What Matters Most (7 page)

“Belle… Now might not be the best time to do this,” Evan muttered as Justin turned his head away. “He thinks you’re tossing him.”

Annabelle took in the defeated droop of Justin’s shoulders and only then noticed the way his big body was trembling.
Crap!
What was she doing judging Justin for his short WHAT MATTERS MOST

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temper when hers wasn’t any better? Forgetting about the other man in the cell, Annabelle linked one hand with Evan’s and slipped her other between the bars.

“Jus, baby, no…” When Justin still didn’t look at her, she thought her heart was shearing right in two. “Justin, look at me.” She didn’t bother trying to keep the plea from her voice, not when she knew she’d unthinkingly been so cruel. Justin took a shuddering breath, then another before swiping at his eyes and slowly facing her. The pain in those beautiful eyes speared through Annabelle like a white-hot pike. When he didn’t stand to take her hand, Annabelle curled her fingers around the bar so tightly her nails dug into her palm.

“Don’t you know I love you and Evan more and more with each breath I take, each beat of my heart?” Cheesy or not, it was true, and she wasn’t a romantic woman, or hadn’t been before, but she had to try.

Evan’s strangled gasp was a twin of Justin’s. She glanced over her shoulder at Evan, hoping he saw the truth of her words in her eyes. The love she saw reflected back at her chased away some of the fear that she’d fucked all this, all of
them
, up. Evan looked as if he was going to speak, then he glanced past Annabelle just as she felt a large rough hand cover hers on the cell bar. Annabelle started to turn her head only to have her cheek cupped by Justin’s other hand. She had a second to note the tears on his cheeks and the trembling of his hands, then she was being pulled forward until Justin’s lips met hers. It wasn’t comfortable, not with her face framed by cold steel, but it was the sweetest kiss she’d ever had and every brush of Justin’s lips knitted her heart back together.

“When you’re done I’ll let him out,” a voice drawled from several feet behind her.

Annabelle didn’t acknowledge Officer Stanton until Justin ended the kiss with a final soft press of lips. Then she turned and winked at the police officer as she peered over Evan’s shoulder. Officer Stanton didn’t so much as blink.

“No charges this time,” he said in a voice that made it clear he wasn’t happy about that one bit. “Unless it turns out one of them
did
hurt Josh.” He levelled a look at both men that made even Annabelle want to whimper. “If that’s the case, I don’t care who either of these idiots are, I’ll make sure they spend a good while in McAllen.”

Justin grunted at the mention of the prison. Annabelle turned back to him and patted his cheek before glaring at the other man in the cell. If he hurt Josh again, prison would be the least of his worries. He nodded once then turned his attention to something on the floor.

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Once Justin was freed Annabelle hugged him gingerly, unsure of where he was

bruised. Evan put his arms around the two of them and placed a chaste kiss on each of their cheeks. “Love you too, Belle,” he rasped before giving Justin a long look. Justin touched Evan’s cheek with the back of his battered knuckles. His quiet apology to them brought tears to her eyes and Evan’s as well. His vow to love them both and be a better man sent them spilling over.

Annabelle was heady with the emotions welling in her as she left the police station with her lovers, unconcerned with what Stanton might have thought about the relationship she, Evan and Justin shared. And she definitely didn’t give a flying damn about what the jerk still sitting in the cell thought. As far as she was concerned, his balls were hers if she ever saw him again.

Josh tried to focus on what Dr Meyers was saying as the man pointed at the x-ray.

“…lateral malleolus fracture,”
yeah, yeah, yeah, give me some damned pain meds!
The part about the fracture not being as bad as it could have been—his fibula wasn’t out of place, which was good, had Josh hoping he wouldn’t miss much work, but he still wanted something to knock him out, or at least make him so loopy he wasn’t aware he was hurting. If it could make him forget the events of this shitty night, that’d be even better.

Dr Meyers finally shut up about his ankle but before Josh could do more than open his mouth, intending to ask for something good for the pain, the doctor was poking at his tongue with a depressor. “Stick your tongue out for me, please.”

