Room at the Top (13 page)

“She wouldn’t have cared.” Austin did move then, stepping back, his face set like stone. “God, Mom’s going to lose it when she hears about this.” He put out his hand to touch Liam’s arm. “I’m still sorry. You’ve got a right to be angry, but she’s…she’s my baby sister. It’d serve her right to have to get out of this herself, but if she thinks I won’t come for her, she’ll call my mom and that’s just not a good idea.”

“I’m not angry.” Liam sounded surprised. “Disappointed, yes, but I understand that you have to sort this out.”

“I have to go with him,” Jay said, and they both turned to look at him, Austin in protest, Liam in what was probably resignation. “No, seriously. Have to and want to. It’s not good to be alone for something like this.”

“You could stay.” It seemed like a difficult offer for Austin to make. “I could come back later, or if this ends up taking too long, maybe Liam could drive you home, after you…”

“No,” Liam said firmly. “Not an option. Of course I’d be willing to drive you home, Jay, but there won’t be a session unless both of you are here.”

Austin made a face. “That makes me feel even worse. It’s bad enough I have to miss out, but that doesn’t mean Jay—”

“It wouldn’t be the same without you,” Jay said loyally.

It was quiet for a moment. Austin looked like he was struggling with something he wanted to say, and finally, softly, said, “Liam, if you…you could come with us, if—”

“I’d only be in the way.” Liam dismissed the idea so quickly that Jay could see Austin’s feelings were hurt. It made him want to yell at Liam. “This is a family matter. I’m not a part of it.”

“Okay.” Austin nodded and gestured at Jay. “Come on. I’m really sorry, Liam, about all of this. I’ll call you later and let you know how it went.” He walked toward the front door, where their shoes were.

Liam gave Jay what might have been an apologetic look. “He doesn’t have to be sorry. I really do understand. Try to make him see that.”

It was hard to be mad at Liam when he sounded genuinely sorry and worried, but Jay didn’t want to let go of the emotion completely. “You can do that yourself,” he said, and he followed Austin out.

* * *

Austin drove too fast on the way to the police station, but it wasn’t until he ran a yellow light that was a shade too close to red for Jay’s comfort that Jay said anything.

“Slow down, okay? She’s safe. She can wait a few extra minutes. What happened?”

“I only know what she told me,” Austin said, which meant he didn’t believe it. He did slow down a little bit, though. “She said she had a taillight out, but I don’t know why they wouldn’t just let her go with a warning.”

“There must be something more to it,” Jay agreed.

“Liam seemed really pissed off.” It was a statement begging to be disagreed with, and Jay had no problem doing just that.

“I don’t think so.” Jay shook his head, the dangling earring he had in his left ear swinging wildly, the winged dragon striking the side of his neck. He liked the weight of it, though Liam would’ve made him take it off if they’d stayed. “
You come to me naked, and you wear what I put on you
,” he’d snapped when Jay had argued about that rule a few weeks ago.

“No. No way. He feels the same way we do, but it’s not the end of the world.”

He wriggled his ass against the car seat, trying to get even a twinge from the stripes Liam had laid across it the week before, but though the sting at the time had been electric, searing enough to take his breath away, the six clear, dark stripes had almost gone. “Maybe we can see him tomorrow?”

“I don’t know if he’d like that. He’s all about boundaries and routine. We’ll have to wait.” The depressed resignation in Austin’s voice made Jay think dark thoughts about April. It wasn’t the loss of tonight that was making Austin sound this way. Austin was too levelheaded to mind that. It was inevitable there’d be times when Liam had to cancel or both of them weren’t available, after all.

“I wish he’d come, though,” Jay added. Liam might not be pissed, but Jay was.

Austin shrugged, turning into the parking lot closest to the station. “He’s not a lawyer, just a whatever…corporate law attorney. What could he do?”

“Be there for us. Support us.”

“Not part of the deal.” Austin turned off the engine. “If I start yelling at her, stop me, okay? It just makes her worse.”

There was a reception desk in the entryway of the building with an officer behind glass to buzz people in. This was the first time Jay had gone with Austin to the station, but not the first time Austin had been there. All he had to do was explain who he was and the police officer buzzed them in.

“Hi,” Austin said to the man who came over to meet them. “We’re here to pick up my sister, April Fisher?”

