And as the youngest sister of three overbearing older brothers, she was used to them interfering in her life, and so it didn’t surprise her that Rob didn’t make a single move to leave, despite the fact that he was certainly not welcome at the moment.
“Do you still talk to Miller?” Rob asked AJ. “I remember you two were tight.”
“Yup. Actually, we co-own a nightclub together.”
Brett wrinkled her nose. Were they talking about Reed Miller? She remembered him from high school, too. Reed had been a bad boy to the core, and not someone she’d seen AJ hanging out with.
The fact that the two men had been close, and apparently still were, made her realize she hadn’t known AJ at all back then. She’d invented a fantasy version of him, one that included a load of assumptions that he’d rapidly poked holes in since the moment they’d crossed paths again.
“It’s a shame he got kicked off the team. He was damn good.”
“Yeah, Reed was a force of nature on that offensive line.”
Much to her displeasure, the two men were oblivious to her presence now, chatting as if she weren’t even in the room.
“I heard you got into MMA,” Rob said.
It took a serious effort to keep her jaw closed. AJ was a mixed martial arts fighter? Since when?
“Yeah, I fought pro for a few years. So did Reed.”
Brett opened her mouth to press for details, but her brother didn’t give her the chance.
“That’s hardcore.” Nodding with approval, he looked over at Brett again. “Honestly, B? Normally your taste in dudes sucks, but I’m totally digging this arrangement.”
“Wonderful. I’m glad you approve.” She crossed her arms and fixed him with a glare. “Now will you please go away? I’ll see you at the shop in an hour.”
Rob rolled his eyes. “Fine. I’m gone. I know when I’m not wanted.” He stepped forward to give AJ a hearty slap on the shoulder. “I’m sure I’ll be seeing a lot more of you, man. Actually, I’ll see you tomorrow, right?”
AJ blinked. “Tomorrow?”
Rob turned to Brett with visible displeasure. “You didn’t invite him to the barbecue?”
She stifled a groan. Crap. Why had she lied, damn it? She’d never had a problem inviting boyfriends to family events in the past, and now that she’d launched this foolish charade, it would look insanely suspicious if she didn’t bring AJ over to her dad’s place tomorrow.
“Of course I invited him, but he might have to work.” She stalked forward, forcibly dragging her brother away from AJ and toward the front hallway. “It’s time for you to go. I have to shower and get ready for work.”
“Fine. We’ll talk later.”
Since he was a good foot taller than her, he had to hunch over in order to plant a kiss on the top of her head, and the familiar gesture instantly had her softening. As nosy and overprotective as her brothers could be, she still adored each and every one of them and knew they felt the same way about her.
“I’ll see you in a bit, okay?” she said, squeezing his arm.
The second the door closed behind him, Brett released a sigh of relief and made a beeline to the bedroom, where she found AJ getting dressed.
She lingered in the doorway for a moment, soaking in the sight of his lean, muscular body. The way his abs tightened as he pulled a shirt over his head, the flexing of his biceps as he reached down to zip up his pants. Now that Rob was gone, she allowed the memories of last night to flood her mind, and the wicked images made her heart beat faster. God, it had been an incredible night. She hadn’t expected AJ to be so…dirty.
His head turned sharply as he became aware of her presence. Then he relaxed and offered a wry look. “So.”
“So.” She drew a deep breath. “I guess we should talk about the whole boyfriend thing.”
To her surprise, he smiled at her. “Naah, I get it. You didn’t want your brother to think we had a casual hookup. Makes sense to me.”
“Normally I wouldn’t care what Rob thinks, but there’s some stuff happening right now, and…” A sigh slipped out. “Truthfully, my past isn’t very spotless. I’ve done some stupid stuff I’m not particularly proud of, which includes going out with a lot of assholes. I don’t sleep around,” she added hastily, not wanting him to think she was a raging ho-bag or anything. “But I haven’t picked many winners in the love department. And my family is already super overprotective because I’m the youngest, so my rebellious bullshit didn’t exactly help the situation.”
“I can imagine. I remember Rob from high school. He was very in-your-face, always thought his way was the right one.” AJ’s head tipped thoughtfully. “You have another brother, right? A year younger than Rob?”
She nodded. “That’s Jordan. Me, Rob, and Jordan were all born a year apart. And our brother Mike is two years older than Rob. My folks wanted all their kids to be close in age. That’s what both their families were like, all the siblings only a year or two apart.”