Page 51 of Fighting a Riot

Yak turned around. “Shit,” he breathed. “You must be her brother.”

“Yeah, and you still need to answer my question.”

I stepped past Yak onto the small stoop. “Tone it down, Evan. This is my neighbor, Noah or he may prefer if you call him Yak.”

My twin shot me a skeptical look. “As quiet as that house was all last week, I didn’t think you even had a neighbor.”

“I stayed somewhere else to keep out of the way,” Yak said.

Evan gave a single nod. “He must be the weightlifter.”

I frowned. “Don’t be rude. And don’t believe everything Mom tells you.”

Evan smirked. “Whatever. He’s not your type.”

I rolled my eyes. “Do you want me to kick your ass? I may have just had surgery but I can still outsmart you.”

From somewhere behind me, Trixie said, “Oh my God, you don’t just have a brother–you have a twin!”

Yak sauntered past me. “I’m gonna get out of your hair. Be well, Nora.”

My stupid mouth wouldn’t stay shut. “You too, Noah.”

“Trixie, we should follow Yak’s lead, and give Nora and her brother some space,” Mallory said.

Evan stared at Trixie for a moment, and to be fair, I couldn’t blame him. None of my other friends had ever sported two-toned hair, and definitely not hair with bright purple tips.

Evan came closer to the carriage house. “You’re the woman who took her to the early appointments.”

Trixie nodded. “I am. Are you sticking around for her first round of chemo?”

My twin blew out a sigh that sounded exactly like mine. “Unfortunately, the Navy wants me back on a carrier.”

“That sucks,” Trixie said while Evan and I came inside the house.

Mallory smiled at us. “What she means to say is thank you for your service.”

Evan nodded at Mallory. “You’re welcome, but Trixie’s right. It sucks that I can’t be here for my sister. However, the doctor’s initial findings seem… hopeful, so I’m praying I don’t have to come back.”

Trixie pulled a chair out from under the dinette table and sat down. “Why isn’t Yak her type?”

Mallory tipped her head back for a moment. “Trixie! Let’s give them some time—”

Evan grinned while he took the seat across from her. “I was screwing with them. More her than him. Maybe it’s hindsight, but I never cared much for her ex. Hell, I told her with a name like his, she was destined to get hurt.”

I blew out an exasperated breath and slugged my brother on his bicep. “Will you stop it. It’s not cool to rub my nose in my mistakes.”

Trixie turned her serious gaze on me. “You didn’t make a mistake, that pencil-dicked asshole did. Giving you the heave-ho just because you found a lump. What a fucker.”

Evan looked up at me. “I like her. She’s way cooler than Mia.”

Trixie choked on her laughter. “That’s not hard to do seeing as that hoe was in his bed when we picked up her stuff.”

Evan’s head reared back and he narrowed his eyes on Trixie. “Run that by me again.”

“Don’t worry about it,” I said, rounding the table and sitting down.

Trixie ignored me. “How do you think I know he’s a pencil-dick? We followed Yak when he took Nora to her old place. That asshole was standing bare-ass naked, with Mia lounging in his bed drooling. It was disgusting.”

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