Page 48 of Flash Bang
Ro sagged against Zach’s hold, and he maneuvered them until she sat in his lap, leaning against the side of the clinic. Instinctively, she curled into his big frame. Erica’s temper had calmed marginally, and she paced back and forth in front of the building. Jamie watched her intently.
Erica paused in her pacing and faced Ro. “So you and him, huh? Does that mean the big, grumpy one who drove us back is available?”
Ro knew her sister was only trying to take her mind off what might be happening inside the clinic, but she still wanted to snap out an unequivocal “no.” Except she didn’t have the right to make that statement.
Zach’s arm tightened around her as though he could read her thoughts. “Graham’s pretty hung up on someone, and it might be a long wait if you’re trying to get his attention,” Zach said.
Ro swiveled in his lap so she could see his face. “He barely looked at me …” She trailed off when Erica cocked her head.
“Wait … what? I was joking, but now I’m just confused. If you and him … and you and the other one …” The door to the clinic opened as Erica said, “You’re doing them both?”
Ro was paying diligent attention to the ground and mentally kicking herself for the rush of hope that flooded her at Zach’s words. She didn’t want to explain the situation to her sister, and she really didn’t want to look up at the doorway, because she knew,just knew, that Graham was standing there, probably trying to process the snippet of conversation he’d overheard. Then again, he’d have an update on her dad, and that was more important than dodging the awkward situation. Face burning with embarrassment, she met Graham’s appraising gaze reluctantly. “How is he?”
“He lost a lot of blood before we got it controlled, so Beau is giving him some. He’s working on cleaning the wood splinters out of the wound, and hopefully he’ll finish that up before your dad comes around. Beau thinks he should pull through just fine. You can go in and sit with him after Beau’s done. It’ll be about a half hour or so.”
Ro sagged against Zach, overwhelmed by relief. But Erica wasn’t satisfied.
“You have a blood supply?”
“We’ve got two universal donors. So we donate and rotate it out. Shit happens. Never know when you might need it.”
Erica sized up Graham. “Who the hell are you people?”
“Nobody special.”
Erica’s expression turned thoughtful. “If you somehow talked my sister into sleeping with youandhim, I’d have to say there’s something special there. I mean …”
Ro closed her eyes and prayed that a sinkhole would miraculously develop beneath her.
When no sinkhole appeared, she settled for saying, “Can we not have this conversation right now?”
“I just wanted to know why the guy looks so pissed, when he’s got a hot piece like you doing the ménage thing. Is it because the other guy missed the hole and accidentally …”
“Oh my God.” Mortification flamed through Ro as she buried her face in her hands. “I swear to Christ, I should have muzzled you freshman year when you told Mitch Hopper I was masturbating to his yearbook picture and you heard me moaning his name through my bedroom door.” She looked up to see Erica’s grinning face and pushed to her feet. She threw herself at her sister in a full body hug. “I missed you so much.”
“Missed you, too, big sis. And you really should have thanked me for that. After all, the hottest guy in school ended up asking you to the senior prom, and I’m pretty sure you lost your v-card that night.”
Ro slapped her hand over Erica’s mouth. “Seriously, no more.”
But they could all hear Erica’s garbled, “So what gives? Ro not putting out?”
Ro chanced a glance at Graham and straightened when she met his penetrating stare. Ro expected him to ignore Erica’s question like he had so many others. But he didn’t.
“You want to know what happened? Your sister dropped into our world like a stun grenade. Looks harmless and then,bam, it detonates, and you’re fucking blinded to anything but the flash. That’s why they call it a flash bang. Then she walked out before we could find our bearings. Took my goddamn heart with her.”
Ro stumbled back from the intensity of his words. Zach caught her and wrapped an arm around her. Erica’s mouth had dropped into an O, but she didn’t respond. Ro was too shocked to appreciate that Graham had finally figured out how to shut up her lovable, mouthy sister. But hell, Ro was speechless. What did you say to something like that?I’m sorryseemed so trite. And how did you sincerely apologize for hurting someone when you knew you’d make the same choice again?
Ro took the coward’s way out. She shoved away from Zach, disentangling herself from his arms. “I … I have to go. I need a shower.” And then she ran.
What a fucking mess, Graham thought. He wanted to punch through the wall of the clinic. With the way he was feeling, he’d probably break his goddamn hand.I’m a fucking moron, he castigated himself. The first time in his entire adult life he’d tried to tell a woman how he felt about her and he completely fucked it up. He scrubbed both hands over his face.
“Are you in love with my sister?” Erica twisted to look at Zach, and then added, “Both of you?”
Zach laughed, though it sounded forced. “You really go for the balls with every question, don’t you?”
“I’m just trying to figure out what’s going on here.” She stared Zach down with narrowed eyes. “Because that,” she pointed in the direction of the bathhouse, “is not normal Rowan Callahan behavior.”
“What’s your point?” Graham asked, wanting to go shoot something until he no longer felt like the world’s most pathetic asshole.
