Say Love (Lost & Found #2)

by C. L. Stacey

  My brows draw in as I watch the sadness in his eyes returning. He doesn’t look at me again before disappearing in the crowd.

  Seven Years Ago

  My parents have extended their stay in Africa. So, as usual, the Andrews family agreed to shelter me during the entire winter break period. This is nothing new. They know of my situation, so they’re always extending me an invitation to join them during the holidays.

  Luckily for me, Carl and Jane never seem to mind my being around, so I keep coming back. It’s been such a regular thing for the past four years that their New York townhome now feels like a second home to me.

  We’ve grown extremely close over the years, so much so that I’ve dropped the impersonal use of their names, calling them ‘Ma’ and ‘Pop’ instead. They can’t get enough of it, or me.

  For a kid who’s always wished for a big family, I am truly blessed.

  “Son of a bitch!” I hear Aryn curse when entering the kitchen.

  My head is still in the fridge when Aryn starts slamming shit around like he’s mad at the world. Like me, my friend is very expressive with his anger. He’s never been shy about it. Anger should never be bottled up, that’s just a disaster waiting to happen.

  There are only two people in the world who hold the power to piss him off to this extent, and they both happen to be women. His sister, Ari; or his girlfriend, Kayli.

  This is precisely why I don’t do girlfriends, and is also why I’m glad to be the only child. Women stir up trouble, disturbing the peace.

  My money’s on this being about his sister, since Aryn hardly ever fights with Kayli. Or maybe I’m wrong. I’ll know in just a second.

  “Want a beer?” I pull out an extra one without waiting for an actual response.

  “Yea,” he grumbles, taking it from me when I’m already handing it over.

  We pop off the tops to our Heineken, and I frown at him from behind my bottle. The reason for his rage has got to do with Ari, if I’m reading his expression correctly. He’s got that crazy ass look in his eyes.

  I lower my bottle, holding it down by my chest as I evaluate what level of pissed he’s at. You have to be very careful when approaching an angry Aryn, or else he’ll rip your head clean off.

  He seems to be at about an eight. Going in when he’s at an eight may not be the smartest decision, but he hardly snaps at me. We’ll see.

  “Wanna tell me what the hell’s got you so pissed?” I start off easy.

  “Nothing,” he mutters.

  Figures. Typical Aryn.

  I know my answer is coming, so I continue to drink while waiting him out. I have a feeling I’ll need to get a good buzz going for whatever he’s about to tell me.

  3, 2, 1…

  With a hard slam against the counter, he growls his frustration. “I’m going to kill him!”

  I arch a brow, suddenly way more invested in this problem than I was before. I love a good fight. Next to sex, it’s the perfect stress reliever. “Who are we killing, exactly?”

  “The rat bastard on my couch!”

  Last I checked it was just the three of us in this house, so his answer makes me frown. “What rat bastard?”

  “Ariana is out in the living room with some tool.”

  We’re not related by blood, but I don’t need to share DNA with any member of this family to care for them the way I do. We’re very protective of each other—especially when it comes to her. She is the baby of the family, and as her big brothers, we have responsibilities.

  I bark a laugh when I see Aryn peek his head out of the kitchen to spy on her. “Aw, little sis is on a date?” That earns me a scowl, so I change course. “He couldn’t take her out to the movies like a normal guy? You’re right, he’s a tool.”

  Aryn shakes his head. “My parents aren’t home, they left for some charity function earlier, and I bet you that fucking kid knew about it.” He peeks his head out again.

  “Yea, well, we were in high school once, too. You know how it is.” I shrug, feeling lenient. For once. We are home with her, it’s not like she’s alone with the kid. I don’t see the harm in letting her have this one lame ass date.

  Aryn turns back around to face me, eyes still ablaze. “You like math, Carlisle. Here’s a problem for you: We have one horny kid out there in an NYU sweater, and Ariana just turned sixteen. Now, tell me, do we end up with a positive or negative answer? Because I’m thinking that he’s going to subtract, divide, then add, and if we’re real unlucky and that fucking kid in there isn’t wrapping properly, my sister will fucking multiply!”

