I finally got the two of them to calm down and sent them on their way. I told Chance to go for a drive and cool off before he tried to go find Kyra and I told Ethan to get on his bike and go get us all some damn food to cook for tonight. I figured Kyra was going to be staying with us until we could get her father back home, so the least we could do was pitch in and do shit around here so she wouldn’t have to. All she needed to be doing was resting, just like the doctor said.
Nothing else.
I stomped into the house and slammed the door behind me. I waited until Chance left, then gave Ethan some breathing room before he left on his bike. I didn’t care if they beat each other to a pulp, but they weren’t gonna do it in front of Kyra.
She had enough on her plate.
My idiot brothers always insisted on selfishly making fools of themselves. And when Kyra needed us the most, when she needed me the most, I couldn’t even fucking be there for her because I was too busy trying to peel my brothers off one another.
I’d had enough of it.
I’d tried to break up the fight twice before they finally gave the hell up. Chance was ready to pop Ethan’s shoulder out of joint and Ethan was ready to let him do it just to prove a damn point. And all while Kyra was right in the house. They were fucking assholes, both of them, and I was glad I got them to go off in their separate directions.
I wasn’t willing to wash their blood off the concrete of our driveway.
Raking my hands through my hair, I paced the foyer of the house. My hands were shaking and my heart was racing and I felt like I needed a nap or a good scream. I slammed up the stairs to my room, knowing I could get the privacy there I needed, and slammed that door behind me, too. It was the only way I could think to take out my aggression toward this entire fucked up situation but, the moment I sat on my bed, a knock came at the door.
“What?” I called out.
But the only thing that came was a knock.
I groaned and got up, ripping my door open before I stopped in surprise. It was Kyra, with her eyes swollen from crying and her lips chapped from the cold. I wanted to reach out and bring her into me. To comfort her during her time of need. I wanted to reassure her that Chance and Ethan were just being stupid, that it had nothing to do with her. I wanted to tell her about the time they fought over who was going to jump into the water hole first after her one time and how Owen pissed them both off by jumping in while they were arguing.
Anything to get her to smile.
She stepped into my room and I closed the door behind her. I honestly wasn’t sure what she wanted me to do or what I needed to do with myself in that very moment. I tried to swallow my anger in order to focus on her but as her eyes danced around my body, the first question out of her mouth was selfless.
Just like her.
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
“I’m just… frustrated with my brothers. At their behavior and the way they choose to deal with their stress.”
I watched her lower her head to the floor before she started shuffling on her feet.
“I’m sorry for all that,” she said.
Furrowing my brow, I crooked my finger underneath her chin. I slowly pulled her gaze up to mine, thinking I hadn’t heard her right. I told her I was upset with my brothers and she was apologizing?
Why?
“Why are you sorry?” I asked.
“Because it’s my fault they’re fighting,” she said.
“No, it’s their fault they’re fightin’,” I said. “Not yours.”
“But I’m the reason they’re fighting,” she said.
“Kyra, those two would fight over who would be the first to die if it ever came to it.”
She gave me a small smirk but her slumped shoulders told a different story. So, instead, I merely pulled her into my arms. She slid her hands around my waist, locking them at my lower back while I ran my fingers through her hair. It had been a hell of a past couple of days for her and all I wanted was to provide her with any sort of relief.
Anything she would let me do for her, I would.
“That’s just crazy, Kyra,” I said. “It’s not your fault. I promise.”
I could feel my anger growing. The mere fact that my brothers had made this beautiful woman feel like she had something to be sorry for was fucking ridiculous. There was no reason for her to feel guilty. No reason for her to be saying sorry like she was. And yet, she was standing here, apologizing for something she thought she might be responsible for.