Borrowed Beauty

Chapter Eighteen: One Hell of a Meeting

Olivia

I’m not sure who was more mortified, me or Renee. I twisted on the stairs to watch her until she disappeared inside the house before I dared to look up at the alpha. I had no idea how much of the conversation Josiah had overheard. His midnight blue eyes revealed nothing. He walked toward me slowly and lowered his big frame down on the stair beside me. For a long moment, we both stared out over the lake. The setting sun was painting it with enchanting hues of purple and orange. The beauty of the moment was lost in the weird, awkward moment. I didn’t know what to say to him.

Then, he bumped my shoulder with his. I looked up at him and was surprised to see that his stoic expression had relaxed into a crooked smile. “So you are trying to suck up to me?”

I felt some of the tension leave my body as I bumped him back. It was like running my shoulder into a boulder. “I rather thought it was the other way around,” I said, smiling back at him.

He lowered his voice and wiggled his eyebrows at me. “As I recall, it was definitely you doing the sucking.”

“Ugh,” I covered my face with my hands, but, despite my embarrassment, a bubble of laughter worked its way out of my chest. He laughed too, and put an arm around my shoulders as if it was the most natural thing in the world. He tightened his arm and pulled me closer to his side, just as a shiny black limo pulled into the driveway. The driver got out and opened the rear door, and Aaron and Brock slid out, one after another.

They looked like two businessmen who had just had a hard day at the office. Brock had pulled his tie loose, and Aaron had his suit coat draped over one arm. Their hair looked less perfect than usual, and strangely, I saw a slight tear in Aaron’s shirt, just at the shoulder, like someone had tried to pull his sleeve off.

Must have been one hell of a meeting.

They nodded to us as they approached, and offered a polite greeting to the alpha. I noticed there seemed to be a wariness in the way they acknowledged us. Josiah released my shoulders, and immediately I felt the loss of that warm, heavy, weight, and the subtle tingling sensation that always accompanied his touch. He stood to address his cousins, his position on the stairs making him look extra big and extra intimidating. He stuffed his hands in his pockets, but it did little to negate the powerful aura that rolled off him.

“Long day?”

They stopped just short of the steps. Brock rubbed the back of his neck and his lips curved in a smile that didn’t reach his eyes. “Yeah, you could say that.”

“I get it, business is demanding,” Josiah continued. His words were casual, but there was a certain undercurrent of warning. “But don’t forget that you have a guest.”

The twins passed a silent look between them. Something about that glance bothered me, but I didn’t know why. I think it bothered Josiah too, because his voice had an edge of reprimand. “You’ve been leaving her alone a lot lately. I think you need to go check on her.”

In the blink of an eye, whatever that thing was between the twin brothers passed, and they were back to their smooth, suave charm. “We are on it,” Aaron said, climbing up the stairs two at a time as if he was eager to get upstairs and see my sister.

“We are taking her to the club tonight.” Brock followed at a more sedate pace. I heard the door shut behind them with a solid thud.

I was a little surprised that Josiah had not only noticed the twins had been neglecting my sister for the last few days, but that he’d actually spoken to the guys about it right in front of me. It was a small thing, and yet it seemed significant. Even though Renee was being, well, Renee, I was gratified that he had noticed the situation and stuck up for her.

Going to the club every night sounded boring to me, but Renee loved the nightlife. Maybe some two-on-one time with the twins, loud music, and copious amounts of alcohol would improve her mood.

Josiah was still standing over me with his hands in his pockets. It felt weird to be sitting while he was standing over me, so I rose to my feet too. I felt a little off balance, but I figured it was because I’d spent too long sitting on the hard step. It couldn’t have been because the man next to me was throwing my entire world off its axis.

A stiff breeze from the lake caught my hair and blew it straight into my mouth. I sputtered and swiped the offending pieces off my lips. When I cleared my face, I found Josiah staring at me with a bemused expression. “Well,” I said weakly, turning toward the door. I didn’t really want to leave, but I couldn’t stand there like an i***t staring at the man all night, and I couldn’t for the life of me think of anything else to say.

“Do you have plans for Saturday night?” His words came out rushed, almost like he was nervous to ask me, but that couldn’t be, right? A big, bad alpha like Josiah practically oozed confidence.

My Saturday night plans were remarkably similar to my Thursday night plans, and my Friday night plans, which is to say, I didn’t have any. I had a standing date with a book and that delightful wooden bathtub. Immediately, I decided it would be easy to stand up the tub in favor of the man before me, who, incidentally, smelled really good. I couldn’t find words, so I simply shook my head.

His eyes crinkled into a smile, “Would you like to go out with me?”

Oh, my giddy heart. I felt like a freshman in high school again, as I tried not to grin like an i***t. “Sure,” I said, trying to sound cool, and laid back. “I’d love to.”

“Great!” He started up the steps and then paused, “Oh yeah, make sure to wear something warm and comfortable.”

And then he was gone, leaving me alone on the steps, trying to figure out just what kind of date required warm and comfortable clothes. I guess we wouldn’t be going clubbing.

Just thinking of going to a bar with Josiah brought my thoughts abruptly back to Renee.

Something inside me insisted that Renee was not okay, no matter what she said. I felt that it was my responsibility to make sure she was alright. My dad had, after all, sent me along with her for that very reason. But how on earth could I be of any help there if Renee pounced on me every time I tried to show the slightest concern?

I was tired of babysitting my sister. Why couldn’t I just enjoy the novelty of being asked out by a smoldering alpha without Renee’s petulant desire for drama butting in for attention?

I sighed in frustration and kicked the step for good measure.