Josh rolled his eyes and did as the doctor requested. “It wouldn’t hurt to put a couple of stitches in to close this up,” Meyers surmised. He sent the nurse for a stitch kit and an ankle brace. In short order Josh found himself with his mouth gaping open and his tongue hanging out, drool running down his chin onto his shirt. Which was of course, he thought mentally cursing his luck, when Annabelle, Justin and Evan pulled the curtain aside and stepped into the temporary ‘room’. One look at the grins on the three of them and Josh groaned. He was never going to hear the end of this.

“This should be interesting,” Annabelle said, barely covering a snicker before her amusement vanished. She looked him over, her gaze lingering on the ankle brace first then WHAT MATTERS MOST

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the bruising under and on his chin. “How the hell did you manage to do all this in one night?”

Josh narrowed his eyes at all of them. Like he could answer! This was exactly like being in the dentist’s chair; the dental techs and dentist never failed to ask all kinds of questions once they had your mouth propped open and were jabbing around inside. Josh decided silence was his only option. After a quick check to make sure Justin wasn’t too badly whipped, and seeing the way the three lovers stood with ease so closely to one another, he closed his eyes and let his mind drift. Floating on the pain reliever Doctor Meyers had only moments before shot into his hip, Josh found himself thinking about Nick. Not the bad memories, the hurt and humiliation he’d felt when he’d realised Nick was just using him, or the flutter of hope—although he’d never tell Nick—that had tried to build in him when he’d discovered the man was, well, stalking him, even though that wasn’t really what Nick had been doing. He’d only been trying to get more information on Annabelle and Rory.

That bit of realism threatened to tank Josh’s high and he shoved it aside. He’d rather think about Nick, his dark eyes burning with a need only Josh could meet. Granted, it was kind of hard to figure out what Nick would look like naked since Josh hadn’t ever been with him—or any other man who could even compare, really, just a couple of other guys built more like himself. But he just knew Nick would be magnificent, all bronze skin and thick, sinewy muscle. He’d have a long heavily veined cock, with such girth Josh wouldn’t be able to close his hand around it, and big full balls that hung low between his thighs so Josh could easily cup them. Josh could acknowledge that he had a…thing, for balls. He loved them, loved rubbing his face against them, feeling their weight on his chin, slapping under his chin, against his ass or his own—

“That must be some fantasy you’re having.”

Josh struggled to raise his eyelids. They’d become really heavy and didn’t want to follow his brain’s directive. When he managed to pry them open enough to see, he was confronted with Annabelle’s amused and worried visage. It made him snicker since he was feeling pretty damn good, and the ache in his groin was the kind a man enjoyed, as long as he got off. Josh stopped snickering and looked at his hands as his pulse hit warp speed.

Ohthankgod!
His mind stumbled then he remembered—it was his ankle he’d broken. He could still jerk off. That sent him into a fit of giggles he couldn’t seem to stop.

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“It’s a good thing Dr Meyers finished with him,” Justin remarked. Josh snorted, which when combined with the giggling, made his nose burn and his eyes water.

“What the hell did they give him?”

This, from Evan, didn’t help Josh gain any control at all. He gripped his side where, despite the feel-good drugs, a sharp cramp stabbed between his ribs.

“Probably a mild pain killer,” Justin said. “You know he’s really sensitive to

medication.”

“Well, at least he’s happy,” Annabelle pointed out. “That beats being in pain any day.

Come on, Joshie, we’re taking you home.”

Josh sobered up enough to not endanger himself or them as they helped him move

from the bed to the wheelchair. Misty came in waving papers and talking about aftercare treatment and physical therapy. Josh thought there might be a fight when the bubbly nurse stopped bubbling and gave Justin a hard look. Even stoned, Josh could see Annabelle bristling.
Not good.
And hadn’t he already decreed to the universe that he’d had enough of people being angry and violent and stupid tonight?

Misty flicked Annabelle a look and hesitated before getting this stubborn gleam in her eye. “I’m not sure it’s in Josh’s best interest to go stay with his brother.”

Annabelle growled—Josh hadn’t really thought a woman could make that kind of

sound, but she did and it sucked the high right out of him. Misty flinched but barrelled ahead, unaware of just how big of a bull she was waving a red flag in front of.

“Josh has obviously been
hurt
and his brother
obviously
has violent tendencies—”

“I’ll show you violent tendencies,” Annabelle snarled, taking a quick step forward.

