The Ruby Riot Series: Box Set Part 2

"What? What's he said?"

"Nothing much." He pauses and picks at the label on his beer. "I don't mean to be rude, but aren't you a bit young for him?"

"Pardon?"

"Tegan!" calls a familiar voice.

I look over my shoulder at Bryn who strides over. His height and size are intimidating enough; his tattoos and sour look would add to anybody's nervousness around him. Not to me, but Jax studies the bottle he's holding.

"I answered your text, but you didn't reply," says Bryn. "Are you okay?"

"Fine."

"Just buying Tegan a drink while she waited," offers Jax.

Jax is rewarded with a hard look from Bryn. Oh great. Bryn's eyes widen as he studies my appearance. "What are you dressed up for? Where are you going?"

"Out. Did you want to come?" I ask.

"Not tonight, not in the mood. Stay and have a drink with me instead. We can discuss whether you're staying or not." His terse tone is back and riling me that he's using it in front of Jax.

"Whether I'm staying? You know I am!"

"Maybe."

Jax looks between us and s.h.i.+fts uncomfortably. "And what have you said to him?" I jab a finger at Jax. "I told you, I'm not here to jump the nearest guy!"

"I haven't told him anything."

"Not telling people I'm here won't make me go away!"

"You know how to pick them, Bryn," says Jax with a laugh.

"What does that mean?" I snap.

Jax holds his hands up in defence. "Nothing! Just the last girl I saw Bryn with was umm... insistent too."

What the h.e.l.l? I rub my forehead. "You saw Bryn with...?" Wait. "OhmiG.o.d! Bryn! Tell him I'm your sister!"

There's a choking noise as Jax's beer catches in his throat. He coughs, eyes watering as he stares at us. "Sister?"

"Yeah, my little sister," says Bryn darkly, and the look they exchange suggests they have spoken about me before.

"Oh, sorry. About earlier. I didn't mean..." Did Jax say something he shouldn't about me? Is it wrong that I'm secretly pleased?

"Yeah." Bryn crosses his arms, stony faced.

"I guess I should..." Jax waves his bottle in the direction of the nearby table. "Was meeting the guys."

As Jax climbs down from the stool, I watch in disbelief as he walks away, then jerk my head around to Bryn.

"What the h.e.l.l was that about?"

"Nothing much. I didn't like the way he talked about you before." Bryn takes the seat Jax vacated and orders himself a beer.

"What did he say?"

"Doesn't matter."

I inhale a calming breath. "Can we get one thing clear, Bryn? I'm twenty years old and my own person. I do not need you treating me like a naive little girl."

"Jax behaves like me and the guys did when we first got famous. Different girl every night, all that c.r.a.p."

"So?"

"So, I don't want him s.c.r.e.w.i.n.g around with my sister."

I'm about to retort when I notice the look on Bryn's face, remembering the guy threatening the kid who lived two doors down because he bullied me. The guy who still walked me to school when he was sixteen. The protective streak in my big brother is a mile wide, and nothing I could do would change that.

I close my slender fingers over his. "Bryn, I appreciate you looking out for me, but I don't need protecting. I've dealt with a few things you probably wouldn't be happy knowing about, when I was travelling. This is nothing."

He stiffens. "Like what?"

"Woman travelling alone things, and I'm fine. So I think I can handle people like Jax."

Handle Jax. Investigate what lies beneath his clothes. Put my mouth on his. Find out exactly what he has that causes girls to throw themselves at him. How has this man burrowed under my skin this quickly?

"Fine," he mutters. "But if you do stay with the tour, you're here on my terms, and if anyone f.u.c.ks around with you, there'll be trouble."

I bite back a laugh and nod, his serious face preventing me showing my amus.e.m.e.nt. "So I'm staying?"

"Yeah, but I'll be keeping an eye on you. Don't get involved with anybody on tour. They'll break your heart."

"Awesome!" I tiptoe and kiss my big brother on the forehead. He wrinkles his nose and wipes his face.

Seven years apart, and Bryn has no hope of understanding the real me. If I was looking to find a guy, I doubt anybody here would fit the bill.

Even if Jax is sitting across the room with his eyes fixed on me in a way that phases out everything and everybody around us.

Almost everybody.

JAX.

Sister.

Bryn's sister.

Holy f.u.c.k. I throw my mind back to the conversation I had with Bryn earlier, cringing at each word I used. I knew I'd stuck my foot in it when I thought she was Bryn's chick, but if she's his sister that's ten times f.u.c.king worse. Oh yeah, I told Bryn his sister wanted to rip my clothes off and I was planning to help Tegan out of hers.

s.h.i.+t.

Keeping away from her as much as possible is the only way to show Bryn I respect him, and his sister. But if Tegan keeps looking at me the way she does, that'll be b.l.o.o.d.y hard.