  Well, fuck…

  Why the hell didn’t he just lead with that?

  I polish off my beer and slam the empty bottle against the counter. “And you’re dancing around in the kitchen? What the fuck for?” I snap at him, exiting the room and heading down the short hallway.

  “She will hate me forever if I ruin her date!” he hisses from behind me.

  “She’s a sixteen-year-old kid, Aryn,” I say over my shoulder, the idea of being the lenient one having already expired. “She will learn to fucking deal.”

  When I reach the end of the hall, I get a pretty little picture of the both of them on the couch.

  The rat bastard…

  Ever since I was a child, I had issues dealing with my anger. My parents signed me up for every sports club they could think of as an outlet for me, and it helped… whenever engaged in the activity. My rage is something I still struggle with to this very day. I go from zero to sixty in the blink of an eye. That mixed with my need to be overprotective is not such a great combination. Some would call it murder.

  We’ll see.

  A movie they clearly aren’t even watching is playing on the TV, and the kid has his lanky arms wrapped around her. What I see is a snake, wrapping itself around its prey before getting ready to devour it.

  “I’m going to rip his arms from his body and shove them up his ass,” Aryn growls, stepping around me to get to him.

  I reach out behind me, my arm making contact with Aryn’s chest. “Not yet.”

  “What?”

  “Shh! Hold on.”

  They are laughing about nothing I find funny, while the boy nuzzles in closer to her ear.

  “Your arm works, too, Caleb…” Aryn threatens me. “What the hell are you waiting for? Move.”

  Ari humors the idiot by giggling at whatever he’s whispering into her ear, but that’s only a front. She’s leaning away from him, like she doesn’t want him getting too close, but he isn’t getting the fucking message.

  I don’t hesitate any longer before my feet carry me forward.

  “What’s so funny?” I ask, drawing attention to myself.

  They separate immediately when the kid gets a load of me. I don’t blame him, I’m aware of the first impression I make on most people. I’m built like a brick wall with the temper of a six-hundred-pound Grizzly.

  “Must be a good movie, care if I join?” I don’t wait for an answer before I prepare to park myself on the couch. “Watch my ass, bro. I don’t want to end up on your lap,” I warn him, wedging myself right in between the two of them.

  I’m not planning on going anywhere any time soon, so I make myself comfortable by propping my feet up on the coffee table, then I stretch both arms over the back of the couch.

  Ari tips her head back to look up at me. “Caleb,” she spits through her teeth.

  “Kid,” I greet back.

  “Get lost,” she delivers her first warning.

  When I don’t move, she pulls on my arm. I weigh twice her size. I don’t budge.

  “You’re going to have to remove me yourself if you want me gone,” I present her with a challenge I know she can’t win. Ari continues to try, and I let her, but I don’t forget about the little guy next to me. I turn to face him. “What’s up, man? My name is Caleb.” I pick my arm up from behind Ari, accidentally bumping the back of her head when bringing my hand around toward the boy with a smile.

 
“Aryn!” Ari barks her second warning to her brother. He doesn’t acknowledge her, too busy watching me, trying to figure out my play.

  “Jeff.” The boy makes the smart choice and takes my hand with a smile. I grip firmly, and I don’t let go.

  “So, Jeff. Tell me about yourself.” My gaze drops to his sweater, and before Jeff can answer me, I make an observation. “You play basketball, I see…”

  “Yea.” Jeff winces when my grip tightens around his fingers.

  My patience for this dumbass drains with every passing second. It’s not anything he says that bothers me, I just don’t like his bitch face, and I hate his reason for being here even more. “And what? College girls these days are shit ugly?” I arch a brow pointedly at him.

  “N-No,” he stammers.

  “What, then? You and your team had a bet on who could screw their first high school chick?” I squeeze tighter, crushing his fingers.

  “No, dude!” Jeff’s frown lines deepen, and he tries pulling his hand from my grasp.

  I don’t let go. Instead, I nod toward Aryn. “That’s her brother over there, be a good little boy and say hello.”

