one hundred percent certainty that when you were married to that shithead, I never saw even a fraction of the happiness in your eyes as I’ve seen over the past month from just the brief interactions you’ve had with Super-Hot-Gym-Guy.”
“Decker,” April supplied quietly with a smile.
“Decker, Licker, Sucker whatever! The man we’ve been lusting over for weeks makes you smile like that, and you get excited.” Rori hopped off the desk as the first bell rang. “Love you, chica,” she called over her shoulder as she hurried out the door.
“Back atcha, toots.”
* * *
“IT’S APRIL,” DECKER announced as he walked into his brother’s pristine office and closed the door behind him. He yanked off his grime-encrusted gloves and plopped his filthy, denim-clad ass on the expensive leather guest chair.
Normally Ford would bitch about Decker’s lack of decorum—he even referred to his older brother, and the cloud of dust that followed him during working hours, as Pigpen. But Decker could tell by the way Ford’s brows were furrowed that he wasn’t going to get his normal razzing.
“Umm, Deck, you feelin’ okay, bro?”
Decker mocked Ford’s response. “Umm, yeah, why?”
“Because look at the calendar.” Ford slid the small paper tear-off day-by-day across the cherry wood. “It’s fucking February, not April, you fool.”
Shaking his head, Decker chuckled. “Nope, I’m pretty sure it’s April.” Just about the time Ford started looking really concerned Decker let him in on the joke. “The hot blonde from the gym, the one I’ve been telling you about, her name is April.”
Ford’s eyes lit up with recognition before he threw his head back and laughed. “Nice, Deck. You finally grew some balls and got her name. What did it take, a month? Six weeks? I thought I was gonna have to send her a note on your behalf. You know, ‘I like you. Do you like me? Check yes or no .’”
“Fuck you, little brother.” There was no bite in either of their tones; that was how they communicated, how they played, and how they loved one another. “Don’t you forget, I taught you everything you know about women.” Decker, being five years older than Ford and very popular amongst the ladies, had in fact taught his brother many things, but the dark look that quickly passed over Ford’s face, one that he’d seen several times before, made Decker wonder about the things Ford had learned long after Decker stopped teaching.
He brought the conversation back to the intended topic. “Anyway, I told you, she didn’t seem the type who was open to pick-up lines and flattery.”
“So what changed?” Ford rubbed at his shadowed jaw, genuine interest evident in his exhausted eyes.
“It seemed as though she was extremely turned off by douchebags in tanks tops that say All You Can Eat across the chest. She definitely didn’t like said douche telling her in graphic detail about the ways he’d like to invade her asshole.”
“Fuck me.” Ford swiped his hand over his forehead.
“Yeah.” Decker nodded as irritation once again reared its ugly head. “The guy was quite the charmer.”
“What did you do to stop him?” Ford asked through gritted teeth, clearly as frustrated and disturbed by the situation as Decker had been.
Both Decker and his brother had been taught about honor and respect very early in life by their parents. Their father, Ernest, a man born into conditions that could rival most horror movies before finally being adopted by the Brands, had always put in an honest, hard day’s work; and still found time to be an active, positive role model for his sons, as well as a loving husband to his wife. Their mother, Robyn, was a woman they had watched work her ass off to keep BC running while tending to her sons and maintaining the household after their father had passed away. In their actions, their parents had taught them that love, determination, and hard work would earn a good name and
“Decker,” April supplied quietly with a smile.
“Decker, Licker, Sucker whatever! The man we’ve been lusting over for weeks makes you smile like that, and you get excited.” Rori hopped off the desk as the first bell rang. “Love you, chica,” she called over her shoulder as she hurried out the door.
“Back atcha, toots.”
* * *
“IT’S APRIL,” DECKER announced as he walked into his brother’s pristine office and closed the door behind him. He yanked off his grime-encrusted gloves and plopped his filthy, denim-clad ass on the expensive leather guest chair.
Normally Ford would bitch about Decker’s lack of decorum—he even referred to his older brother, and the cloud of dust that followed him during working hours, as Pigpen. But Decker could tell by the way Ford’s brows were furrowed that he wasn’t going to get his normal razzing.
“Umm, Deck, you feelin’ okay, bro?”
Decker mocked Ford’s response. “Umm, yeah, why?”
“Because look at the calendar.” Ford slid the small paper tear-off day-by-day across the cherry wood. “It’s fucking February, not April, you fool.”
Shaking his head, Decker chuckled. “Nope, I’m pretty sure it’s April.” Just about the time Ford started looking really concerned Decker let him in on the joke. “The hot blonde from the gym, the one I’ve been telling you about, her name is April.”
Ford’s eyes lit up with recognition before he threw his head back and laughed. “Nice, Deck. You finally grew some balls and got her name. What did it take, a month? Six weeks? I thought I was gonna have to send her a note on your behalf. You know, ‘I like you. Do you like me? Check yes or no .’”
“Fuck you, little brother.” There was no bite in either of their tones; that was how they communicated, how they played, and how they loved one another. “Don’t you forget, I taught you everything you know about women.” Decker, being five years older than Ford and very popular amongst the ladies, had in fact taught his brother many things, but the dark look that quickly passed over Ford’s face, one that he’d seen several times before, made Decker wonder about the things Ford had learned long after Decker stopped teaching.
He brought the conversation back to the intended topic. “Anyway, I told you, she didn’t seem the type who was open to pick-up lines and flattery.”
“So what changed?” Ford rubbed at his shadowed jaw, genuine interest evident in his exhausted eyes.
“It seemed as though she was extremely turned off by douchebags in tanks tops that say All You Can Eat across the chest. She definitely didn’t like said douche telling her in graphic detail about the ways he’d like to invade her asshole.”
“Fuck me.” Ford swiped his hand over his forehead.
“Yeah.” Decker nodded as irritation once again reared its ugly head. “The guy was quite the charmer.”
“What did you do to stop him?” Ford asked through gritted teeth, clearly as frustrated and disturbed by the situation as Decker had been.
Both Decker and his brother had been taught about honor and respect very early in life by their parents. Their father, Ernest, a man born into conditions that could rival most horror movies before finally being adopted by the Brands, had always put in an honest, hard day’s work; and still found time to be an active, positive role model for his sons, as well as a loving husband to his wife. Their mother, Robyn, was a woman they had watched work her ass off to keep BC running while tending to her sons and maintaining the household after their father had passed away. In their actions, their parents had taught them that love, determination, and hard work would earn a good name and
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