“Right. I’m Officer Peterson,” the policeman said. “I wasn’t the one who pulled your sister over, but the officer who did said she was kind of uncooperative.”

“Sounds like her. Did she run a stop sign or something?”

Peterson shook his head. “She was pulled over for having a broken taillight, but when we checked her record, we found out she has half a dozen unpaid parking tickets. You’ll have to pay a fine before we can release her. She tried to pay it with a credit card, but it was declined.”

None of this seemed to surprise Austin, who sighed. “How much?”

“Six hundred and eighty dollars.”

“What? Where the hell has she been parking?” Austin bit his lip. “Sorry, sorry. I know this isn’t your fault.”

“She seems to prefer using handicapped spots,” Peterson said. “Plus they’ve gone unpaid for so long there are a lot of late fees.” He gestured at an officer near the back of the room, and Jay saw that April was sitting back there too, looking annoyed.

“There are so many questions I won’t ask,” Austin said, mostly to Jay. “Like why she couldn’t park in regular spaces, and why she didn’t just pay the tickets when she got them. And why she has to be
such an idiot
.”

“Took you long enough,” April said, joining them and glaring at Austin.

“Yeah, that’s a nice way to thank me for coming to get you.” Austin looked at Peterson. “What happens if we don’t pay the fine?”

Peterson shrugged. “She stays here over the weekend and talks to the judge on Monday morning. The car will stay in impound.”

The expression April turned toward Austin was one of panic. “Austin! You can’t leave me here!”

“I don’t have a choice,” Austin said grimly. “I don’t have the money. Mom’s gonna flip. What will she do without a car? She can’t afford to replace it.”

“I’ll pay the fine. Whatever it is,” a familiar voice said behind them, and Jay turned to see Liam standing there, looking weirdly out of place. “I assume you’ll take a credit card? I doubt I have enough cash on me.”

“Liam? What are—” Austin shook his head. “Never mind. No. You can’t.”

“Who the fuck are
you
?”

Jay saw Liam’s head turn the barest amount necessary to bring April into view. He looked her over unhurriedly, head to toe, and Jay wondered what he made of her. April’s hair was naturally the same blonde as her brother’s, but she’d dyed it for so many years—it was currently black shot through with purple—that it was a hot mess of split ends and frizz. She was dressed in black, leather-look pants and a skimpy ripped T-shirt, and weighed down with a ton of silver chains around her neck and wrists. She was sexy, he supposed, considered objectively, with high, lush breasts straining against her top, and a sullen pout that screamed
kiss me.

For one horrible moment, Jay thought Liam was attracted to her. A bad girl and a dom kind of went together—in his nightmares, at least.

Liam turned away, dismissing April as rudely as she’d addressed him, and Jay felt a surge of relief. Stupid, really. There was no way that Liam would have—no. He was going to scrub that thought from his mind.

“How much?” Liam asked the officer, his voice bored but polite.

“I
said
, who are you?” April’s voice was shrill now, and she grabbed Liam’s arm, pulling him around to look at her.

“He may be the reason you won’t be spending the night in a cell, not that I think for a minute that he should pay the fines, so take your hands off him,” Austin said through his teeth, shooting Liam an apologetic, hunted glance. “I’m sorry. She’s freaked out.”

“Don’t make apologies for her,” Liam said.

“Six hundred and eighty dollars.” Peterson gestured Liam toward a desk where he could make the payment, and Austin followed Liam.

“Seriously, you don’t have to do this.” Austin sounded, if anything, more upset than he had previously. “Please. Don’t.”

“I don’t want to stay here. Austin.” April had summoned up tears from who knew where, and one of them traced its way down her cheek, taking black eyeliner along for the ride. She tugged at Austin’s sleeve. “You wouldn’t leave your baby sister in jail.”

Austin whirled around. “You’re such a selfish, irresponsible little
bitch
. Just shut the fuck up for five seconds so I can
think
.”

Blinking, April stared at her brother wide-eyed; then Jay saw a flare of matching anger and her hand came up to slap Austin. “You asshole!” she shrieked, and Austin’s head jerked as her palm made contact. “Don’t you dare talk to me like that!”

