Staking Her Claim...: Book 1 in the Patricks' Brothers series (16 page)

This wasn’t a discussion I expected Rob would willingly broach. I assumed, that when he hadn’t brought it up any number of times the opportunity had arisen, he’d finally put it behind him, choosing to bury it like everything else that made him feel uncomfortable. That was his MO after all.

When we were teenagers, it hadn’t taken me long recognize when Rob was shutting down. Anytime someone would ask what he deemed to be too personal a question, he would slam the shutters on his emotions and react one of two ways. Rob would either; walk away refusing to acknowledge anyone had spoken, or he would scowl, reminding the person to mind their own business.

It wasn’t the words he used or the way he said them that had people backing off, it was the air of malice he exuded while he said them that did it. The invisible shimmer of anger was so potent, so fierce, it absorbed almost all of the oxygen in the room turning it toxic and cold. Rob went from a boy, who was usually calm and observant, to a boy capable of great violence. I can remember feeling the shiver of fear the first time I saw him behave that way. It wasn’t so much that I was afraid
of
him, more like
for
him.

Describing how it affected me to see him transform into a virtual stranger before my very eyes is next to impossible. I can tell you what he said; how his words launched from his mouth like daggers. I can describe his body language; how anger has tightened his mouth, caused his jaw and fists to clench, and the way his whole body has strung tight seemingly vibrating with fury. But what I can’t explain so that you will feel what I did, is how profoundly that first experience affected me.

Why do I bring this up, now? Because, everything from Rob’s posture – the way his body is coiled prepared to make the choice between fight and flight, how his eyes have narrowed taking in all the subtle nuances of my reactions to him, and the tick in his jaw project straight back to one particular day sixteen years ago…

                                                                                    *****

Sixteen years ago…Alysia is sixteen, Rob is seventeen.

              Rob was just gathering the last of the books he would need from his locker before he walked me home. I was standing, my back propped up against the bank of lockers beside his, my legs crossed one ankle over the other.

Today was memorable because this would be the first time Rob and I have been alone since I told him how I felt about him at our special place a month earlier. Up until today, he had made sure at least one of my brothers were around if he was in the same vicinity as me. Rob wouldn’t talk to me directly, either. If I asked him a direct question he couldn’t pretend he didn’t hear, he would look at a spot over my shoulder and mumble an answer. Basically; Rob used every imaginable excuse to avoid me. And that hurt.

I knew when it was happening, the exact moment he started to pull away. I chose to believe he just needed time to come to grips with what I’d confessed, and given time he would come to his senses and realize he felt the same way. Naive? Yes. But what choice did I have? I’d been in love with this boy for over four years. Accepting he only saw me as a friend, nothing more, wasn’t an option.

As Rob straightened, he noticed something over his shoulder that immediately got his attention. He was blocking my view with his broad shoulders and six-foot-two height, so I stepped forward and craned my neck to the side to get a better view of what he was looking at.

I sigh heavily when I see it’s Allen and Joseph, boys in my chemistry class, p
i
rowling down the deserted hallway. These two assholes had been making the last few months’ hell for me. I’m not sure why, other than they derive some sick pleasure out of pissing me off. But whatever the reason, they were the last people I wanted to deal with right now. If they said anything like they did in class while Rob was around, I knew it wouldn’t end well. For them or me. Rob would take care of the immediate issue; Allen and Joseph disrespecting me, but then Rob would feel it was his duty to inform my brothers what had been going on. And that was something I didn’t want. Not because these boys shouldn’t be taught a lesson about what it means to respect girls, but because they could possibly get into trouble for doing it.

See, Allen and Joseph’s fathers are both partners in the same law firm. A law firm that only deals with the super-rich and influential members of our community. I’ve seen them around town plenty of times driving their fancy European sports cars, wearing suits that look like they were hand tailored to fit them, treating the general population like everyday citizens unworthy of their time or attention. Each time I did, I thought the way those men behaved was the perfect explanation as to why their sons acted like class-A jerks ninety-nine percent of the time. After all, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.

“Looking good, Aly,” Joseph sneers when he’s close enough to be heard. Stopping about four-feet away, they look me up and down, taking in every inch of my appearance.

I wasn’t wearing anything particularly revealing – a simple, dark purple, V-neck T-shirt, cut-off denim shorts, and a pair of converse but the way they were looking at me made me feel like I was standing there in a bikini. They had a way of making me feel exposed and vulnerable, and I didn’t like it. In fact, I hated it. I felt dirty when they winked at me, smiling one of their sinister grins that made unspoken promises I was frightened to think too closely about. I despised how they spoke to me and the names they called me, but there wasn’t a lot I could do about it. Boys like these ran, Lancaster high, and albeit my brothers were part of that hierarchy, they didn’t have the power Allen and Joseph had.

My brothers were popular
because
they didn’t care. They didn’t seek out the attention they received. They didn’t date the head cheerleader or one of her posse because it would place them higher on the food chain. And with the power they were given being the sports God’s they were, they didn’t bully or mistreat students who weren’t part of their circle. No, my brothers might have been jocks, but they were good people. Not like Allen and Joseph, who were their polar opposites.

Dipping my head, I let my hair fall around my face like a curtain of protection and step back. It was involuntary, a sub-conscious move, but a move Rob noticed immediately.

