Page 60 of Ruck Me

“Eoin’s not likethat.”

“You really thinkso?”

“I know so,” I answered with complete confidence. “As I said, I’ve known him my wholelife.”

“There you go being naive again,” Declan replied, shaking his head. “Going pro changes you, Aoife. But if you’re so sure, ask him yourself how long he goes between girls.”

“I don’t have to. I already know the answer.”

Declan stared at me intently, his head tilted to the side. “Is there something going on between you two I should know about?”

“And if there was?” I challenged from across the marble island.

“If there were, I’d have to kill the little fucker for defying a direct order,” he answered, his voice dripping with repressed violence as he hopped off his stool and threw away the half-eaten apple.

“I’m curious about something,” I said, following him out of the room. “Is this some sort of pissing contest where you have to be the big man in charge, or is there more toit?”

“No,” he answered through clenched teeth. “It’s about protectingyou.”

“But I don’t need your protection.”

“Naive,” he said slowly, enunciating each syllable.

I clenched my fists in exasperation. “Between you and ma, I’m going to go insane. I’m 21 years old, for chrissakes! Can someone please start treating me like an adult?”

“This has nothing to do with your age, and everything to do with making sure a guy who doesn’t deserve you steers clear. And trust me, none of those guys are good enough for you. Not Eoin, not anyone.”

I rounded on Declan, my eyes flashing with fury. “How would you have felt if someone tried to keep you away from Sophie? What if instead of helping you, her grandfather forbade you from seeing her? Or, what about instead of me--and Eoin, let me remind you--helping out when she thought you'd fucked Maggie, I'd told her instead you were bad news, that she should run far, far away from you? What then, huh?”

“My situation with Sophie is entirely different from whatever you and Eoin are doing—.” I opened my mouth to tell him we weren’t doing anything, but he cut me off. “—And don’t bother denying it. I’m not stupid. I saw you pick him up after the Liverpool match and he’s been acting like a little bitch at practice, challenging my authority left and right, trying to get under myskin.”

That was news to me. Eoin was frustrated by our situation, but he hadn’t said anything about his relationship with Declan turning antagonistic.

“I can tell from your wrinkled eyebrows that your Prince Charming failed to mention his behavior. He’s about two seconds away from getting his ass handed to him, and not just by me. People are paying attention, and they don’t like what they see. You might not get it, but I’m his captain, and that shit does not fly in the locker room. He can be a little bitch when we’re off the pitch, but the second he steps into my territory, he needs to lock that shit down. He’s good, but he’s not thatgood.”

“Fine,” I said, marching toward the staircase. “I’ll say something the next time I see him. In the meantime, I need you to go Ballycurra and get my stuff. I’m not setting foot back there until she apologizes.”

Declan ran his hand through his hair. It was longer than I’d ever seen it and much as I wanted to give him shit about it, I couldn’t deny the style looked good on my brother. I’d never admit it out loud, but he really was a handsome fucker.

“Fine. I’ll swing by after practice tomorrow. What do youneed?”

At the top of the stairs, I looked down at him. “Everything that fits in yourcar.”

“Aoife,” he groaned, knowing that’d take hours topack.

“Don’t you ‘Aoife’ me. You owe me Declan. Bigtime.”

He dropped his head back in resignation. “I know.” Bringing it forward, he looked up, his gaze turning sympathetic. “I really am sorry about how she treatsyou.”

“I know,” I told him with a sigh. “And I don’t blame you for it, but I need your support rightnow.”

“Done.”

“Thank you, big brother.”

“Anytime babysis.”

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