Page 114 of Please Save Me

His hair was pulled back in a messy bun with stray curls sticking out in almost every direction. Between that and the creases running across his black button-down, he looked like shit.

“Look who’sfinallyhome,” I grumbled.

Lucian’s hickory gaze pinned on mine with a look of complete and utter contempt.

“I didn’t ask for your input,” Lucian growled.

“You didn’t need to,” Sebastian retorted. “Where were you?”

Lucian’s jaw squared as he looked between all of us. “Busy… Where’s Mason?”

“Asleep.” And thank God, because I didn’t want her to have the chance to forgive him.

“Asleep where? I brought her dinner.” Lucian held up the bag with a subtle shake in his hand.

“If you wake her up, I’m breaking your neck.” Sebastian’s tone was so cool that I almost didn’t process his threat.

Lucian’s gaze narrowed, and Sebastian stood. He slowly stalked to his brother, but before he could reach his target, Sophia leaped out of her seat, standing between the two of them. She placed a palm on either of their chests.

“Hey, so, can we maybe not kill each other?” she suggested.

Sebastian’s expression softened as he looked at Sophia, but his posture remained rigid. It was like he was one wrong word away from snatching Lucian up by the collar. And honestly? Good for Seb.

“I just want to know where Lucian was,” Sebastian explained.

“I was busy, alright?” Lucian snapped, taking a step back from Sophia. “Now, where is Mason? I need to tell her I’m sorry.”

“Sorry is for when you mean it!” Sebastian growled.

“Ahht, nope. No, thank you, this is not a night-time conversation,” Sophia continued, slightly panicked. “The kids are asleep, Mason is asleep. We aren’t doing this right now.”

“I need to see Mason,” Lucian reiterated, his tone clipped.

Sophia raised her brows as she stared Lucian down.

“You need to stop,” she warned.

The authority in her voice seemed to make Lucian pause, and for the first time, he didn’t argue. Instead, he huffed before his shoulders slumped.

“I just want to make this right,” Lucian explained.

“Well, youcan’t,” Sebastian’s addition was halted by a stern look from Sophia.

“He can’t fix thistonight.” She took a deep breath before turning back to Lucian. “Go to bed. I need to think about your punishment.”

“Punishment? For what?” Lucian gasped.

“For breaking our girlfriend’s heart,Lucian.” Sophia said his name like an insult. “You can’t just waltz in after standing her up, say sorry, and expect everything to be fine.”

The way Lucian crossed his arms suggested that he could.

Sophia snapped her fingers and pointed toward his room. “Bed. Now.”

Lucian’s hands dropped to his hips, and for a moment, I thought he’d argue with her. But he seemed to think better of the idea as he dropped the paper bag on the table and stomped off to the back of the house.

Chapter 36

Sebastian

---