Unfortunately, he has no such problem. He grips my arm and pulls me to my feet. Then he drags me to the attached bath and practically shoves me inside.
“Get a shower,” he orders. “I’ll have some Tylenol waiting for you when you’re done.”
With that, he storms out of my room. I want to shout at him to leave me alone, to stop treating me like I’m one of his prospects that he can boss around, but that will only end up with my head splitting all the way in two.
“Fucking asshole,” I gripe as I strip and get into the shower.
The warm water helps to clear my head, and memories from the night before come crashing in.
Shit.
Shuffle no doubt wants answers. All I know is that I was having fun with Rae, drinking and catching up, and then Seth and his friend interrupted. Seth crossed a line with me and got his ass beat for his trouble. The last thing I remember is feeling scared and sick to my stomach.
I scrub soap over my skin, wincing when I hit a tender spot on my hip. I glance down and see a large bruise, which reminds me of the fact that I passed out in the main room.
Did Shuffle see that? Is that what has him in a mood?
Only one way to find out.
After getting out of the shower, I dry off, get dressed, and run a comb through my wet hair. I don’t bother with makeup because there’s no point. I’m not here to impress anyone.
Leaving my room, I go in search of my brother. I find him sitting at one of the tables in the common area, and when he sees me, he stands and closes the distance between us.
“Follow me,” he says as he walks past me toward the hallway.
I do as ordered, and we enter his room. “You said you’d have Tylenol,” I remind him.
He grabs a bottle of pain reliever off of his dresser and tosses it to me. Next, he snags a bottle of water from his mini fridge and tosses it as well.
“Sit,” he commands after I down the pills, pointing at his bed.
“I think I’ll stand.”
“Sit the fuck down, Rox.”
“Sit the fuck down, Rox,” I mimic snarkily but do as I’m told.
My brother begins to pace the length of his room, his riding boots thudding on the floor. With each step he takes, I grow uneasy. It’s clear he’s pissed, but it’s not clear why he’s taking it out on me.
“What the hell happened last night?” he finally asks.
I huff out a breath. “Like Saint didn’t already fill you in.”
He whirls on me. “I want to hear your version.”
“My version?” I practically screech, and instantly regret it when my head threatens to explode.
“Yeah, your version.”
“I got drunk, that Seth jackoff hit on me, Rae and I put him in his place, and he got mean. Saint jumped in and took care of it.”
Shuffle glares at me. “You’re leaving out the most important part.”
I tilt my head, feigning ignorance. “Oh yeah? What’s that?”
“You passed the fuck out, Rox,” he bellows, throwing his arms in the air. “And that was after you started shaking like a leaf. What gives?”
Absently, I rub my hip where I’ve got the evidence of what he’s asking about. “I was drunk, Ry.”