  “Hello,” Jeff says to Aryn. Aryn doesn’t answer him.

  “Fun fact, Jeff… Aryn and I play football. While it’s not basketball, you and I both know the true meaning of loyalty, since it’s one of the key components in making a great team. And a great team always backs their mate, yea?” I actually wait for an answer this time. Jeff nods. “Good boy, Jeff!” I praise with mock enthusiasm.

  “Are you freaking kidding me with this, Aryn?” Ari shrieks. “Make him stop!”

  Aryn ignores his sister’s pleas, responding to her with a simple, “Shh!”

  All trace of humor falls from my face, and without warning, I jerk Jeff toward me, until my mouth is at his ear. He tries his damnedest to lean away from me, the way Ari was trying to distance herself from him just seconds ago. “You see how that works? When she leans away, it’s no longer okay for you to push yourself on her.”

  Jeff nods when he gets my point. He doesn’t say anything; just nods along with everything I say.

  “If I catch your scrawny ass in this house again, you can guaran-damn-tee that I’m going to have my brother’s back. And next time, I won’t be so nice.” I turn to look at Aryn, and he tips his head back, signaling his approval. “I think I’ll start with your bitch arms, rip them clean off your body so I can beat you to death with them, and then I’m gonna drop your corpse in the Hudson. They’ll never find your body, Jeff,” I promise him. “Do we have an understanding? Nod your head if you understand.” He nods.

  When I finally release his hand, Jeff jumps to the other side of the couch.

  “Good, we’re done. Get the fuck out of here, dude.” I nod my head toward the door. “Movie’s over.”

  Jeff practically leaps off the couch, all but leaving a Jeff-shaped hole when he runs his puny ass out the door.

  I make a show of wiping my hands in the air. “And just like that, my work is done. It’s all about the timing, bro.” I grin at a laughing Aryn, in hysterics over the show I put on. “What a fucking pussy, it was just a tiny threat.”

  Ari shoots up to her feet, glaring down at me. “You two are unbelievable!” she growls, and then she turns toward her brother. “Aryn, how could you? I’m humiliated!”

  The question tips Aryn over the edge, no longer finding the situation funny at all. I brace myself for the shit storm that’s about to hit.

  “How could I?” he repeats. “What the hell is the matter with you, Ariana? Date guys your own age!” Aryn snaps back at her. “Or don’t date at all, that would actually be better for me. It will certainly help me sleep at night.”

  A weird choking noise comes from the back of Ari’s throat as her entire face flushes a deep shade of red. “He’s only nineteen, not that I care about the age difference. Who I date is none of your business!”

  “The hell it’s not, I am your brother!” he shouts back.

  “I fucking hate the both of you!” she screams. I wince.

  The swearing stings worse than the declaration of hate. It’s like nails on a chalkboard for me whenever a girl spews shit from her mouth. I understand how it may seem unfair, considering the filthy mouth I have on me. But women and swearing mix just about as well as a clown at a funeral. It makes no damn sense, making it impossible for me to take them seriously.

  Normally, I don’t give a damn about women enough to comment, but Ari is family, and I’d really hate for her to adopt the habit so early on.

  “Language, Ariana,” Aryn warns her before I do. He feels just as strongly about this as I do.

  I didn’t think it possible, but Ari’s face turns even redder. “I can’t wait until you both graduate! I will finally be free to do whatever the hell I want!” she spits at both of us.

  “Oh, that’s what you think,” Aryn counters. “I’m going to plant cameras all over the fucking place to make sure you keep your ass out of trouble,” he threatens her, and I believe him. The guy is fucking crazy when it comes down to protecting his baby sister.

  “For the love of God, just leave me alone, both of you!” she yells one final time before stomping off.

  Okay, so, maybe I went a little overboard with the threat on the boy’s life. I kind of feel bad.

  Kind of.

  “Aw, honey…” I call after her, but she marches on without looking back. “Yep, she’s pissed,” I say, picking up the remote to flip through channels.

  “As I said she would be.” Aryn shakes his head.

