BROKEN COURAGE (Broken Redemption Book 3)

Chapter 51

Lucas

"Hey. Thought you were on break?" I ask, surprised to see him back in the control room, lunch in hand.

"Was supposed to be, but then your woman cornered me in the kitchen. She's angry with me. Figured I'd be safer eating in here." He sounds both amused and resigned. I raise an eyebrow, needing an explanation but unable to hide my amusement. "She's worried about Annelly. Something about a guy she's seeing."

As he recounts the story, I can't help but laugh. "You're full of shit, James. You seriously expect us to believe you're not worried about that dude?"

"It's not that I'm not worried. It's that it's not my place to do anything about it. Annelly isn't my girl, nor can she ever be."

"I thought you guys were friends. Being friends means you have a right to reach out and check-in."

"Not that type of friend. Hell, after how things went down before she left, I'd say we're back to nothing more than acquaintances."

"You get that she's family, right? She's Embree's cousin, which, by extension, means she's important to Jen, Ben, and me. And that comment about how things ended, that my dude, is entirely on you. You're the one who got your panties all twisted up when she caught you kissing that chick outside of Souder's Bar."

He's mid-bite when he shoots me a dirty look. As if to prove some weird point, he tosses his half-eaten sandwich back into the wrapper before balling it up.

"I did not get my panties..." he pauses and shakes his head, probably realizing how ridiculous that was going to sound. "The girl knows I don't do relationships. I told her that. Made it very clear that all we could ever be was friends. What I did... I was only trying to protect her. She was catching feelings I knew I could never return."

Now that's interesting. His use of the phrase "could never return" instead of "would never return."

"That's neither here nor there. Don't you think we should at least look into this guy? Not only is she family, but she's also hundreds of miles away from home. It's part of our job to make sure she's safe."

"Then go right ahead and do that. Your woman is on board, and you certainly don't need my permission." When I give him a dirty look, he proceeds to make an even bigger ass of himself. "Fuck! You know what I don't understand? Why your girl came to me and not you. Or hell, to fucking Ben. Why dump that shit at my feet and make it my problem?"

Standing, he grabs the balled-up sandwich and slams it into the trash. The fucker's pissed, probably because he does care but is too chicken shit to admit it to himself. But I know him; he's not going to let this go because he knows Embree is right to be concerned. If I were a chick, this is when I'd step in to reassure him that everything is going to be okay, but because I'm a guy, I can't help the howl of laughter that breaks through my lips.

"What the hell are you laughing at? This is bullshit, and you know it."

"The only thing I know is you're a coward. You like the girl, but you're too scared to admit it."

"Ha ha ha, fuck you, asshole. It's whatever. I'll just tell Ben. Let him worry about it." He drops back into the chair next to me, his body slumped like a toddler throwing a tantrum. It makes me chuckle.

"Look, man, it's simple. Stop acting like you don't care. Call her up, say hi, and generally act like a friend. Ask questions, be there for her, and without being too obvious, get this guy's name. We'll have Owen run a background check. If he checks out and is on the up and up, we'll let it go. If not, we'll handle it. But for now, build on your friendship, so if things go south, it's you she calls if she needs help."