Chapter Twenty Four
Adoor slammed in theback of the house. Aubrey raised her head and held her breath. It seemed like forever to get through the day until she could be with Serge again.
Footsteps hit the tile floor.
She jumped to her feet and hurried down the hallway, knowing Serge had come through the door from the garage. In the foyer, she came to an abrupt stop at the sight of a strange man in the house. Her heart raced. Shocked that it wasn't Serge, she couldn't even move.
A tall man with a worn flannel shirt half-undone and a pair of jeans with holes in the knees blocked her way. She stared into brown eyes that swept over her body. A slow smile came to the man's bearded face, and he walked toward her.
She stepped backward, colliding with the wall. Reaching for her phone, she gritted her teeth in frustration. She'd left her cell in the other room.
Standing straight, she said, "You need to leave."
"That's not happening."
She studied the way the man was at ease in Serge's house. "Who are you?"
"Are names important?" He reached out and hooked her waist, pulling her hard against the front of him. "If I knew my big brother was keeping you in the house, I would've come by sooner."
His brother? "Let me go—"
His mouth came down. Her knee went up.
He chuckled against her lips as his thighs caught her leg before she contacted his balls. She pushed against him. When he refused to let her go, she screamed.
At the same time, Serge's brother soared through the air and landed in a heap on the other side of the foyer. Serge's broad back appeared, blocking his brother from her view. She pressed herself against the wall.
"Come on, Alain." Serge lifted his hands and motioned for him to retaliate. "Hit me."
"What the fuck?" Alain circled Serge, rubbing his jaw. "You get after me for staying away, and when I come to visit, you start a beatdown with me."
Serge drew back his arm and punched the man. She turned her face away from the snap of knuckles against the cheekbone.
"She's mine." Serge grabbed Alain by the shirt and brought his knee up to the man's stomach, sending his brother to the floor, coughing. "Next time, I'll kill you for touching her."
Without further concern for his brother, Serge turned and grabbed her arm, pulling her out of the room. She hurried to keep up with his longer steps. He set her in a chair and moved over to pour a glass of water.
He returned to her side, put the drink in her hand, and squatted in front of her. "Are you okay?" he asked softly.
She shook her head. No, she was anything but okay. He'd fought with his brother.
"I thought you were coming into the house," she whispered. "I didn't know—"
"It's okay." He rubbed his thumb across her lips as if to rub off his brother's kiss. His eyes hardened. "That won't happen again."
"Are you okay?" She set the glass down on the table and grabbed his hands. "You hit your brother."