“Nothing to say, Aly? Not even a thank you,” Allen prompts. I know what he’s doing. He wants a reaction from me. I’m not going to give him one, though.

Where most of the time they would quickly become bored with harassing me if I ignored them, this time was different.

“Have to say; if you weren’t so stuck up, I’d tap that ass in a hot minute. You’re one sexy piece of ass, Alysia,” Allen sneers.

“What the fuck did you just say to her asshole?” Rob asks angrily. I hadn’t looked at him once since I recognized who was approaching us, and I wished I would have.

Looking at him now, I see the pulse point in his neck beating out a rapid rhythm and his hands fisting at his sides, knuckles white they are clenched that tightly. His mouth is a thin slash across his otherwise handsome face, and eyes are drilling into the side of Allen and Joseph’s heads with angry promise. What that promise is, I don’t know, but I don’t like the looks of it.

Pulling on the corner of his T-shirt, I plead,

“Rob, let’s just go okay? This isn’t worth it. They aren’t worth it.”

My pleas fall on deaf ears when he repeats,

“You have trouble hearing? I said what the fuck did you just say to her and I want an answer, asshole.”

Smirking, Allen licks his lips.

“Obviously, I’m not the one with the hearing problem. You’re the one who didn’t hear me, dickhead. And what business is it of yours anyway? From what I hear, you aren’t her boyfriend, you don’t like chicks your own age. According to rumor, you like them older and more experienced. So why do you care if we have a little taste of the cute, little Alysia here?”

By my side, one second and not the next, Rob has Allen pinned against the lockers, the front of his shirt near his neck bunched in one giant fist. Not so tough when he isn’t the one dishing out fear, Joseph takes a tentative step away from the severely pissed off Rob, making his presence as inconspicuous as possible. If he could have faded into the wall, I think he would have in an instant.

“I’m only gonna say this once, motherfucker, so listen carefully,” Rob growls, his face inches from Allen’s. “I hear you keep talking shit to Alysia, upset her, get in her space, or even look in her general direction and I’ll fucking kill you.”

“Fuck you,” Allen spits. While he’s trying to put up a good front, you can hear the tinge of alarm in his voice.

“Nah, you’re not my type.” Grinning, a cold maniacal smile, Rob adds, “I’ll be the least of your problems if this shit continues, though. Her brothers don’t take kindly to people messing with their baby sister, and I’ve got every last one of them on speed dial. So I’d think about what you’re gonna do from here on out, because if you make the wrong choice and keep this shit up, you’ll be begging me to end you once they’re through with you. And that’s not a threat. That’s a fucking promise you can take to the bank, asshole.”

Eyes wide with recognition Rob isn’t kidding, Joseph takes a few extra steps backward, silently begging Allen to keep his mouth shut. Thankfully, Allen takes his friend’s advice, nodding his head jerkily before shaking himself free of Rob’s grip. However, the air of malevolence Rob is projecting doesn’t lessen with Allen’s silent agreement to leave me alone. And, that scares me.

Not because I think Rob would ever hurt me. He wouldn’t. But because I’ve never seen him act like this before. I’ve never seen him this furious, his rage channeled so directly on any one person in particular.

His anger doesn’t dissipate any as he walks me home, nor does he speak a single word to me. He’s silent the entire trip back, seemingly lost in his head. I’d give anything to know what he’s thinking, but I don’t dare ask. I don’t want any of his latent anger directed at me. It’s already bad enough we haven’t spoken for so long, I don’t want our first real conversation to be had with the tension between us the way it is now. I figure I’ll give him a few days to calm down, thank him for coming to my defense, and then see if I can’t get him to open up to me again.

That isn’t how it works out, though. As Rob drops me at my front door, he turns after making his way down the porch steps, saying,

“I’ll see you tomorrow.” That’s all. Nothing more, nothing less.

I didn’t know what to make of that, and I’d be lying if I said it didn’t give me a thrill that he may mean he was interested in rekindling our friendship. I was ecstatic at the thought. I’d missed him. Not just because I loved him, either. I missed talking to him and the silent strength he gave me. I missed his grin and his rare but beautiful laugh. I just missed him. However, what I thought and my excitement at the prospect was erased the very next morning. And every day after that, the spark of hope I carried inside that we would go back to what we died a little more. It faded until it was simply a flicker of optimism, held on to by a girl whose heart was too weak to let go of the boy who colored her world.

                                                                                    *****

Present day…

              “I’m not sure what you want me to say here, Rob. What happened to you and Thomas back then is your business. I don’t know how this conversation you had with Brookes came about, or why he would bring up what he thinks I know, but just because he did doesn’t mean we have to discuss it. Now, or ever for that matter.”

“That’s just it, Aly,” he grinds out. “We do need to discuss it. We’ve always needed to address it.”

Shaking my head, I straighten myself from where I had been leaning on the counter and shove my hands in the pockets of my shorts.

“No. No, we really don’t. That’s all in the past and that’s where it should stay. You wouldn’t talk to me about it then when we were friends, so why would we talk about it now? We aren’t friends anymore, we’re not even civil to each other most of the time, for Christ’s sake.”

Pressing his lips together, frowning, Rob looks to be weighing his words before saying,

“I wasn’t ready then, Aly. I didn’t think I’d ever be prepared to talk about it, but that changed when I came home. In part, it changed thanks to you, and in part, because I started seeing a psychologist who’s helping me work through my issues.”