Page 49 of Tore Up

I pulled out the stool and took a seat, then stared out the front windows. Two men came out and took a wooden barrel from the stack. A shiny red BMW convertible pulled up outside, and I leaned over to see a woman with long, wavy crimson hair step out in a short formfitting white dress. When she started up the stairs, I straightened, ready to greet her. I hadn’t expected anyone to come inside. I assumed I was to help them, too, although Than hadn’t mentioned it.

She pulled off her sunglasses as she opened the door and walked inside. Her eyes locked on me immediately. The flare in them wasn’t friendly.

“Who are you?” she asked snidely, as if my presence offended her.

“Halo,” I replied, smiling at her anyway. “Can I help you?”

Her gaze scanned the area, then swung back to me. “Where is Ransom?” she asked, placing a hand on her hip.

“He’s in a meeting. They just started, but I can leave him a message for you,” I replied.

“You can tell him that Alora is here right now,” she snapped at me.

Than hadn’t said I could interrupt them. But then this woman wanted Ransom and seemed to think he’d want to see her. I didn’t want to upset Ransom and have him send me back to the house.

“Are you going to sit there, or do I need to go find him myself?” she asked.

I chewed on my bottom lip, wondering if that might be the best idea. If she went to interrupt, then it wouldn’t be me who got in trouble.

“I, uh …” Dang it, what did I say to her?

If she glared at me any harder, her false lashes were going to pop off.

The front door opened again. I looked past her to see a guy I didn’t recognize come inside. His slate-gray eyes shifted from me to Alora. She turned, and the death stare I had been getting from her was immediately replaced by a sultry smile.

“Oz.” She purred his name.

My eyes swung back to him. This was Bane’s best friend. One of the guys in the house I had yet to meet. His short black hair was nothing like Forge’s. Unlike Ransom and Than, I would never have guessed they were brothers.

“Alora,” he replied in a deep drawl. “A little early for you to be out.”

A tinkling laugh and a bat of her lashes made me want to roll my eyes. Who did this woman want—Ransom or Oz?

His gaze moved back to me. With one quick appraisal, he gave me a tight smile. “Halo?”

I nodded.

Something between a sigh and a chuckle came from him. He shook his head. “Of course.”

The woman turned back to me. “You know the new help?” The annoyance in her tone was thick.

“Eh, that’s not the new help,” he replied. “Pull in your claws unless you want to piss off Bane.”

Her eyes, although brown, seemed to light up like a fire at his name. As if she might climb over this counter and tackle me to the ground. She really needed to decide which one of the guys she wanted.

“She’s a little young for Bane,” she replied.

Oz walked around the counter. “I’ll be sure to tell him you have an opinion on his sex life,” he replied in a bored tone, then picked up the stack of mail.

This time, her laugh wasn’t so flirty. “That’s not what I meant,” she replied.

“Mmhmm,” was his only response while he flipped through the envelopes until he found what he’d been looking for. He lifted his eyes to me then. “Are they in a meeting?” he asked.

I nodded. “Yes. Marketing, Than said.”

He picked up a pad of sticky notes and a pen. “You heard that, Alora. He is in a meeting.”

She glared at me before softening her gaze as she looked back at Oz, who was writing something down.

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