  “She’ll learn to deal, Aryn.” I set the remote down next to me when I find Sports Center.

  “No, she won’t,” he disagrees.

  “She’s your sister. I’m sure she knows, somewhere in the back of her mind, that we were just protecting her. Give her a minute to cool off. She’ll go up to her room, play with her dolls, and all will be fine,” I assure him.

  “Just how young do you think she is?”

  Barely catching his question over the highlight reel, I look back up at him. “Huh?”

  When Aryn’s frustrations consume him, he drags his hands down his face. Then he does a complete one-eighty, tone bleeding guilt when he says, “I need to apologize to her.”

  “So, go.” I nod toward the stairs.

  He shakes his head. “She’s not going to just talk to me when she’s like this, dude. You go talk to her first. Calm her down a little bit,” Aryn pleads.

  “What, so she can claw my eyes out?” I shake my head back at him. “That’s a no go, bro. I like my eyes where they’re at. They help me see great things.”

  “She won’t claw your eyes out, she’s not a fucking animal. Don’t be a dick!” Aryn kicks my feet off the table. “Look… normally, I would agree that she could use a minute alone to calm down, but this is bad. I’ve never seen her this pissed.”

  I hang my head on a sigh. “Fine,” I reluctantly agree. Then I stand to my feet, and Aryn follows close behind when I head to the kitchen for another beer. “Do you still have your high school football gear here?” I pop the cap off the chilled bottle.

  “No, why?”

  “Protection,” I say. “I guarantee you I’m going to get a good kick in the nuts, at the very least.” I take a generous swig of the cold brew, the corners of my mouth tilting with my smirk.

  Aryn shoves me out of the kitchen, and I trudge down the hall to her room.

  The light in her room is on, but the door is shut. I knock against it, the first sign of respect I show for her privacy this evening.

  She doesn’t answer. I turn the knob anyway.

  “Kid, you in here?” I poke my head in.

  The room is empty.

  What the fuck? Where did she go?

  I crane my neck to check the bathroom, but the door’s open, and the lights are off.

  I start to panic when the thought of her going after the fucking twat-sicle crosses my mind, and I run back out toward the living roo
m.

  “She’s not in her room. You don’t think she went after the guy, do you?” I ask when Aryn looks up from the TV.

  He shakes his head, but he doesn’t appear the least bit worried. “We would know if she left, we’ve been out here the whole time. Try the balcony, that’s where she goes to cool off sometimes.”

  I run up the stairs, taking them two at a time, and I head straight for the balcony as soon as I reach the top. I let out a small breath of relief when I find her sitting on the bench swing.

  I can see how upset she is from here, and she has every right to be. While I’ve never been put in her position before, I admit that our tactics were flawed. What we did to scare the boy away had to be embarrassing as hell for her.

  But we also have our own reasons for wanting to protect her.

  Surely, she understood that…

  When I walk up to the sliding glass doors, my heart sinks. She’s crying. I was so focused on protecting her that I didn’t take a moment to really consider the damage I would be doing. Aryn was right, I’ve never seen her this upset.

  Ari wipes her wet cheeks against the ends of her sleeves, and with the foot she has on the floor, she gently rocks the swing back and forth.

  There’s no question. I’m definitely going to get a good kick in the nuts.

  Fuck me.

  With a quick prayer to whoever it is people pray to for luck, I slide the glass doors open and step out to join her.

  “There you are,” I say, keeping my tone low so I don’t end up startling her.

  Ari doesn’t so much as glance my way, but I approach the bench anyway. Cautiously.

  I stop in front of her, gesturing toward the vacant seat to her right. “Can I sit?”

  The foot she had on the floor lifts, and then… mind-numbing pain. She kicked my fucking shin.

  “No, you may not fucking sit!” she growls.

  Yes, I am glad she didn’t kick me in the nuts, but a kick to the shin didn’t feel like such a great alternative, either.

  The pain is agonizing, borderline unbearable. I swear I can feel a bruise forming already. I have a pulse in my shin. My fucking shin!