Page 19 of Fast Justice

“Male egos are fragile things, Ro. And when it’s an alpha male we’re talking about?” Kevin let out a low whistle and shook his head, then regarded her with a soft expression. “Look. I know how it is for you. How important your professional reputation is to you. How tough Dad has always been on you, and how hard you’ve had to push yourself your whole life to meet his standards and get here.”

“He was hard on you too, and you’ve managed to overcome it.”

“He and I have had other issues. But now I have Nick, so it doesn’t matter.”

Rowan envied his outlook. Would it be like that for her if she had Malcolm to have her back? Maybe. Though the idea of asking him whether he was open to get back together now seemed ludicrous. Because he was well within his rights to either laugh in her face or tell her off. And seriously, how embarrassing was it for someone else to know how desperate she was for her father’s approval at this age?

“Just because I miss Malcolm and have unresolved feelings for him doesn’t mean he feels the same way. I can’t talk to him about it. I wish I could, but I can’t.” It was too terrifying, the thought of putting herself out there after she’d hurt him. Malcolm might lash out at her, wanting to hurt her as she’d hurt him. To get even. At least, that’s what all her other exes would do.

“Okay,” Kevin said with a shrug, and reached for another piece of bread. “It’s your life. Do what you want.”

Rowan sighed and aimed another mock glare at him. “I hate it when you do that.”

His eyes twinkled. “What, give you some tough love and not care what other people think of me? Benefit of being in touch with my feelings. Took a long time to get here, but oh, so worth it.”

Her little brother was brave, she thought in admiration. Much braver than her. How was that for a revelation? “I hate that you’re better than me at relationships.”

“And I love that I’m legit better at something than you, overachiever.” His expression sobered. “And you do realize that work won’t ever love you back, right?”

God, he was so right. “Can we change the subject now?” she asked, unprepared to deal with the emotional downer he’d just dropped on her. There was too much on her mind.

“Sure. What do you want to talk about?”

“Anything but my lack of a personal life, or Dad.” The main driving force for her entire life, and not always for the better.

“Okay. Then how about I tell you about the idea I have for when I pop the question.”

She gasped, lowered her fork to the desk. “You’re going to propose?”

A small crease formed in his cheek as he grinned. “Labor Day long weekend. I’ve got it all planned out.”

Rowan pressed her lips together as a rush of tears stung her eyes.

Kevin chuckled. “Come on, don’t cry.”

She shook her head. “I won’t. It’s just I’m so proud of you and happy for you.” Her voice was all choked up. He was the best brother and friend anyone could ask for. “Nick’s so lucky.”

“That’s true,” he joked. “I tell him so all the time.”

They finished dinner and talked about his plans to propose at an oceanfront resort down near Hilton Head. Their father was gonna freak when he heard the news, but Rowan had a feeling he would come around soon enough, once the initial shock wore off. Kevin could handle it, though, and he had the full support of her and their mom in addition to Nick and his family.

After eating, Kevin helped her tidy up and took the bags. “Oh, almost forgot,” he said, pausing to pull a set of keys out of his pocket. “Surprise.”

No way. “You picked up my car?”

“Yep. Nick dropped me at the garage. I’ll take your rental back for you, too, so you can get some extra sleep tomorrow morning.”

“God, you’re the best.” She threw her arms around him and gave him a big squeeze.

“Also true.” He hugged her and traded keys.

“It’s parked out front in my usual spot.”

“Okay. Hey, it’s even got a remote starter on it. How come the rental cars I get never have remote starters?”

“Because you’re cheap.”

“Frugal,” he corrected on his way to the door. Once there, he stopped to glance back at her with a searching look. “Sis? There are no do-overs. We have to make every minute of this life count.”

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