Page 47 of Rainbow Kisses

“Youneedto hire more staff.” I crossed my arms over my chest and gave Erin the look I usually reserved for my brothers when they didn’t listen to me. “Are you ready to let me help you with that?”

Erin and I had been discussing this for a couple of months. But between her schedule and mine, we hadn’t been able to find time to talk about it in depth.

“I will if you say yes to the bookstore.”

The look she gave me while she dropped huge dollops of whipped cream on top of two mugs of her homemade hot chocolate was a challenge, as if she knew she had me. And she probably did.

Oh hell, I should just admit right now that I wanted to go in with her on the bookstore. Because I did. I really did.

“Just think what we can do when with this space when we tear down that wall.”

She gestured to the wall dividing the café with the empty storefront next door. It wouldn’t be such a huge project because at one time, these two spaces had been one big space. The building had been split into smaller spaces in the fifties, with half going to the radio station and the paper and half going to the bakery and café. The radio station and newspaper took up the second floor of the building, but the front space held remnants of the history of the building. I could already imagine that area filled with bookcases and cozy little nooks to read.

I sighed as she took the mugs to the girls, who were munching away on more sugar than they should reasonably consume during one morning, but they’d earned it.

And I’d earned the double-shot latte I’d been trying to avoid because I’d already had more than enough caffeine today. So I took the one Erin made for me before we took seats at the counter, far enough away from the girls that they couldn’t hear our conversation. Not that they were listening anyway. They’d raided the stash of books Erin kept for kids by the door, and Maddy and Krista were paging through a Christmas book.

“So,” Erin said when she sat down next to me. “You ready to say yes?”

“Ifwe do this,” I looked Erin in the eyes, holding back a smile, “I’m going to handle staffing.”

The smile Erin gave me acknowledged the fact that she’d won me over. It was broad and toothy and so freaking excited, I couldn’t help but smile back.

“Whatever you say.”

I shook my head but couldn’t hold back my smile anymore. “Okay. I’m in.”

Erin squealed again and started to do a little seat jig. “We’re going to have so much fun.”

“But… you know I can’t really give any time to this until after the winter carnival. And neither can you. You promised you’d help wrangle food stands this year.”

“And I’m definitely keeping my promise. But this is so exciting!”

The bell over the door chimed, and Erin’s attention flashed away. Her eyes narrowed and her mouth tightened, and I sighed, because I only knew one person who put that look on her face.

Shit.

I turned to find Rebel talking to Maddy and Krista, and the guy even had a smile on his face. But I knew where he’d been and who he’d been with, and I wanted to know what had happened between him and Brian.

He and Erin had had a rocky relationship since she’d moved here. Her relentlessly sunny outlook on life had rubbed up against his perpetual grump since the moment they’d met. But this was not the relationship of romance novels. They genuinely didn’t like each other.

Which was hard for me because I loved both of them. Erin was the sister I’d never had. And Rebel was the brother I had to love harder because he was harder to love.

“Hey, would you keep the girls occupied for like ten minutes out here? And can I use your back room?”

“Sure, but only if you’re gonna rip him a new asshole, and you tell me all about it later.”

I smiled and nodded. “Thanks. I appreciate it.”

Then I walked over to Rebel, smacked him on the shoulder, and said, “Follow me.”

Rowdy and Rocky let me get away with a lot most of the time. Rebel, not so much. But he waved a hand at the girls and trailed along after me to the tiny office off the kitchen.

I rounded on him as soon as the door was closed.

“I want to know what the hell is going on with you and Brian. You’re acting like more of an ass than normal and…” I sighed. “You’d been acting more like a normal human lately. But then Brian arrives, and you become a dick again. What the hell’s going on with you?”

My brother sat his ass on the edge of the desk, both hands gripping the edge, knuckles going white

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