Ruined (Barnes Brothers #4)(66)

“Why are you nervous?”

“Who says I am?” Marin shot Sebastien an easy smile, determined not to let him see how her belly felt like it had gone and twisted itself into a hundred thousand knots. It was just plain stupid. She was going to see Ron and Denise, the rest of the brothers, and Abigale. The only person she didn’t know particularly well was Keelie, but they’d always gotten along. No reason to be nervous.

Sebastien held out a hand.

Curious, she looked down and then put hers in his.

“Other hand.”

Rolling her eyes, she complied. She’d already uncurled the fist. The second their skin touched, he turned her palm upright. “You’ve gouged your nails into your skin. But you’re not nervous.”

Snatching her hand away, she tucked her hand under her thigh, hiding those little half moons of evidence from him. “Don’t be silly. There’s no reason to be nervous. I mean, I’ve known your parents for more than half my life. Zach is like a brother to me.”

“Yeah.” There was a faint half smile on Sebastien’s face as he hit the blinker and started to slow down. A massive house up ahead caught her eye. “That’s the place.”

Marin lifted her brows. “Wow.”

“Yeah. So . . . since there’s no reason for you to be nervous . . .”

She smacked him on the thigh. “Shut up.”

***

It was almost like any other get together with them.

Marin sat on a lounge chair under a huge sun umbrella. Both Sojo and Geneva would have her hide if she went back with any kind of tan or sunburn. Slathered in sunscreen and hiding under the protection of the umbrella, she felt confident she’d avoid incurring their wrath and she was quite comfortable. The heat of the day made her lazy, and when Sebastien brought her some tea, she guzzled almost half the glass before stopping.

“You should have said you were thirsty.” He sat at the foot of the chaise, his eyes on the crowd rather than her. But he had his hand on her ankle and the way his thumb kept rubbing over her skin was doing things that were a little crazy for such an innocuous touch.

“What were you and Zach talking about?” she asked.

Sebastien sent her a quick look. “Nothing important.”

“He looked pretty intense.” From behind the protective shield of her glasses, Marin was able to look at Zach and she saw him glancing at them again. It wasn’t the first time she’d caught him eying them strangely. She doubted it would be the last, either.

Zach was always trying to play the hero. He’d been like that as long as she’d known him.

“He’s just being Zach. Abby might have hinted that we were . . . involved. He’s protective of you, you know.” Sebastien crooked a grin at her. “If he gives me trouble, it’s not a problem. I did it to him first.”

She might have asked about that if Denise hadn’t come toward them in the next moment, carrying two plates. “Here. I know you two are on a job, but you can still eat. Once I heard you were coming out, I asked Abby to make sure there would be something you could both eat.”

“I’m not supposed to be a bean pole, Mom.” Sebastien studied the pile of greens on his plate, but grinned at her. “At least I got some chicken.”

“Abby made it so you know you’ll like it.”

“You made her cook for her own birthday party?” Marin laughingly accepted the plate.

Denise waved a hand. “Fine, she didn’t cook it. Her staff did. She’s had to expand, did you hear?”

Marin nodded, stabbing at a fat strawberry with a fork. “She’s pretty pleased with it, but I think she’s done growing. She’ll have to start turning people down.”

“That’s the life of a successful businesswoman.” Denise sat in the chair nearest them, gazing out over the throng. The only ones missing were the twins—Travis had claimed work, as he always did. Trey also had work, but then there was his family. He had a deadline and Ressa hadn’t been able to get off work, so they’d called in the night before. “She’ll decide she wants to expand or she’ll decide she’s happy where she is and as much as she hates turning people down, that’s what she’ll have to do.”

Denise’s blue eyes, eyes she’d passed on to her boys, looked bright and happy. “You heard about Trey and Ressa’s pregnancy, didn’t you?”

“Yeah. He called me.” Sebastien nodded.

“Ressa sent me a text. She’s a wonderful lady—exactly what Trey needed after . . .” Marin stopped, sighing. Trey’s first wife had died in childbirth and it had seemed as though he’d never emerge from the dark depression that had gripped him. Ressa had turned his life upside down and he was that much happier for it now. “If only you can get somebody to have that kind of effect on Travis.”

“Humph.” Denise blew out a harsh breath through her nostrils. “I think that boy will need the earth to open up under his feet before he gets a clue. Kind of like you, Sebastien.”

Sebastien jerked his head up, the fork in his hand almost slipping. He had a mouth full of food and he couldn’t say anything with his mother sitting there—she’d get on him for that. Hurriedly, he chewed. “What? I don’t . . .” He stopped, shaking his head. Jabbing his fork toward his mother, he said, “You worry about Travis all you want. He needs it more than I ever did. He needs it more than Trey did.”