Page 200 of Restless
“No, jackass. I’m not. But I do have my own mind and I’m not accepting bullshit excuses so you can feel better about yourself and think you’re the best big brother alive.”
“Remember that when Uncle Chris confronts you,” Diesel said, then wished he could recall the words.
The threat might’ve worked on Mattie or Harley or even some of the boys.
She laughed in his face. “I will tell him exactly what I’ve said to you, Diesel.”
“What about his worry for Aunt Meggie?”
“I’m not the one who’ll tell him, am I? It’s your scenario and your threat. Deal with the fucking consequences.”
“They are hypotheticals.”
“As are my words. Unless you open your mouth. If you do, then you will put Grant and Bishop at risk.”
“Don’t turn this around on me. This is all on you.”
She glanced away. “What do you want from me, Diesel?” she asked quietly.
To be the little girl he’d met all those years ago. Growing up made her innately untrustworthy.
“You can’t answer me, can you? When I insisted I wanted to marry you and you weren’t my brother, you were angry with me. I’m confiding in you about other boys and you still aren’t happy.”
“Grant is twenty and Bishop is two or three years older than that. They aren’t boys.”
“They are closer in age to me than you.”
“They won’t fuck you,” he barked. “They value their fucking lives.”
“They will do any fucking thing I want them to,” she snarled, “and you don’t have a fucking thing to say about it. If you rat me out, I will deny it.”
“And if you turn up pregnant?”
She shuddered. “Then I’ll bleed to death like I thought Momma did or I will survive and raise my baby.”
If ever he made a difference in someone’s life, Diesel wanted it to be now. He hadn’t realized how much Rebel was spiraling until that moment. After moving out, he’d turned away from her, then been so outraged and annoyed at her crush on him that he felt justified in ignoring her.
He tipped up her chin. “Let Aunt Meggie heal completely first. Let Jo come home, then I’ll approach our parents so the four of us can talk. I’ll explain everything you’ve shared with me and you can fill in any details I forget or fuck up. I won’t mention Bishop or Grant as long as you don’t follow through with you plan.”
“You’ll get busy and forget.”
“I swear I won’t, Rebel. But you need to see Aunt Meggie come through this, then you need protection.”
“Fine,” she said grudgingly. “Leave Bishop and Grant alone. They are my friends, and they fill in the void left by Uncle Johnnie keeping Mattie away, Harley’s desertion, and your marriage.”
“I’ll do better.”
“Grant’s funny, Dee. The way you once were, then you met Tabitha. If you start checking on me regularly, I know I will have to beat that bitch to a pulp. I’m fine with Grant—”
“Did I hear my name?” Grant Harrington walked through the same door from which Diesel had come. He was tall and blond like his father, though he lacked Knox’s seriousness. He smiled at Rebel. “You really are gorgeous.”
“Your shock is a fucking insult,” Rebel said with a sniff.
Grant’s grin widened and his eyes twinkled. “You’re a natural beauty. Tonight, you’re just fucking hot.” He rocked on his heels, ignoring Diesel’s glare. “Why did Aunt Meggie allow you to look like a fucking yacht girl?”
“Asshole,” Diesel gritted.
“I know what the fuck a yacht girl is, Diesel,” Rebel said.