Officer Peterson grabbed on to April and dragged her backward, roughly but not as rough as Jay would have been if it was him doing the restraining. Austin was still standing there in shock, so Jay put an arm around him, ignoring April as Peterson said something to the other cop. April started to sob loudly and sat down on the floor, rocking back and forward like a baby. Austin sighed, pulled away from Jay, and went to kneel beside her.

“Hey, come on. Don’t cry.” Austin didn’t touch her. “It’s okay.”

“You’re being so mean to me,” April sobbed. “I called you because I knew you were the only person who’d help me, and instead you say I’m a bitch?”

Austin looked up at Jay helplessly. His cheek was flushed red where she’d slapped him, and Officer Peterson was saying something about Austin pressing charges. “No,” Austin said. “No, I don’t want to do that. I just want her to get released…or whatever.”

Peterson nodded and moved to process Liam’s credit card payment. “This doesn’t make me legally responsible for her in any way, does it?” Liam asked wryly, even though he had to know the answer to that question.

“No, just for the payment,” Peterson said. He slid the slip of paper toward Liam so he could sign it, then gave him a printed receipt.

“Could I get another copy?” Liam asked and, when he had it in hand, walked to where April was still sitting on the floor and dropped it in front of her. “There. Try not to lose it. It’s the only one you’ll be getting from me.”

April looked up at him, her eyes narrowed. There was no gratitude in them. Whenever Jay heard someone—usually an older person in a crotchety mood—use the phrase
she thinks the world owes her a living
, he thought of April.

Sure, she’d grown up without a father—but she’d never had one to miss and her mother and brothers had surrounded her with love, as far as he could tell. Jay knew when it came to Austin being used and abused, he tended to get plenty crotchety himself, but even making allowances for his prejudice against people who hurt his boyfriend, he just didn’t like April much.

“Third time, suit. Who are you?”

With a cool self-possession Jay admired—and yeah, it got him hot—Liam ignored her as if she’d ceased to exist once he’d finished speaking to her.

“Get up,” he said to Austin. He didn’t offer his hand, but when he stepped back, Austin rose as if the order, delivered in a flat, disinterested voice, had scooped him up off the floor.

Jay walked over to slip his hand into Austin’s, not caring if the cops saw him. Madison was a college town, so the police tended to be more tolerant than otherwise, echoing the local population’s attitude, but like anywhere, there were always assholes. Right then he didn’t care.

Austin’s hand was trembling, but his voice was steady when he spoke. “Go home, April. We’ll talk about this tomorrow, all of it. Right now, though, just go.”

“Sure thing, Big Brother,” April snapped, putting a smear of emphasis across the last two words that changed them from a statement of fact to an insult. Austin hated that nickname, Jay knew, but April had been using it for years, claiming Austin was always watching her.

Watching
out
for her, yes.

She got to her feet in a smooth, sensual wiggle and gave the three of them a scornful look. “Austin and Jay, sitting in a tree—and suit makes three?” She eyed Liam, giving him the same appraisal he’d given her. “Are you paying them to blow you or something? Is that why you came to the rescue?”

“April, I swear to God, if you don’t shut your fucking mouth and leave—”

Liam held up his hand, cutting Austin off. “Miss Fisher is about to do just that, I’m sure.”

“I’ll go when I want, suit.”

April’s defiance ended abruptly when Officer Peterson began to walk toward them, a heavy frown on his face.

“
Thank
you,” she said with fulsome insincerity and leaned up to plant a mocking kiss on Liam’s face, the scarlet of her lipstick leaving a bright, sticky smudge. Austin’s fingers clenched around Jay’s, but he didn’t say anything. They both knew that letting April have the last word was the only way to get rid of her. “See ya, sucker in a suit.”

When she’d gone, Austin sighed, a long, pained exhalation, and his grip on Jay’s hand eased off. Working his fingers to get the feeling back, Jay said softly, “Give her a minute to go around to the impound lot, huh? We don’t want to bump into her again.”

Liam took out a handkerchief as white as cotton could get and rubbed at his face where he’d been kissed. When he saw the stain on the fabric, he walked over to the nearest trash can and dropped the handkerchief into it, with Austin and Jay trailing behind him.

“That was… You didn’t need to do that. Not when she was such a bitch to you.” Austin was flushed with embarrassment, a darker patch showing where he’d been slapped. Jay wanted to scrub that clean, the way Liam had done to his cheek. She’d marked both of them—no, all of them, because he felt tainted with anger and dislike.