Page 75 of Love Finds Home

“That’s the truth.”

“Hey!” Ranger yells from his chair. “I listen!”

“Yeah, but you don’t give a shit,” Barbie laughs.

“I do when it’s Elle,” he defends himself.

“And you’re a love sick fool these days.”

Ranger grumbles something about respect, but I turn to Barbie.

“Is he? Really?”

“You’ve got nothing to worry about. You’ve got that man wrapped so far around your finger, all it would take is a crook to get him to fall. It’s nice to see, honestly. I’m happy for you as long as you’re happy. Just know if he fucks it up, I’ll be here to kick his ass for you.”

“I think I can handle that on my own.” I grin at her. “Thanks for the offer, though.”

“Hey,” he grumbles, walking up beside us and throwing an arm over my shoulders, “who says I’m going to fuck up?”

“You will,” Barb and I say at the same time as the bells over the front door jingle, announcing someone’s arrival.

We all turn to look at the man, and we all have different reactions. I’m curious because he looks familiar, but I know I’ve never met him. Barb has a look of horror on her face. And Ranger? Ranger’s turned into the stone God he was when we first met. Hard, rigid body, a face made of granite. A tick in his jaw that probably means his teeth are a hair’s width away from breaking.

“Jonathan?” I ask quietly.

“No.” His reply is harsh, the sound coming from deep within his chest as his eyes narrow.

I take a harder look between the two. Both of them have dark hair, and tall, muscular builds. But where Ranger looks like he lifts cars for fun, this guy is smaller, not as defined. And brown eyes. Not the soul filled brown of Ranger’s, but a dull, lifeless brown. Oh, fuck.

“Your brother?” I whisper, the surprise in my voice making me feel like I yelled it.

“What the fuck do you want?” Ranger asks.

“I, uh, I just need to talk to you,” he stammers.

“And why should I give a fuck what you have to say?”

“Can I get like five minutes?”

“Three.”

“Can we go somewhere private?” he looks between Barbie and myself.

“No. Whatever you have to say you can say in front of these two.” His arm, still around my shoulder, grips me harder, his fingers digging into my upper arm almost painfully.

I curl into him and put my hand on his chest. “Whatever it is, I’m here. It’ll be okay,” I tell him once he’s made eye contact with me.

He takes a deep breath and loosens his grip, turning back to his brother.

“Well, I haven’t had the pleasure of meeting—”

“Do not talk to her,” Ranger interrupts him. “Don’t even look at her. I will kill you and still sleep like a baby tonight.”

“Huh,” he says. “You know, you never reacted that way about Vanessa.”

“Two minutes,” Ranger growls.

“We need to talk about Mom.”

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