"I'd call you a pussy," I said, looking down at his hunched shoulders, "but I'd hate to insult one of my favorite body parts. If I ever catch you touching a woman in this house without permission, I'll beat the shit out of you. We have to let you stay here for the next five years. We don't have to put up with this bullshit."
"She's just working here," Bryce whined, straightening and wiping his eyes with the back of his hand. "It's not like she's someone important."
Sudden rage hit me, hot and fierce. I shouldn't have punched him.
Shouldn't have but did. It was worth it to see the shock in his eyes at the slam of my knuckles into his jaw.
Of course, he fell on his ass, whining about telling his mother. I leaned down, getting right in his face. "Remember when we were all kids and you'd pick on the little ones? Remember what would happen? Didn't Griffen break your nose after you teased Sterling when her mom died? Your mommy's plastic surgeon fixed it so I can't even tell. What do you think would happen if it got broken again?" Bryce just moaned. I was done with him. "I hear one word about you giving anyone in this house trouble, and I'll fuck you up so badly Aunt Ophelia won't even recognize you. I don't care if it's staff, family, a visitor—keep your fucking hands to yourself. Do you understand me?"
Bryce turned his face to mine, hatred shining in his eyes. I didn't give a fuck. We'd always hated each other. That would never change.
I nudged his side with my foot when he didn't respond. Not a kick, but a reminder that I could break a few ribs if he pissed me off.
"I understand," he ground out between his teeth.
"Good."
Done with Bryce, I strode from the room, going in search of Griffen. I found him in his office, conveniently with Hawk and without Hope. "Got a sec?"
Griffen set down his phone, and they both looked at me. "What happened?"
Guess my mood showed on my face. I flexed my fist, my knuckles tight from that punch. "I went up to get Scarlett for lunch and found Bryce with her. He was hitting on her and trying to get info about any art that she found. Wasn't taking no for an answer."
"And?" Griffen prompted, his sharp gaze taking in my clenched fist.
"And I punched him. Twice. After Scarlett left. Told him we'd beat the shit out of him if he tried anything like that again."
"What did he say?" Griffen asked carefully, leaning back in his chair.
"That he was going to tell his mommy, and that it didn't matter because Scarlett wasn't important anyway."
That last part still burned a hole in my gut. Not important? Who the fuck was Bryce to decide another human being wasn't important?
It was more than that, more than him being an asshole to a woman in my home. I'd known Scarlett less than 48 hours. She shouldn't be important to me either. But she was, and I burned to hit him again.
Griffen sat forward, bracing his elbows on his desk. "That little shit. Is she okay?"
"I sent her down to see Savannah about lunch. She looked a little shaken but otherwise fine."
Griffen and Hawk shared a look. Hawk spoke first. "I'll get her a panic button in case he bothers her again. I don't trust your cousin to be smart. He might go after her just to get back at you. And I'll talk to Savannah, see if she or any of the other staff are having problems with him."
"We have to let him live here," Griffen said, "but there's nothing that says we can't press assault charges if he goes too far."
"That's our only recourse?" At that moment I had a new reason to hate my father. He hadn't liked Bryce any more than the rest of us. Bryce was here as a threat.
"To get rid of him, yes," Griffen answered. "But we won't let it get that far. He isn't going to harass anyone under my roof."
Picking up his phone, Griffen opened a familiar video. Scarlett, seen through the tablet's camera, cataloging one of the upstairs bedrooms.
"She's looking for something," Hawk said, his eyes on the screen.
"That's what I see," Griffen agreed.
"I was wondering if you'd catch that," I said.
"She's too smart to try to steal something," Hawk commented, still watching the screen.
"Agreed." The methodical way she cataloged every piece she found, the clarity and detail in her notes all made it clear she might be a liar, but she was far from stupid.
"Tenn." I expected a warning. Griffen's concern took me by surprise. "We don't know why she's here. Be careful."
"I won't endanger the family," I promised.
Griffen held my gaze, his own open and full of emotion. My throat went tight. Griffen had left home when I was fifteen, thrown out by our father for getting in the way of a business deal. For so many reasons, most of them bullshit, we'd all let him go. I hadn't laid eyes on him, hadn't spoken to him for years. Not until he turned up at our father's funeral three months ago.