Page 61 of Rushing Into Love

“Hey, Quinn,” I said, smiling at him.

“Hey,” he said gruffly. “What are you doing out at The Rowdy without my brother?” He shot me a disapproving glare.

“I’m out with my sister. This is Brooklyn. Brooklyn, Quinn.” I made the introductions and Brooklyn gave a little wave. Quinn wasn’t gentlemanly enough to offer his hand.

“Hi,” Brooklyn said brightly. “Fun crowd, huh?” She gazed out at the packed dance floor.

“Yeah,” he said, taking another drink. “Nice to meet you.” He nodded at Brooks before turning his back on us. Rude.

“Hey, Quinn,” I said, tapping him on the shoulder. He swiveled around, his face hard and his grey eyes flinty.

“What?” he asked, exasperated, like I’d been bugging him all night.

“Listen, I want to know what I did to piss you off so much,” I said, my free hand on my hip.

He rolled his eyes dismissively. “Nothing, Dr. Love.”

“Seriously? First off, I’m not a doctor, I’m a counselor. Secondly, I would appreciate it if you would just call me Bree.”

“Fine, Bree,” he sneered, leaning in close to my face. “You want to know my problem with you?”

I nodded mutely, a tad bit afraid. He seemed disproportionately angry.

“You fly in here, get all involved with my brother, and you have no clue about life. You live in LaLa land, have a froo-froo job, and you’re screwing up my brother’s world. Okay? So fly back home and leave us all alone.” He leaned back against the table, took another long chug of his beer.

My temper flared and bile rose in my throat, but I managed to push it down. “Actually, I’m a very grounded person. Like you, I’m a helping professional. I don’t run into burning buildings, per se, but I do actually help people. I have real clients with real problems.

“And I’m not going to screw up your brother’s life, either. That’s an unfair statement. We had one little issue and I handled it. So to unilaterally say I’m going to destroy Ryder’s life is patently unfair.”

I stepped closer to him, met his gaze, and spoke in a quiet voice so no one else could hear. “And a piece of free advice for you—drop the chip on your shoulder. I’m not sure which girl hurt you so badly, but you need to move on. Don’t hold it against every female you meet or you’re going to end up alone.”

Quinn stared at me for a beat, not saying a word.

“Well, great to meet you!” Brooks stepped in and grabbed me by the arm, practically dragging me away.

I let out a heavy exhale.

“That went well,” she said sarcastically.

“That’s pretty much how it always goes with him. I don’t know what his problem is, but he’s starting to really piss me off.”

* * *

The next morning,I got a text from Ryder:

Heard you ran into Quinn at the Rowdy

Bree: Yep. What did he say?

Ryder: That you’re a stuck-up Know-it-All

Bree: Rude. I’m not stuck up at all.

Ryder: Lol. No, you’re not. Are you ok?

Bree: Just pissed off. I’ll get over it

Bree: What’s his problem?

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