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I can hear Blood and Baratta’s raised voices through my bedroom door while I’m changing. I know my brother is overprotective of me, but if Baratta is staying they need to get along. I love my brother but my sex life is mine.
As soon as I step out of my bedroom, Blood is right there. “Why is he here?”
“Because I asked him to be.” is the only answer I give him. It’s not the full truth but it is all the truth my brother is going to get.
I take a deep steadying breath because I know Blood is only trying to watch out for me. He always has, always will.
“Blood, I’m twenty four years old. I moved to Seattle for my apprenticeship when I was only nineteen. I’ve lived on my own and made my own decisions for five years now. You have to trust me to live my life. Baratta is staying. Period.”
“You just met him! How can you expect me to trust him with my sister?”
“Blood, Blood” I have to say his name a couple of times before he focuses back on me. “That is not true; I met him two years ago.” My brother looks at me as if I just told him the moon was made of blue cheese.
“Is he the reason you came home?”
“No. I came home because I want to be home. I miss my family. I miss you and if I was not here, I would miss my soon-to-be niece or nephew.”
“If he hurts you I’ll kill him. I don’t care who he works for!”
“Blood, if he hurts me I’ll kill him. You have seen me in the ring; you also taught me how to shoot. I can take care of myself. Please Blood, back off, for me.”
Blood looks over to Baratta, “You heard my sister. Hurt her and you are a dead man.” Then he storms out the door.
Baratta doesn’t say a word; he just pulls me into his arms and holds me. After a few moments I swear I hear him say, “Thank you.” but I don’t know what he is thanking me for, so I say nothing.
My phone pings telling me I have a text so I untangle myself from his arms to check my phone. It’s from my brother.
“Be at the shooting range at 9 a.m. Saturday. Prove to me you still got it.”
It’s time to open the shop, so I grab my keys and we head down stairs. “Baratta, I need a shop key for Lily and Arin.”
“No”
“What?” I stop and ask him.
“I have a set, you have a set and your brother gets a set. Nobody else.”
“Why?”
“Because people lose keys all the time, and I do not know them. Therefore; I do not trust them. Tell me about Lilly and Arin.”
“Well Lily came to me about six months after the Inker’s expo. She was working for a sexist pig at a shop in Sacramento. She’s been with me ever since. Arin is a local; she graduated high school last year and has been taking art classes at the community college.”
“This Lily chick, she just ups and moves, following you around like a lost puppy?”
I completely lose it and get in his face. “Lily is my ride or die! She is an adult female with no family and nothing tying her down. She can do whatever she damn well pleases. And just so you know, so can I!”