Page 110 of Learning Curve

“Of course, we didn’t let him get away that easy,” Jack comments with a smug grin. “Trav grabbed flashlights, and we stood outside shining them directly on him while he hung precariously from our gutter.”

“You’re lucky he didn’t die,” Willow says, sitting up to glare at our twin brothers.

“No, Low. Stupid Steve is lucky we didn’t kill him,” Travis says, and Scottie snorts, clearly amused by their overprotectiveness.

“I promise you, Low, if that fuckhead would’ve been naked in your bed, I would’ve killed him,” Jack comments, his face pursed like it’s puckered on a lemon. “It was already bad enough I found you two all cuddled up with him in his fucking boxers.”

Travis holds up both hands. “Please, for the love of God, don’t say anything else. I don’t want to know.”

“We were just sleeping,” Low contends. “That’s all we were doing.”

“Again, I don’t want to know,” Trav repeats. Scottie looks over at me with big, comically wide eyes, and a flash of her and me in this very bed, very much not sleeping, catches me off guard. I have to swallow hard around the knot that’s formed in my throat to breathe again.

“Poor Willow,” Scottie says. “Her overprotective brothers are a permanent chastity belt.”

“Thank you!” Low exclaims, tossing both hands in the air and letting them fall hard on the pillow in her lap. “Finally, someone who understands! They are boyfriend repellent, Scottie. Ninety percent of the guys at school are terrified of them.”

“Good,” Trav says. “That’s exactly how I want it.”

“You’re lucky it was just me and Trav,” Jack comments. “If Reece and Finn would’ve still been home, you would’ve been fucked.”

“Dude,” Trav says with wide, knowing eyes. “Stupid Steve’s body would be rotting in the backyard as we speak.”

“I’m not that bad,” I counter, crossing my arms over my chest with a smirk. Trav and Jack and Willow burst into laughter.

“Please, you’re the actual worst,” my sister says.

“I’m not worse than Reece,” I hedge, starting to feel a little embarrassed.

“Does Reece have a tendency to get into fights too?” Scottie asks, and all three of my siblings nod.

“Reece and Finn are straight-up brawlers,” Willow states, and I roll my eyes.

“We’re not that bad.”

Willow laughs again. “Finn, you are that bad. But I will say, you’re never the one to start fights. Only finish them. Reece, on the other hand…” She shakes her head dramatically. “He’s a full-on hothead.”

“Finn beat up my ex-boyfriend,” Scottie offers, not to be left out of the conversation. I don’t know if she even realizes what a big deal it is to bring it up like this when she’s so fresh off dealing with the consequences, but I’m proud of her. “He deserved it, though.”

Willow flashes a smile in my direction, matchmaking schemes in her eyes. She doesn’t know the extent of ups and downs Scottie’s and my relationship has already been through, and she doesn’t need to. Honestly, at this point, if she can figure out a way to bring Scottie and me together, I might actually let her.

I miss her.

“And I saw him fight an ex-UFC fighter too.”

Both of my brothers’ jaws drop.

“What?” Jack questions, and Trav is quick to add, “Who?”

“It’s nothing,” I say, but Scottie smiles over at me like a little minx.

“Actually, it was something. He won the fight. And I think I died ten deaths watching it.” She snorts. “It was terrifying.”

“Who was it?” Trav asks again, and Scottie looks over at me as the realization of the NDA and the fingerprints on Special Agent Lexi’s phone dawns on her.

“I probably wasn’t supposed to say any of that, huh?”

I grin at her. “Probably not.”

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