Page 2 of Letting Go

I exhale after he leaves, noting the space where he stood. I don't like how empty that space feels right now. I also don’t like how I feel right now.

Agitated, alone, hopeless.

These are all the feelings that took me away from my family.

I need to be very, very careful around Bryce Tucker.

Chapter Two

Bryce

I haven't read a book in a year. Books are Finn's thing. So why I seek out the library every time that girl talks to me, is a mystery. I stand there, surrounded by books and wide, white framed windows, green potted floor plants, my heart pounding, trying to regain my composure.

I remember how good she felt at Claire's party, her body long and lithe, moving to the music, her mane of coffee-colored hair streaming behind her. When she was out of breath with a sheen of sweat on her skin, she wadded her hair into a bun to keep it off her neck. I remember how her hand felt on my shoulder. How fragile her smile was. How her blue eyes veiled some devastating pain. How I wanted to kiss her, feel her, hold her.

How I didn't do any of those things.

But that was one night. One fun day of a family coming together. Now, she's retreated into some part of herself, where everyone's excluded, and she and I only exchange niceties.

And yet every single time I see her, I just want to ravage her. She's got to be five-ten and with her stature comes a kind of easy, loose, grace that's breathtaking. But there's an element to her that's broken, and I have learned to stay away from broken women. In the end, they eat you up. I have to keep telling myself this.

I hear Finn coming up from the basement. It's where he's built a gym. When there's a sock on the door, we're not allowed in. That’s when he and Claire are "working out" together. I don’t ask.

"Did you get that text from Nic?" he asks, rounding the corner. I'm two inches taller, at six-four and an ex-Seal, so I intimidate most guys. But not Finn. He throws a towel at me. He's trim, sweating, and a little out of breath. All he's wearing are shorts and shoes. "A business exec needs private security at a convention in Portland. You and Jackson are tag teaming."

I grin. "So you get Harrison Ford and I get some tech guy?"

"Hey, I'm just the part-timer," he says.

Part-time, my ass. He's also the co-owner of Colton Security Systems along with his old college buddy, Nic Silvano.

I shake my head. "That makes no sense. Full-timers should get the choice work."

There's movement behind him and my heart skips a beat because it's registering it's Chloe before my brain does. She's on her way to the large dining room with Bunsen burners and heating trays. I catch a glimpse of her as she hurries, trying hard not to be seen.

But our gaze meets for a second as she flashes by the doorway.

She is clearly giving me all the signals she is not interested. When a woman wants you, she makes eye contact and holds it. I know.

None of this escapes Finn, who's ex-intelligence and can read micro-expressions in a second. He watches her for a moment and then shakes his head and levels those gray-green eyes at me.

He lowers his voice. "Watch it when it comes to her."

The front door opens, so someone's up and I wonder about the guests upstairs, if they're hearing all this. But it's still before seven in the morning. It's got to be another Russo.

Devon Russo comes in, still in her firefighter gear minus the helmet, her blue-black straight hair in a tight bun. She's tiny compared to her sisters, petite but wily. I've watched her at a barn razing. Tough. As. Nails. There's a smear of dirt on her chin.

"Claire texted and said there's—"

Finn points to the kitchen.

"Thanks," she says and she, too, disappears in her own quest for a croissant.

Finn turns back to me in business mode again. "Raymond Clifton is a motivational speaker, and—"

"Wait, wait. You mean that guy who walks on coals with his suit pants rolled up?" I don’t wait for a response. "Shit. Really? You're killing me."

"There have been some threats made, and Nic has determined they're serious enough to attach detail." He reaches for the towel and I toss it back.