh set her jaw and said, “Piss off, Dominic!” before turning to me, and grabbing hold of my hand. “We’re leavin’!” She stated.
I nodded my head, wholeheartedly agreeing with her decision. With my sister’s hand in mine, I turned and narrowed my eyes at Ryder.
“Move.”
He didn’t move.
“I’m not letting you leave here until you hear me out!” He demanded, the firmness in his voice giving me chills.
Bronagh scoffed from behind me, and before I could stop her she said, “You can’t keep her here, arsehole.”
I felt Bronagh’s hand tense in mine when Ryder switched his soul-shuttering glare from me to her, and I felt how scared she became of him. She shifted behind me a little bit, blocking most of her body from Ryder’s stare. I had to turn so she wouldn’t twist my arm off at the angle she was tugging it at.
“Don’t look at me sister like that, do you hear me?” I snapped at Ryder. “You’re scarin’ her!”
He scrubbed his face with his hands. “Bran, baby, I didn’t know Bronagh was your sister. You called her Bee when you talked about her. If I had known who she was I would have told you so you didn’t look at me like you did last night.”
I knew what way I looked at him last night, like I did just a few minutes ago. I looked at him like he played me.
“Hold up, rewind and freeze. Branna… are you seein’ him?” my sister asked, blatant shock laced in her tone.
Shit. Fuck.
“I wasn’t keepin’ it from you, sweetie.” I assured her. “I met ‘im at Darkness a few weeks ago when I was there with Aideen. We hit it off and went on some dates since then. I wasn’t goin’ to tell you about ‘im until I was sure about ‘im. I know how you feel about people, and I didn’t want to bring ‘im around unless I was sure he was goin’ to stick around.” I cut my eyes to Ryder then, and found he was looking at me with a deep intensity.
I was beginning to gather that he was always intense, but had a special intense gaze about him whenever he looked at me, and I’d be damned if I didn’t love it.
“What is your deal with people, Bronagh?” Dominic’s voice asked from behind me, making my sister tense up. I felt her hand squeeze mine to the point of pain.
“It’s none of your business,” I snapped at Dominic then looked back to Ryder. “I’m not doin’ this to ‘er. She doesn’t like you, and that means it won’t work between us.”
The pain of Bronagh’s death-like grip on my hand had nothing on the agonising pain that encircled my chest when I spoke those words to Ryder.
Bronagh comes first, I reminded myself. Bronagh always comes first.