Page 96 of Rosie and the Beast Next Door

“For her sake, I hope he doesn’t come back,” I said, watching the empty space where he’d retreated to.

“Oh, he’ll come back. And she’ll need someone to help her stand up to him when he does.” Jules pounded my back with all the frustration of a person who didn’t get the fight they’d been gunning for. But I understood that he was giving me the green light to be that person, in the unlikely event Rosie would be interested after today.

Since I was ona roll, and had most likely imploded any chance of having a relationship with Rosie, I decided to stand up when Max did, and follow him out of the restaurant. I threw a handful of cash onto the table and headed outside after him. Jules caught my glance with a raised brow, but I shook my head. I had this.

The hockey finals were intense, point for point, and my teammates and Rosie’s brothers had hit it off immediately. Jules had been quiet the rest of the night since we got back from confronting their father, but no one else seemed to notice anything was off, so maybe quiet was his default setting.

“Max, wait a minute,” I called out as I jogged down the wooden steps after him.

He picked up his nephew and tossed him onto his shoulders and then turned to me. His nephew was adorable, with a deep side dimple and wild blond hair. His little hands gripped Max’s hair so tight, I almost winced.

“What’s up?” Max said, guarded.

“Her name is Rosie, not Josie.”

Max’s eyebrows winged upward.

“She loves to paint whimsical things, read romance, and is brilliant at knowing what people are going to love.”

Max went to open his mouth, but I ran right over whatever he was about to say. “She’s intelligent, remembers everyone’s orders because she cares about them, creative in the kind of way that makes you pause and wonder if you’ve ever had an actual original thought in your life, and you’d beluckyif she gave you a second look.” I stuck my finger in his chest, probably a little too hard. “Rosie Forrester is the best thing that could ever happen to you.”

“Thebestthing!” his nephew repeated in his adorable little voice.

I gave the kid knuckles, while Max looked at me in surprise, then I bounded down the steps and walked toward home.

Chapter 36

Rosie

Dylan had left insuch a hurry, he hadn’t even seen the end of the game. When I asked his teammates where he’d gone, Bret had pulled out a location app on his phone and said he’d gone home.

I frowned. Why hadn’t he said goodbye at least?

The restaurant emptied out, except for my brothers and Dylan’s teammates. They discussed the game while I finished wiping tables and gathering tips. My legs and back hurt, I was exhausted, and I was still upset about my conversation with Dad, but none of it outweighed my worry for Dylan. Had watching another team in the finals been too hard? Had one of my brothers said something to him? A protective surge welled up inside of me, and I stomped to the table.

“I’m staying at the Savages tonight,” I declared.

“I thought you were going to come back to my place,” Bennett said, his eyebrows drawn.

“Not tonight.” I had to see Dylan or my thoughts were going to spiral out of control. “We’re closing up, so you all need to leave.”

They stood and pulled me each into a hug, except for Gage and Bret, who gave me a friendly wave. When Jules hugged me last, he whispered, “I like him.”

“Who?”

“Who else? The Beast.”

I pulled back and saw the heaviness in Jules’s eyes that I hadn’t seen earlier that night. “Are you okay?” I asked.

“I’m good.” He hugged me again, which was unusual. Normally Bennett was the hugger.

“You’re not dying, are you?” I asked, feeling genuinely worried for a moment. This wasn’t like Jules.

“No.” He laughed then, short and dry, but real. “I’m healthy as can be. Unless it gets me out of you trying to matchmake me. Then yes. I’m dying.”

I rolled my eyes and tried to smile, but I couldn’t shake my worry.

“Love you, guys. It means a lot that you came all this way to support me, and to watchSense and Sensibilityin person with me.”

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