Her eyes fluttered, and as the sleep cleared, her mouth curled up in a lazy smile. I hated to give her any reason to lose the happy look on her face, which was why I was going to beat the shit out of Nova when he got here. “It's time to get up. I made you some breakfast.”
Reality floated back to her, and her expression clouded as she sat up. I kept my eyes trained on her face when the covers pooled around her waist. We didn't have time for me to lose my head over her incredibly sexy body. “I'm not hungry,” she responded as she scooted to the edge of the bed. “I'll just grab a quick shower.”
“No.” The word came out a little more harshly than I intended, and she lifted her head, staring at me in surprise. “Sorry.” I leaned in to give her a tender kiss. “I should have explained. You're eating for two, Arya. And we don't have time for breakfast and a shower. So, food it is.”
“But I'm not hungry,” she grumbled. “And I smell like your cologne and...sex.”
Exactly. It gave me a perverse sense of satisfaction to know her brother would smell me on her. Not that Nova needed any more reasons to want me dead.
I helped her up from the bed and dressed her—she'd become used to me wanting to do everything for her and rarely fought me on it anymore. Then I carried her down to the kitchen and lowered her onto a chair at the table. I removed the omelet I'd made from the microwave and grabbed a bowl of fruit from the counter, setting both in front of her. Lastly, I brought her a large glass of orange juice.
“Aren't you going to eat with me?” she asked as she dug into her food, clearly hungrier than she'd thought.
I shook my head, and she glared at me, calling me a hypocrite with her pretty eyes. I grinned and tapped her nose. “I'm not eating for two.”
“Stop saying that,” she sighed as she swatted my hand away. “We don't know if I'm pregnant.”
I didn't reply, but Arya clearly saw my arrogant assumption on my face because she rolled her eyes before focusing on her food. She inhaled the first omelet and requested a second with a chagrined smile, making me laugh. So fucking cute.
She'd just finished her second and helped me wash and put away the dishes when we heard the rumbling of several hogs coming down the gravel road to the cabin.
Arya began wringing her hands together, and I covered them with my own while giving her a reassuring smile. “Everything will be okay, I promise.” She didn't look convinced. “Do you trust me, baby?”
She immediately nodded, making me smile with pride. “I love you,” she added.
“I love you, too.” I lifted her hands and kissed them, particularly the finger sporting a diamond ring that no one could possibly miss. “I want you to stay here.”
Arya snorted. “Fat chance.”
“Baby—”
“Don't you ‘baby’ me, Dax,” she snapped, interrupting me. I'd never heard her speak so forcefully, and it shocked the hell out of me. It was also hot as fuck. “Neither of you is going to hurt me, and seeing me safe and happy might help defuse Nova.”
I considered arguing some more, but her expression said it would be pointless. Instead, I released her hands, then captured one and threaded our fingers together. “Let's go.”
We'd only taken one step toward the door when she tugged on my hand, urging me to stop and look at her. “Please, don't kill each other.”
“You got it, babe.”
“Also, even if I am pregnant, I want a houseful of kids. I'd appreciate it if you didn't let my brother injure or remove your balls.”
Her expression was so serious that it took me a beat to realize she was teasing me. I roared with laughter and gave her a quick kiss, thanking her for easing our tension, and we moved toward the door once more.
Boots stomped up the steps before there was a pounding on the door. "Dax! Get your motherfucking ass out here, you bastard!"
Before I could say anything, Arya yanked the door open and shouted, “Cool your jets, Nova!”
For a good thirty seconds, everyone stared at her with our jaws slack. Then all hell broke loose. I shoved Arya behind me as Nova lunged for me and grunted as he landed a punch to my gut. He attempted a jab with his other hand, but I blocked his fist while delivering an uppercut and hearing a satisfying crack as my fist met his jaw. The blow knocked him back a step, but we both froze when Arya came rushing around me.
“Good grief, stop it, you two.”
Thankfully, Patriot and Dash had been on Nova's ass, and Dash ran up to grab my girl and drag her away from our brawl. “Best to stay out of their way and let them work it out of their systems, sweetness.”
I glared at Dash, distracted by the way he was talking to Arya. It cost me because the next thing I knew, my nose met Nova's fist. “Fuck!”
We brawled until we were both bloody and bruised, then dropped our asses on opposite sides of the porch and scowled at each other.
“If you touched her,” Nova seethed in a deadly tone, “I will rip your balls off before I break your neck.”
I rolled my eyes and wiped away some of the blood dripping from my nose—luckily, it hadn't broken. “What the fuck do you think has been happening up here, Nova? Soda pop and board games?”
Dash, Patriot, and Arya all chuckled, and Nova threw them a dark look. “Doesn't matter. It's done now. Arya is coming home with me.”
Arya scoffed, but I beat her to a response. “Over my dead body, brother.”
“She's a kid!”
I grunted in irritation. “Open your eyes, Nova. She's a fucking woman, and no amount of brotherly ignorance is going to change that fact. And if you need further proof—that she's all grown up and all mine—she's pregnant.”
His eyes narrowed on me, then he glanced at Arya before refocusing on me. “You've only been up here two weeks.”
“Once is all it takes, bro.”
Nova looked as though he would lunge for me again, but Arya piped up and drew his attention. “If it makes a difference—and it should—I was a willing participant. I love Dax.”
Nova shook his head and struggled to his feet. “You're too young to know what love is, sis. And you barely know Dax. This will pass.”
Arya shot to her feet and broke through the Dash and Patriot wall blocking her. “I'm not going to dignify that with a response.” Her tone was snippy, but her eyes were swimming with hurt. “When you're ready to apologize for being an asshole, you'll find me with Dax.”
I was ready to kill Nova for putting that pain in my woman's eyes, but she walked up to me and took my hand. Her tight grip told me that she wanted me to stay close. I wrapped an arm around her, and she leaned into my side.
Nova had the good sense to look ashamed, but he didn't hide his distaste at seeing my arm around his sister. “I'm sorry, sis. I really am. I shouldn't have been such a dick.”
Reluctantly, I let Arya go when she walked over to him, and he enveloped her in a big hug.
“I just want what's best for you.”
“I know," Arya answered with a sigh. “Dax is what's best for me.” I couldn't help puffing up a little at her statement. Damn, I loved her.