Justin and Evan each lunged at Annabelle and caught one of her arms just as Misty stumbled backwards, her heel colliding with Josh’s injured ankle. Josh howled in agony as pain burned bright and hot from his ankle to his knee. Holy shit, would this night never end? Annabelle cursed and tried to jerk her arms free as Justin and Evan struggled to hold her back. Misty flailed and hopped, her eyes wide as gravity won the battle and she hit the floor with an
umph
almost as loud as the sound of her butt impacting the ugly pea green tile.

Josh’s ankle was back to throbbing and he had electric blue dots dancing in his vision, but he could still see Annabelle’s cunning expression and he was not having it. Pointing at her—she’d taught him that imperial finger thing, the one that made the person on the WHAT MATTERS MOST

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receiving end feel like they were about two inches tall—he pressed his other hand to Misty’s shoulder, exerting enough pressure to keep her down, he hoped.

“Would you all just grow up!” Josh snapped, except he’d forgotten about his tongue and the local anesthesia used for the stitches and what came out sounded less like words and more like a monkey shrieking.

But it worked.

“Oh damn,” Annabelle huffed, the fight going out of her so quickly both her lovers stumbled. Or maybe that was due to the unintelligible gibberish Josh had spewed, but he didn’t care why the bullshit stopped, only that it did. Justin nodded—Josh wasn’t sure why—then turned to Misty and offered her a hand up. Misty barely hesitated before putting her hand in his and allowing him to help.

“Thank you,” Misty muttered with more graciousness than Josh had hoped for. She

didn’t apologise, but she did pick up the discharge and aftercare papers and give them to Justin before patting Josh’s hand and leaving the room.

Annabelle came over and looped her arms around his neck, nuzzling against his

cheek. “Joshie, I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have acted like that. I just lost it when I thought she wasn’t going to let us take you home, and then again when I realised what she was implying about Justin, but that doesn’t make it right.”

“I’m sorry too, baby bro—Josh,” Justin corrected when Josh glared at him. Josh tipped his chin up.
He
wasn’t the one who’d acted like an immature asswipe tonight. “I’m not going to make any excuses, but I promise I won’t put my pride in front of you or let my temper put you at risk ever again.”

Josh grunted and averted his eyes. He should have felt all warm and fuzzy, or at least a little goofy from the pain meds, but all he felt was a knot of panic low in his belly. Everyone was all concern and repentance now, and they loved him, but what would happen when they found out he’d been keeping his knowledge about who Nick was from them?

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Nick watched his sister and her lovers leave from the corner of his eye. His mind had kind of flat-lined as soon as she’d spoken, he’d been so stunned to see her standing there.

Then she’d turned those venom-filled eyes on him and whatever hope he’d harboured of having a relationship with her and Rory had died a quick death. Her words had only compounded the loss. Nick wasn’t really concerned about the threat. The tone, the look she’d levelled at him had hurt him more than he’d expected, considering he hadn’t ever known his half siblings. But he’d known
about
them, and well over half his life had been spent constructing fantasies of what it might be like to be a part of their family, the old man be damned. That would never happen now, thanks to his behaviour tonight. Assaulting one of Annabelle’s lovers had put the final nail in the coffin of his idealistic dreams.

Flopping back on to the narrow hard mattress, Nick pressed his forearm over his eyes.

If he was truthful, he’d blown his chances with Rory and Annabelle before then, when he’d tried to use Josh. But he hadn’t known how close the two were. That they were friends, yes, that had been obvious, but the level of devotion between the two was what he’d seriously underestimated. As Annabelle had made very clear. Josh had obviously told her at least a little about Nick, and she’d already been loaded for bear when she finally met him and issued her threat.

Nick tinkered with the idea of approaching Rory, but after Annabelle’s display of fierce loyalty, he had to believe Rory would be the same way. Someone like Annabelle who gave every bit of herself to those she loved would receive the same from them, or else she wouldn’t be bothered with them. Nick wondered what it would be like to be worthy of such devotion, but when he tried to picture such a strong bond between himself and Annabelle or Rory, his mind cut to thoughts of Josh instead. Would Josh ever have looked at him the way Annabelle had looked at her men if Nick hadn’t screwed everything up so badly? Would Nick want him to?