Bryn is in for fun and games with his stunning sister around on the tour. I can't wait to see what happens to the first guy who hits on her.

Will throws a beermat at my head as I approach the table. "What's up with you?"

I scowl and wipe my cheek where the cardboard hit. "Nothing."

"Where's my beer?" He indicates the collection of empties on the table.

"He got distracted," says Nate with a snort. "Who's the chick?"

I drag out a stool and sit, looking back over to where Tegan, girl of the dreams I never knew I had, continues an intense conversation with Bryn.

"Were you hitting on Bryn's girl?" laughs Nate. "Let's not go through that again."

"What the h.e.l.l does that mean?" I growl.

Will starts humming 'Ruby' by the Kaiser Chiefs and I take a deep breath. I'm over my crush on our lead singer; clearly, they haven't caught up. "Ha-f.u.c.king-ha and no I wasn't."

"Could've fooled us." Nate finishes his beer and pointedly pushes the bottle across the table at me. "Did you get her name?"

"Tegan. Hughes."

"A full name, must be serious." They laugh. Sometimes the twins' shared 'everything', including sense of humour, p.i.s.ses me off.

"Hughes," I repeat.

"Yeah?"

I look between the guys. Friends with the pair since I was fifteen, I know them all too well. And they know me all too well, unfortunately. Since Ruby Riot launched from dead end gigs to Jem Jones's project last year, life has changed a h.e.l.l of a lot. My jealousy over Jem's personal involvement with our lead singer, Ruby, faded to concern about her relations.h.i.+p with the famously f.u.c.ked up Jem Jones. But I bite my tongue; the Blue Phoenix guitarist has put us where we are today.

Jem isn't only our manager; he's also a member of the biggest rock band in the world and wouldn't put his reputation on the line just because he was s.c.r.e.w.i.n.g Ruby. We're good. Really, b.l.o.o.d.y good. How else would we be the support act on Blue Phoenix's European tour?

"Are you both drunk?" I ask, surveying their larger than usual grins and edgier humour.

"No more than usual," replies Nate.

I tap my fingers on the table. "Are you listening to me? Who else is called Hughes?"

"Bryn?" suggests Will.

I arch a brow.

Will grips Nate's arm and descends into hysterics. "She's his sister, isn't she? Oh, man!"

Nate catches on and clutches Will's arm in return. "Sister!"

Following shared laughter, they appraise my fantasy girl and launch into a rundown of her qualities.

"Keep your voice down. I don't think Bryn's happy about her being here," I mutter.

"I'm having a closer look." Nate jumps to his feet.

"No," I warn.

"While I buy the beers, since you failed." He winks and saunters off.

"Jesus," I mutter under my breath and watch proceedings from behind my fringe.

Bryn turns to speak to Nate as he arrives at the bar, his large frame blocking Nate's view of Tegan. Tegan shoves Bryn in the back who moves away and I watch gestures of introduction before Bryn resumes his guard dog position. Bryn isn't what bothers me. I focus on Tegan, watching how she reacts to Nate. Is she a flirt? Do her eyes linger on him as long as they did on me?

No, they don't. A smug feeling joins the stress of the situation.

Once Bryn's back is turned, she switches her interest to our table. Caught in the act, I keep Tegan's gaze long enough to show that her brother's att.i.tude isn't bothering me. Tegan runs a hand down her face until she's touching the plump bottom lip I want to tug into my mouth and bite.

s.h.i.+t.

A shape obscures my view as Nate ducks down, his nose practically touching mine, breaking my daydreams about Tegan.

"Is she in slow motion?" asks Nate, setting down the bottles he's fetched from the bar.

"What?"

"You know, like the movies." Nate steps back and waves his head around as if fanning hair around his face, throwing an exaggerated pout in my direction. "The hot girl, the soft focus, s.e.xy music in the background."

Will snorts laughter and takes his beer. "So? Opinion?" he asks his brother.

"Yeah." He takes the stool next to Will and sits. "Out of your league."

"Yours too then since we look the same!" retorts Will.

"You challenging me? Bring it on!"

I shove Nate in the shoulder. "Bryn's sister? Did you miss that part?"

"Shame. Never mind, bro, plenty more chicks out there in the next few weeks." Nate looks back over to Bryn and Tegan. "I'd steer clear of Tegan if I were you. She has one of those faces."

"What's wrong with her face?"

"A face like hers says 'I'm gonna break your heart'. Believe me, I know."

"Yeah, and look at Bryn. He has a face that says 'I'm gonna break your arms if you touch my sister'," adds Will. The brothers high five each other at their s.h.i.+ning wit. Yeah, funny, and probably true.

"Just forget it," I mutter and turn my back on Tegan.