Page 36 of All Roads Lead to You

Chapter 11

Nick

Holy Fuck, I knew my question would bother Logan, but I hadn’t expected a full-blown temper tantrum, though there looked to be a hint of panic in those hazel eyes of his. What the hell? I clearly hit a nerve, but I had no idea how or why.

I hadn’t meant to upset him. When he mentioned his worry about being alone, I wondered how much of that had been his own doing and why he separated from people so much. That was more than being introverted.

Despite his demands to back off, his reaction was all the more reason to press on, not only because I was dying of curiosity, but something was clearly getting to him, and he needed to talk about it. Getting that wound up showed he had shit he wasn’t dealing with.

This was an overreaction, and there had to be a reason. Whatever it was, it must have been big.

We’d learned a lot about each other in such a short time and were finally getting along. I wasn’t about to back off now. If he needed to hit something, then he could hit me. So be it.

“For the love of god, Nick. Leave before I fucking lose it on your face!” Logan stepped up close to me, towering and intimidating. I wouldn’t lie; he scared me a little.

“Then lose it because I’m not leaving. Tell me why my question has you this on edge.”

“Fuck you!”

“Fuck you, too! I’m still not leaving. Talk to me.”

“No!”

Logan paced through the rocks and dirt along the water’s edge, running a hand through his thick hair. “Fuck, fuck, fuck…” he ranted.

Yeah, this was like first-class overkill for a question about loneliness. Something was definitely wrong with him. Being angry and pissed off had been Logan’s personality growing up, and we physically fought often, but I’d never seen him wigging out like this.

I reached for his arm, but when I touched him, he lashed out like a cornered animal I’d burned and shoved my chest. I went stumbling back, but righted myself before I fell on my ass. My chest hurt, but I could take it. We’d come to blows often enough.

I rushed at him and shoved him back, but his big and strong body barely budged an inch. “Don’t fucking get physical! Use your words for a change. I’m sick of this grunting and growling one minute, then smiling and talking the next. You’re giving me fucking whiplash, Logan. I didn’t mean to hurt you with my questions. I’m only concerned. Your reaction is, like, totally over the top. You’re being more fucking intense than normal.”

He paced again, mumbling to himself. “I tried so hard… So fucking hard. I should’ve known… stupid, stupid.”

I wasn’t always emotionally intelligent, so I was at a loss as to what else to do.

He finally stopped and stood towering right over me again. He was so close that I felt the angry heat coming from his skin, smelled the cigarettes on his clothes, and the sweat on his skin, along with something else—like his soap.

“Go away!”

I folded my arms. “No.”

“Stubborn fucker… always pushing my damn buttons. You love pissing me off. Is this a game to you? Is that what this is? You know, don’t you, so you just, what? Want to fuck with me? To show me how inept I am at all this? Humiliate me?”

I huffed and shook my head at a complete loss. “I have no idea what you’re talking about, Not Brother.” Yeah, I said it, knowing it would piss him off more, but I didn’t appreciate him accusing me of things I didn’t do. That shit pissed me off, too. I had no problems admitting when I was wrong, like when I scratched his record, but this was nuts.

“Don’t call me that,” he hissed.

“Here, let me say the words slower. Not. Brother.”

When Logan fisted my shirt and lifted me so close our faces hovered an inch apart, I tensed, ready for the blow. “Let’s keep this simple and go back to hating each other, yeah?”

My hands gripped his wrists, trying to pry him off, but it was useless with his hulk-like grip. “You pissed me off all the time, but I never hated you.”

His brow furrowed for a moment before they softened with some sort of understanding in his eyes that I wasn’t privy to. “You will now, I guarantee it.”

Before I could respond, Logan's lips slammed into mine. My eyes grew wide as I stared at how close his face was and felt how soft his lips were.

Holy fuck, what’s happening here?

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