First and Only (Callaghan Brothers #2)

While she appreciated that he had come, her mind was already made up. She was leaving Pine Ridge tomorrow and not looking back. She was going to place a call to the lawyer’s office first thing in the morning and ask him to draw up whatever papers were necessary to sign the house over to Jack Callaghan. He could do with it whatever he wanted.

“What the hell were you thinking, Lex?” Kieran asked. His voice was far too quiet, far too controlled to be good. Oh, he was angry. Really angry. Taryn must have told him what happened. While Taryn hadn’t understood the severity of Lexi’s mishap, Kieran certainly would, and did, if the fury in his eyes was any indication.

“Put me down, Kieran,” Lexi said resignedly. “I’m not your new bath toy.”

Normally Kieran would have grinned and shot a smart-ass comment right back at her, but he didn’t. His face was somber, his eyes deep and probing. He didn’t even seem to notice that she was dripping all over him. Lexi felt the unwelcome stares of a few curious onlookers. Not wanting to give them anything more to gawk at, she said, “Seriously, Kier, let me down. You’re giving me a major wedgie, and that perv over there is getting a little too much enjoyment out of it.”

Kieran’s eyes flashed to the far side of the pool where a man was sitting, towel in lap, watching the scene with great interest. With a warning look that could strip paint and a low level growl from Kieran, the man suddenly gathered his things and left in a hurry.

“If I let you down, will you walk quietly back to your room with me?”

“No.”

“Doesn’t give me much incentive, then, does it?” Kieran said, taking the choice from her and hefting Lexi one-handedly over his shoulder. Quickly grabbing a towel, he draped it over her rear end. Ignoring the stares of anyone they passed, Kieran took the steps toward the third floor.

She sighed heavily, letting him carry her. There wasn’t really much she could do about it anyway. Very little could stop Kieran when he was in one of his overprotective snits. The best thing to do was to just go with it and wait it out until he started thinking like a rational human being again.

Kieran worried about her so much. It was yet another reason why she needed to leave. It would be better for everyone. As long as she was around, he would feel the need to protect her. Kieran deserved better than that. They all did.

Kieran wouldn’t want to hear any of those things. He’d try to convince her that she belonged here. But he was wrong. She should never have come back, never should have put herself in a position to be around them again. It was time for her to return to her familiar, steady job in her private, solitary apartment, interacting on an impersonal and as-needed basis with those around her. It worked for her. And God knows, it had to be better for them, too.

Arguing the evening away with Kieran didn’t fit into her plans. Somehow she needed to find the strength to get through the rest of the day with as little strife as possible until she boarded the Greyhound tomorrow.

He dropped her unceremoniously on the bed, then began pacing in front of her. “Jesus, Lex. What the hell happened?”

“Don’t start with me, Kier,” she warned, walking away from him. “I just don’t have the strength.”

“Good. That means you’re not going to give me a hard time.”

Lexi didn’t respond, instead grabbing a few things from her suitcase and disappearing into the bathroom. She re-emerged a few minutes later, scrubbing at her hair with a towel and wearing something he was sure to recognize: his old football jersey from high school. It still hung halfway to her knees.

“Jesus!” he said when he saw it. “You still have that?!” His face lit up like a kid’s on Christmas morning.

“Of course,” she said, glad that he seemed to be breathing easier. “I have it with me always. This shirt has travelled the world, Kieran. At least twice.” She laughed, giving him a good look up and down. “Bet you didn’t know you’ve been sleeping with me all this time, huh.”

“Jesus Christ, Lex,” he sputtered, turning beet red. “That is wrong on so many levels. You know that, don’t you?”

She laughed softly and punched him in the arm. It was like hitting a brick wall. “Yeah, I know. But you should see the look on your face right now.”

“Not funny, Lex. You know you’re like my little sister, right?”

“I’m older than you,” she reminded him.

“By what, a month?”

“Doesn’t matter. Still older. Respect your elders, and all that.”

His smile faded somewhat when he saw her extract a small kit from her makeup bag. “Still have to do that, huh?”

She gave him a reassuring smile as she filled the syringe. Kieran was one of the few who knew her dark secret. “Yeah. Sucks, right?” She pushed the plunger to clear the syringe of air, then turned away from him and slid the needle into the fleshy part of her thigh with little more than a slight hiss. “You’d think with all the things they could do today I wouldn’t have to.”

He picked up the empty vial, frowning when he saw the dosage. “It’s worse, isn’t it?”

Lexi plucked the vial from his hand, tossing it back into her bag. She never left empties behind.