Page 3 of His to Possess

“Good job, Lottie.” I may like to win, but I’m not a sore loser. And my little sister is a force to be reckoned with. Compared to me, she’s hyper competitive.

“Thanks, Ang,” she says and swipes up a towel, wiping her face. “I feel like you kind of half-assed that last set, though. Losing your touch?”

“Hardly,” I respond and roll my eyes. I swipe a hand towel over my face, too.

“What’s going on in that pretty little head of yours?” she asks, nudging me with her elbow. “What’s distracting you?”

Out of us all, I am the pretty one and don’t deny it. Maybe it’s the dimples. Or, I guess it could be my symmetrical features, chiseled jaw and perfect hair. Perhaps it’s just my charming personality. Whatever it is, it gets me all the girls. Always has. Maybe Miceli has more muscles while Vin has more heart and Enzo has more smarts. But I exude charisma. Our baby sister has a little dash of everything and I can’t lie—I’m glad she got rid of that douchebag she was briefly seeing. With four overprotective brothers who watch her like a hawk, it’s going to take a really good man to gain our approval. And that idiot Rendall was a simpering fool whose ass we all wanted to kick to the curb.

“What? Just because I’m the best looking Rossi means I can’t have deep thoughts?” I pretend to be offended, but I’m not.

“Ha! Arrogant and most cocky, sure. But, most attractive? You wish.”

“Hey, as long as I’m still your favorite brother.”

“You know you are,” she assures me and I snort in response because we all know she tells each of us that same line. Especially when she wants something.

We exit the court, grab our bags and head down to the locker rooms.

“Do you realize out of the five of us, three have fallen? Isn’t it a little strange to be the only single ones left?” she asks, suddenly turning thoughtful.

I shrug a shoulder, but realize Carlotta and I must be sharing similar thoughts lately. But, I refuse to let it bother me or admit it. “Better them than me,” I say, trying to sound like I could care less. Although it’s more for show than how I actually feel.

“Oh, c’mon.” She sends me a curious look. “You really have no interest in settling down one day?”

“I’m in no hurry, Lottie. And you shouldn’t be either considering you’re only twenty-five.”

“Yeah, I guess. But if true love comes knocking, I’m ready to open the door, let him in and have some fun.”

I plug my ears. “Lalalalala,” I sing. “I don’t want to hear about my baby sister getting it on with some guy.”

Carlotta and I stop walking right outside the locker rooms and a little frown purses her mouth. “Do you ever get lonely, Ang?” she asks softly, suddenly looking so vulnerable.

“Everyone gets lonely,” I tell her.

“Yeah, I guess so.” She puts on a too-bright smile. “Maybe one day we’ll get our happy ending.”

“You know it,” I tell her, but my voice almost sounds tinny, full of forced bravado. Like I don’t even believe what I’m saying. Probably because I don’t. “Now give your big brother a hug.”

She screeches when I grab her and drop a kiss on her cheek.

“Yuck! You’re all sweaty, lemme go!”

I chuckle and release her. “Same time next week?”

“You know it! I thoroughly enjoyed kicking your ass.” She sends me a victorious smile.

“Don’t get used to it. I had an off day, that’s all.”

“If you say so.” She tosses me a mischievous grin and spins around, heading for the women’s locker room. “See ‘ya, Ang!”

“Bye, Lottie.” Once she disappears through the door, I turn toward the men’s side. My little sister is sassy and beautiful and quite the handful. Good luck to whatever man crosses her path and catches her eye. I hope he’s prepared for Hurricane Carlotta.

The locker room is big and luxurious, but with the exorbitant dues that members pay each month, it should be excellent and I’d expect nothing less than the best. There’s a lounge area with fresh fruit water in large coolers and places to sit, private showers filled with high end shower gel, lotion and shaving kits, individual lockers that remind me more of walk-in closets,and an area lined with sinks complete with fresh towels and disposable goodies such as toothbrushes, toothpaste and combs.

Then, once a member is all freshened up, they can head over to the juice bar and grab a smoothie or a protein shake, which I like to do. Or, there’s an attached restaurant that you can dine in or grab takeout if you’re short on time. All the food is farm to table, organic and always so fresh. Since I don’t have any dinner plans, I’ll probably grab something next door.

Maybe I focus too much on my health and maintaining my physique, but I don’t have a lot of other things to worry about in my life. Sometimes, I do feel like the Golden Boy. Except there’s nothing golden about me. My Italian roots run deep, and my hair and eyes are dark as sin and my skin is always a deep bronze. I speak Italian fluently, thanks to my parents who live in Sicily, and my mom made sure all her kids could make a mean cannoli.

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