A Better Man(71)

Only in a much softer version.

Hours later, Jordan sat beside Lucy on the sofa listening to his sister play her guitar from down the hall. She had God-­given talent. Best of all, she'd been forced to talk to him while they'd been at the music store, where she'd picked up several acoustic guitars and strummed until she found a Gibson Hummingbird that had felt right. When he'd started to take it to the cashier to pay for it she'd tried to stop him.

"You can't buy that," she'd insisted. "It costs two thousand dollars."

He halted in the middle of the store. "Do you like it?"

"Yes."

"Will it make you happy?"

She'd hesitated and looked away to where a separate room housed numerous drum sets. "I don't want you to buy me anything."

"Why not?"

She'd shrugged.

"Because you think you'll owe me something?"

Another shrug lifted her shoulders.

He'd taken her by those slim shoulders and made her look at him. Blue eyes exactly like his own had stared back at him, verifying the reason he wanted to help. 

"You will owe me nothing, Nicki. I'm not buying it for you because I want something to hold over you. You're my little sister. I love you. I want to see you happy. And if somehow this guitar will make you smile, then it's worth every penny. Come on."

When he'd tucked his hand beneath her elbow and guided her to the cashier, he'd sworn he could hear her heart pounding.

After he'd paid for the instrument and handed her the black carrying case, she gave him the first real smile he'd seen since he'd come back home.

His heart melted.

When they'd come back to his apartment it smelled amazing from the pasta Lucy had made. They'd all sat at the dining table and actually had a conversation while they ate Lucy's delicious meal. Jordan figured buying the guitar had probably only given him a one-­night reprieve from the baby dragon's temper. But he'd take what he could get. Because for the first time, with Lucy and Nicki there, his apartment felt like a home.

Now, as he sat next to Lucy on the sofa, listening to Nicole play something that sounded like a soulful Miranda Lambert song, he sighed and reached for Lucy's hand. "She's really good."

"Really good." Lucy nodded. "Who knew?"

"Not me, that's for damn sure. Nobody-­not even my mom or dad-­ever mentioned that she played."

"Some of her song lyrics are just breathtaking. I wish she'd have turned those in for an assignment instead of a review for Pretty Little Liars."

He chuckled. "Me too."

"When we talked today she didn't mention anything about writing songs."

Jordan turned to look at her, noticing-­not for the first time-­just how beautiful she was without a stitch of makeup. Earlier when she'd taken her shower, she came back into the living room sans makeup, hair pulled up into a mess of silky curls piled up at the top of her head, and smelling like fresh peaches. Somehow he'd managed to keep his hands to himself when all he'd wanted to do was bury his face in her neck and take a bite. He'd wanted other things too but he was still trying to take things slow.

Hardest damn thing he'd ever done.

"You talked today?" he asked.

Lucy nodded.

"About?"

"How strangely excited she got when you decked that guy."

"Oh. Sorry."

"Don't be," she said. "I was thrilled that she let her emotions rule and that she appeared to want to protect you."

"I hate to admit it but I was damn proud of that." His heart gave a crazy little thump at the memory. "What else did you talk about?"

"About how she should trust you and talk to you so you can help her with whatever's bothering her. And that you're a good brother who loves her very much."

That Lucy had come to his defense touched him deeply. He lifted her hand to his mouth and kissed the backs of her fingers. "Thank you."

Sincerity flashed like gold glitter in her brown eyes from behind those dark-­rimmed glasses. "I wouldn't have said it if it wasn't true."

Her soft voice floated over him like a gentle caress that tightened every muscle in his body with awareness. Craving to touch her, he brought her hand to his lips again and kissed the soft skin on the inside of her wrist. When she didn't pull her hand away he drew her in so he could kiss her sexy mouth. When she leaned into his kiss, he lifted her onto his lap so she straddled his thighs with her cute little unevenly cutoff sweats, which she probably thought were unattractive and a safe choice in sleepwear. Yet all he could think about was slipping them off her curvy legs and touching all that bare skin and everything in between.