Page 86 of Love, Always and Forever
Amy broke loose of her father’s grasp. Could it be?
She ran into the living room to look out the window and realized she’d been right all along. Hope was a tricky thing.
—
Could his timing have been any worse? The minute Mikhail pulled into the driveway all four of Amy’s brothers came boiling out of the garage. He swung his leg over the bike, preferring to face them eye to eye and, if necessary, fist to fist.
Chad led the charge. “You’ve got balls showing up here uninvited.”
“I want to talk to Amy.”
Will shouldered his way between the twins. “That’s not happening. Anything you have to say to her, you can say to us. We’ll decide if we want to pass it along to her.”
Mikhail repeated himself, speaking slower this time to make his point. Well, and to piss them off. “I. Want. To. Talk. To. Amy.”
“Again, not happening, blondie.”
Were they really going to do this?
“I don’t want to fight you. It would upset your sister, so I’m asking you to step aside and let me past.”
By that point, all four brothers had him surrounded. Damn, he’d really hoped it wouldn’t come to this and braced himself for the first punch that was bound to come flying his way any second. Then the front door banged open, and the woman in question came running out.
Just as she had the other night with him and Jack, Amy shoved her way into the middle of the confrontation. “What’s going on here?”
He even felt a little sympathy for Will and the others when they had the same lack of success in getting her to move out of danger’s way. “Go back in the house, Sis. Blondie here was about to leave.”
“No, I wasn’t.”
Amy had enough disgusted looks in her arsenal to go around. “Mom wants to see the four of you in the kitchen. Now.”
When they didn’t immediately walk away, her father stepped out on the porch. “Boys, come inside.”
Chad shook his head. “I’m not leaving her alone with him.”
Amy got right up in his face. “I appreciate what you’re trying to do, but remember what I said this morning about needing to make my own decisions.” Then she smiled at him. “Please. It’s important.”
“Fine.” Then he looked over her head to meet Mikhail’s gaze. “But you make one wrong move, you and I will be the ones having a little talk. Got that?”
Mikhail nodded. “Got it.”
They finally retreated back into the house, muttering and complaining the whole way. Once they were gone, Amy crossed her arms over her chest and glared at him much as her brothers had. “So why are you here?”
“I promised you we’d talk more when I got my head straightened out. I have, so I’m here.”
He thought maybe, just maybe, she looked a little happier to see him. “I’m listening.”
“I can’t guarantee I won’t hover once in a while, but I can promise I’ll try hard not to. And if I do screw up like that, I’m sure I can count on you to set me straight.”
She nodded. “You can.”
“Having said that, I do reserve the right to express my opinion if you start taking unnecessary risks. You know, like taking up extreme sports or driving in demolition derbies. That kind of thing.”
Her mouth twitched like she trying hard not to smile. “Fair enough. In return, I promise to keep up with my doctor appointments and follow his advice. In fact, when I go in for my tests next month, I’d feel better if you went with me. That way you can hear exactly what he has to say about how I’m doing, and he can answer any questions you might have.”
“I’d like that.” He glanced toward the living room window. Just as he feared, her parents and all four brothers were watching them. “I have one more question to ask, but I was hoping for a little more privacy. I’m guessing that’s not going to happen, though.”
She glanced back toward the house and sighed. “We did have a long discussion this morning about the fact that I’m an adult and can handle my own affairs. Doesn’t look like they’ve quite figured out what that looks like yet.”
