Page 1 of Busted Dreams

The shiver of anticipation rolling down my spine was new.

I didn’t think I’d ever felt this way before. All because I was about to take Astrid on our very first date. When was the last time I even went on a proper date? Never?

High school was a joke. I had spent all my time hanging out with buds, making music, working at Tippy’s, and getting laid at every opportunity. But I couldn’t think of one single girl I’d ever actually taken out before we climbed in the back of the Mustang or stumbled back to the dirty “band” room at Iron Horse.

My cell rang, pulling my attention away from my reflection in the mirror. Probably a good thing. I needed the distraction.

Ah, shit.

Angel.

“Yes,” I grunted, tossing my brush on the bathroom counter. My hair was too short to really fix anyway, so I wasn’t sure why I even tried to do anything with it.

“Now, cousin. That’s no way to greet your family. Especially after you mistakenly blackballed us for no good reason. Don’t you think that deserves a little more effort on your part?” The smirk he surely sported irritated the hell out of me. Every single day since Jonah got his freedom and uncovered our less than stellar familial connection, he’d called me.

Yeah, okay, I felt bad. And this guy loved to bring it up at every opportunity just for giggles.

“No, I don’t think you deserve any niceness from me. Why are we even doing this at all?” It was like Graves and Angel were determined to bring me into the family fold. I hadn’t mentioned it to Jonah, but I had a feeling they were doing the same thing to him. Or trying to.

I could just imagine Graves saw this as his chance to get to know his little brother’s youngest kid. If I had to guess, after seeing a glimpse of how Jonah lived, he probably felt guilty that he followed Margaret’s wish at all. But how could they have known his life would be worse without them than with their influence?

One thing was certain, this whole mess with Reaper would never have happened if Graves had taken Jonah under his wing.

“Because you were an idiot. I’m trying to help you pull your head out of your ass. Family is important. And you have none but us. I definitely wouldn’t count that waste of space you call your mother.”

I ground my teeth. She was a shit mom, he was right about that, but she was the only one I had. Sure, she wasn’t great, but she never left. Not like Bane did.

“There’s a cookout this weekend. Only the top brothers of Devil’s Hands. This one is a family affair, so you’re coming. Bring Jonah and your girl with you.” No questions, just demands.

I sighed heavily. “I don’t think that’s a good idea.”

“Why?” Angel scoffed on the other end. “You embarrassed of us? I hate to break it to you, but Astrid has already met us, and loved us.”

I busted up laughing. “Are you kidding? She was in your presence for a handful of minutes. Maybe an hour. The whole time, which I’ll point out, she believed you and your dad had a hit out on Jonah. I don’t see how you could get that she liked you out of that.”

In the words of Astrid, he had a pretty big gap in his logic. That thought teased a grin out. I loved that girl. She just had no idea, and I wasn’t going to tell her anytime soon. Not until I knew she wasn’t going to break my heart for Hockey Star Rhys, or Moody Artist Thatcher. Hell, I had a feeling Nerd King Jonah might want to throw his hat in the ring.

Although, after seeing Trinity fall over him earlier in the week, he’d have a tougher time once Astrid saw them in the same setting. Maybe I should invite Thatch and his little sister to the cookout.

Damn, that would be cold. Especially for my newfound brotherly instincts. But wasn’t that what big brothers were supposed to do? Torment their younger siblings? It would also place Jonah strictly in the friend zone.

“How about I’ll think about it, if I can invite a couple of mine and Astrid’s friends.” I let that dangle over the line.

Now it was his turn to sigh. “This is a family function. Even though we’ve gotten out of the majority of our illegal businesses, the brothers still wouldn’t take too kindly to outsiders. You and Jonah are considered family, and Astrid by extension since she’s your girlfriend.”

Immediate thoughts of Reaper curled up on the ground assaulted my memory. I hadn’t asked what they did with him. I didn’t want to know. Angel just called the day after and said everything was taken care of and Jonah was in the clear.

“Fine, but Astrid’s a shy girl. She doesn’t like a lot of attention, and I doubt she’d come if she thought she’d be stared at. Having a few friends would make her more comfortable.”

“Man, you realize she’ll never have a quiet life with you? Not only do you bask in the spotlight, but you’re only going to get bigger. She’s going to have to get used to it if she sticks with you.” A pop sounded, like he was chewing gum and snapped a bubble.

“I think you’re overestimating my potential for fame. I don’t need to be constantly validated with attention, and Astrid loves coming to my shows. So can I bring some people or not? I won’t bring more than three.”

“All right. But they’re your responsibility. If they step one foot out of line, you’ll be expected to deal with them. If you don’t, then we will.” The amicable Angel fled in the face of the much colder version of himself.

“Got it. They’re cool.”

“Fine, see you next Sunday.” He grunted and hung up.

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