Page 37 of Don't Fall For Your Brother's Best Friend
“Good luck with both of them. You know how stubborn the Atwoods can be,” he says, chuckling as he walks away.
When I get outside, Anya and Tripp are yelling at each other by my truck.
“You’re out of control, Tripp. Get your shit together.”
“Shut the fuck up,” he yells at her.
I rush over and slam him against the truck, getting right in his face. “Don’t ever talk to your sister like that again. You want to be a disrespectful little shit I’ll leave you right here while I call your parents.”
“Get off me,” he growls, pushing at me but making zero progress.
“If I ever hear you talk to her like that again, I promise you will regret it,” I hiss, pushing off of him.
He straightens his shirt as I unlock the door. We all climb in and when I start the truck Tripp leans his body on the center console and looks between us. “So, are you two dating or something?”
“No, of course not,” Anya rushes out.
It shouldn’t hurt like it does, because we aren’t dating, but the way she rushed it out feels like I’m a toxic plague.
“So that show of force was for no reason?” he pushes.
I reach over and shove him back into his seat. “That show of force was me reminding you to respect your sister and all women. You never speak to them like that. It’s disgusting behavior and makes you look like an asshole.”
The number of times I wanted to pin my father against a wall for speaking to my mother like that is countless. Hearing Tripp speak to Anya like that brought my past into my present and I couldn’t help myself. I’ll be damned if I’m going to allow someone who’s like a brother to me, act like that man.
“I’m sorry, Anya,” he whispers.
“You need to sober up and get your shit together,” she says, crossing her arms.
Even though Tripp has questioned this situation, it doesn’t stop me from reaching over and resting my hand on her knee. I can feel her eyes on me as I drive toward the ranch and I grin. “I’ve got this.”
I keep my hand on her until we pull up next to her car. This isn’t how I saw this night ending, but life is constantly throwing curve balls that you need to handle.
Anya turns in her seat and looks back at Tripp. “I don’t know what is going on with you, Tripp, but I really hope you get it straightened out because I know this isn’t the man you are.”
With that she opens the door and climbs out of the truck. I rush out to meet her, grabbing her hand before she can open her car door.
“Anya, I’m going to talk to him. Please don’t let it consume you.”
She smiles and pushes up on her toes, pressing a soft kiss to my cheek. “See, you’re the fixer.”
I want to push her against the car and slam my lips to hers. I want to pick up where we left off in the water. I want to feel her body against mine again and hear the sounds of pleasure that escape her.
But I don’t. I simply nod and step back.
I know she feels what I feel, but she’s fighting it.
The question is, do I pursue the forbidden or do I let her go before I even have her?
“Thank you, Griffin.”
She climbs into her car and I watch her drive off. I glance back at my truck and narrow my eyes. Time to deal with the little jailbird.
The drive to my place is quiet, but when I pull into the driveway, he leans forward. “Why are we at your place?”
“Oh I’m sorry, did you want me to drop you off drunk to your parents and have them question where I picked you up from?” He drops back into the seat and I open my door. “That’s what I thought. Let’s go.”
He follows me inside and falls onto the couch. “I can’t believe you brought Anya.”