Page 2 of In His Veins

“You like him now, but he was a little shit. He’d always say ‘I’m running away! For real this time!’ Jax and I had enough that day. We said, ‘Fine, go on then.’ And when Chase started running away, Jax threw the football at the back of his head, and that motherfucker crumpled. Just passed right out. God, we never heard the end of it.”

Lauren looks appalled but the slight downward curl at the corners of her mouth tells me she’s fighting laughter.

“Still, that doesn’t sound like he did anything wrong,” she says, placing a hand on Chase’s shoulder in solidarity. He nods his head once demurely. Jax’s eyes go wide, and his mouth drops open as he points to his younger brother.

“He’s the same one who shoved a chopstick up my nose while I was asleep!”

Chase lets a laugh slip, then quickly tries to silence it.

“Chase Giovanni! You did not!” Lauren looks as if she’s never seen Chase before and seems a moment away from clutching her imaginary pearls.

Chase scratches the back of his head, grimacing. “I kind of was a little shit,” he says, which is the closest to an admission that I’ve ever heard from him.

Tony, having observed the exchange in silence, just shakes his head. “You’re all idiots. There, debate over. Lauren, how is your wife? I haven’t seen her in here lately.”

Lauren launches into a conversation with Tony, but I tune her out as I stare Chase down.

“Why’d you really come here? You checking up on me or something?” I raise my eyebrows as he glances at our brothers. “Oh my god, that’sexactlywhat you’re doing!” I start toward the kitchen, but Chase grabs my hand and pulls me back.

“Can’t we just come visit our little sister at work? Maybe we just wanted to see you.” His eyes are wide and earnest, but I don’t believe he’s innocent in the slightest.

The kitchen bell chimes. Chase only lets me go so I can retrieve their food. Lauren appears a moment later and grabs a few plates.

“I just love Tony,” she sighs. “If only I wasn’t, you know, a lesbian.”

“And married?” I chime in. She looks thoughtful for a moment.

“I think Marie would get it.” I’m not sure how to respond to that but I laugh as she walks away with the food.

The twins immediately start shoveling heaps into their mouths, and by the time I return from checking my other tables, they’ve finished half their plates. Chase is picking at his food, but his attention is focused behind me. Eventually, his brow furrows, and he glances back down at his food. I follow his line of sight and spot Paige barreling towards me. I catch her in a quick hug before she slides into the chair beside Chase.

“Egg and avocado biscuit please, with a lavender oat milk latte.” She grins at me and hands me her menu. Her jasmine perfume still lingers in the air as I head back to the kitchen to place her order, too. When I approach the table again, the twins have stacked their plates for me, and Paige is picking bites from the remains of Chase’s meal. He swats at her hands, but her long acrylics manage to snatch her target. While she chews, I put my arms around her shoulders and rest my chin on top of her head.

She pats my arms as she responds to Chase, venom dripping from her painted lips. “I’m not a bad influence, Chase. Just admit that you have a massive stick up your ass.” She drops her voice as she leans toward him, disconnecting from my embrace. “Although I’m sure you know where to go if you need assistance with that particular extraction.” She grins wickedly at him, and I smirk when his eyes flick upward to mine. One of her favorite hobbies is antagonizing my brother, which I can’t fault her for.

Paige is tall, tattooed, and curvy with shoulder-length black hair. She also happens to be a performer at The Restriction, a local sex club. She’s the kind of person who turns heads everywhere she goes, and she’s never been shy or ashamed of her occupation.

Chase sits back in his seat and watches my friend. “You working tonight?”

Paige shakes her head, and my brother leans in to say something I can’t hear. He suddenly stands up and the twins follow suit.

“Hate to run Avie, but we’ve got a business meeting we’re going to be late for.” Chase kisses my forehead as he passes by and Jax gives me another hug.

“If Cal’s even up,” I hear Lucas grumble.

The boys were all in the military for about 10 years. After they got out, they started a private investigation and security business with a friend they met during their service.

“Oh, I’m sure he’s up,” Chase says darkly, drawing a questioning frown from me. He notices and adjusts his expression, giving me a quick smile instead. “Be safe getting home. You working another shift tonight?”

“Nope, just here today, but I’m closing at the store tomorrow night.” He nods, and without another word, he and Jax wave before walking out. But Lucas hangs back, stopping to put both hands on my shoulders.

“Don’t work yourself too hard and stay out of trouble, okay?” I roll my eyes and he gives me a light shake. “I mean it,” he reiterates, smiling this time. “Thanks for breakfast. See you soon.”

My oldest brother gives me one last hug, then follows after our siblings. I go back to the table to collect the cash they left to cover their bills. They all tipped me entirely too much but I’m grateful for it all the same. Lauren has already brought Paige’s food by the time I return.

Tony scratches his jaw as he leans forward on the table. “I’ll probably be heading out soon, too, sweetheart. You got any new paintings to show me?” I smile sheepishly.

“I’ve been a little too tired to paint lately, but I got my studio space all set up. I’ll send you a picture of it later.”

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