Page 77 of Creed

“Sutton,” A deep voice calls out before Collins can say another word. We all glance over and I take in the goddamn mountain of a man with his arm wrapped possessively around a petite woman with curly cotton candy pink hair and denim overall shorts. “We’ve got to go,” He drawls, his Scottish accent rough and thick. None of us miss how both Asher and Collins’ faces crumble at the four simple words.

Asher nods solemnly and looks to his sister. He pulls her into one last tight hug and murmurs something into her ear that has her giggling and nodding up at him when he releases her to grip her shoulders. “You’re always welcome to stay with me if you get sick of Creed’s shit while on tour.” My jaw drops dramatically at the audacity of this fucker. “I move into my new place next week, where the kitchen and the bedrooms are all separate.” Collins laughs again and it lifts a weight from my chest at the sound.

She turns to Riley and me and finally notices the glittery bags we each carry. “What are those?”

We hold them out to her and start to sing the Happy Birthday song in unison. The smile that splits her face damn near brings me to my knees. Her eyes are watery and Asher steps up beside her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders and starts singing, too. Before I know it, several patrons near the diner are singing along with us, even the pink-haired girl is singing, too, where she waits with Mountain Man by his blacked out SUV.

When we finish singing, people clap and shout their “happy birthday’s” to Collins as they enter the diner and she takes the bags from our outstretched hands. She looks at each of us and flashes me a smile full of sass as she says, “I would say you didn’t have to get me anything, but it’s honestly been so long since I’ve opened a birthday gift and you told me to be selfish, so…Thank you!” she squeals before giving me a hug, then Riley.

Scary Scottish man, who I’m assuming is another McTavish brother, shouts to Asher again and he curses under his breath. “I’ve gotta go.” He says to his sister when she turns to him. “But I plan on seeing you as often as possible now that you’re home.” Home. Kinda like that word associated with her when it comes to me. Asher’s eyes shudder when he whispers, “I’m sorry I left you, Collins. I’m so, so sorry.” He yanks her into one last hug. “I swear I’m never leaving you again. I don’t give a shit if you’re ten minutes away, or ten hours away. Call me, and I’ll be there. I swear it.”

Collins sniffles, burying her head into Asher’s chest. “I know, Ash. I love you.”

“I love you, too.” His words break off at the end and he blinks away the tears gathering in his eyes. “I’ll call you soon, make sure Creed is behaving himself or if I need to come kick his ass.”

Collins has the nerve to laugh at that and I glare at her playfully, but then her eyes drop to the bottom lip I stuck out at her and fuck me, I can’t get hard in front of her brother, because then he’ll really kick my ass.

Asher helps Collins into the car, and hands her the sparkling gift bags one at a time. Riley says something about watching her to make sure she doesn’t open them without us and darts to the car, leaping in beside her in the back seat animatedly, and her raspy laughter drifts through the closed doors to me and I can’t help the way the sound makes my lips tug up at the corners.

I fucking love the way she sounds. I know she hates the way the surgery changed her voice all those years ago, but it gives her a unique sound and tone to her voice that I could listen to all day long. Fuck, she could read a grocery receipt and I’d be putty in her hands to listen.

Before Asher stalks off, he approaches me and pulls me into a one-armed hug. “Thank you, Creed. For finding her, even if it was by chance.”

“I wish I’d found her sooner.” I say truthfully, gazing at the two figures in the car, laughing at something Riley said in the back seat.

“You like her.” He says suddenly, catching me by surprise because, what the fuck?

“What?”

“You like my baby sister.” He repeats. His expression is completely unreadable and it’s fucking with my head. It’s very unlike the old Asher from our younger years. My mouth is suddenly dry and I start to sweat and it has nothing to do with the California heat.

But how do I answer this? Deny it or acknowledge it? I go with the obvious answer.

“No—”

“Creed.”

“Yes.” I blurt. Shit.

He claps me on the shoulder with a cocksure smile, but I flinch anyway because he squeezes my shoulder tighter and I’m honestly expecting an ass-kicking for having the fucking balls to be attracted to his little sister who is nine years younger than us.

I’m as ready for the physical blow as I can be, but instead he delivers a verbal punch that I am absolutely not expecting. “Look, we’ll talk more later, because if I stand here much longer, Camdan is going to fucking shoot me himself,” He must be talking about the mountainous dude I saw earlier. “But I’ve been trained to read people recently. To watch their expressions and to predict and anticipate what’s going through their minds. It’s how I keep my charge and those I care about safe. You may have tried to fool your friend in there, and even fool my sister, but you sure as fuck don’t fool me, Creed.”

I stand there silent, my throat bobbing as I swallow. I’m not entirely sure what to say here. Lying obviously isn’t an option because he’ll know, but I can’t exactly be honest and tell him how I’ve been practically obsessed with Collins for two years and that obsession has only magnified tenfold when I kissed her and felt her body moving against mine. And I definitely can’t be honest and tell Asher that I’ve imagined fucking his sister seven ways to Sunday.

“I see the way you look at her. The way you watch Collins’ every move, the way you look like you want to chain her to your side and hang a sign on her neck, telling all other men to fuck off.” His eyes search mine and I don’t bother even trying to hide any of my feelings swimming right there at the surface. Asher’s my best friend, and he’s a magic mind reader now anyway, so why fucking bother? I’d do anything for Collins and I’d do anything to keep her. My cock jerks at the thought of Collins in a collar.

I guess Asher finds the answer he’s looking for in my face because his expression softens as he drops his hand back to his side and tucks it into his pocket. “This isn’t some corny-ass romance novel where I threaten you to stay the fuck away from my sister. That’s not how reality works. You like my sister? So be it. But don’t you fucking hurt her.” he pins me with a glare, sounding just like Collins did that first night.

“Never,” I say, my voice low and rough. “You know I’d never.”

“I know.” He responds. “But you also know Collins. When she loves, she does it with her entire being. You saw how she treated us when she was a kid. She fucking oozed love for the two of us. Especially you.”

I’d deny it, but it’s true. Collins was always attached to my hip when she was a kid. Never in an annoying, clingy way, but the affection she showed was always amplified around me. “She was boy-crazy about you back when she was nine, imagine how she feels now that she’s an adult?” he prompts and it really makes me think. “If you decide to pursue whatever has you looking at my sister the way you do, just think it through first, yeah? Because when she commits, it’s going to be with her whole heart, and it’ll be for the long haul. Make sure you’re wholly in it and on the same path that she is, if that’s what you decide.”

“What makes you think she wants me like that now?” I fucking know she wants me, but shit, I’m starting to feel a little unworthy of her affection now that I’m being reminded of just how much of herself she gives when she cares for someone.

He taps a finger to his temple with a knowing grin. “I fucking know.”

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