Page 27 of These Pucking Boys: Part Two

I begin to turn, but Lachy holds my forearms. “Wait a minute, June. You’re nervous. Let me take you.”

The temptation is enormous, but I have no idea what’s going on with April, and I’d rather not expose him to my family drama without knowing more.

“I’m fine to drive.”

Lachy opens his mouth to no doubt insist on coming with me, but Jake and Ryan join us in the hallway.

“What’s going on?” Jake asks.

“June has a problem, and she doesn’t want any help,” Lachy replies.

“What kind of problem?” Ryan pipes up. “Not the broken jars of peanut butter and jelly on the floor, right?”

“No, that was Lachy,” I reply. “My younger sister decided to come to LA, and I have to deal with her.”

Ryan’s brows shoot up. “Oh. Where is she?”

“At Katrina’s.”

Jake’s brows furrow. “Why didn’t she come here?”

“No one has this address save for Katrina.” I run my fingers through my hair. “But April could have called me from the airport. I don’t know why she didn’t.”

“You’re clearly not in any shape to drive, Peaches. I can take you,” Ryan offers, earning a glower from Lachy.

“Hey, I offered first.”

“We can all go,” Jake adds.

“I can drive,” I insist, but my resolution is weakening. It’s hard to argue when Iama mess, and the men I love want to help.

Jake steps closer and cups my face. “We know you can, but that doesn’t mean you have to. Come on, indulge us.”

After he left abruptly earlier, I didn’t know where we stood. But I can’t mistake the emotion shining in his eyes for anything else. He cares about me.

“Okay. But my sister can’t know about us. We’re just friends, got it?”

“You got it, Peaches. I guess Lachy has to stay behind and clean up that mess.” Ryan points at the broken jars.

“Ha-ha, nice try. It’ll only take me a minute.”

Despite being worried about my sister, Lachy’s and Ryan’s antics make me smile a little. It’s crazy how hard I’ve fallen for them in such a short period of time. It still feels like a dream, and there’s a small part of me that’s afraid I’ll wake up.

CHAPTER 14

JUNE

Katrina lives in a friendly neighborhood where kids are still able to play outside. It helps that her house is in a cul-de-sac. I spot her children straightway, playing with other kids. It’s rare to see them all outside and not glued to their electronics. I suspect she got rid of them so she could deal withmyfamily crisis. This is not how I envisioned spending the rest of my Sunday, but there will be time for fun later. April is my main priority.

Lachy parks in front of her house and looks at me. “We can wait here.”

I let out a breath of relief. I was dreading to ask them to stay in the car. “Just wait until I find out what’s going on.”

“Don’t worry about us, Peaches,” Ryan pipes up from the back seat.

“Okay. Wish me luck.”

Jake, who is sitting directly behind me, reaches out and squeezes my shoulder. “We’ll be here if you need us.”

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