Her Mafia Brothers

Damon

Rocco and Jack were standing there staring at us when Damon set me on my feet.

"Can you two sort the dishes? I need to have a chat with Carrie," Damon said. His tone was gruff, commanding, and I knew he wasn't making a request of my brothers; no matter how it was worded, he was giving them an order.

Both of them nodded, then headed into the kitchen to do Damon's bidding.

Damon sat down on the couch and patted the spot next to him. I knew I should obey him, and I wanted to, but my feet were rooted to the floor. What was he going to do to me?

As if reading my mind, Damon smiled. "You're not in trouble," he assured me. But I didn't believe him. After all, when had I ever been alone with Damon if not for the purposes of correcting my misbehavior? I couldn't think of a single time.

Damon cleared his throat, reminding me that he'd told me to do something and I hadn't yet done it. That's right, my oldest brother doesn't like to be kept waiting.

"Carrie," he growled.

But still, I didn't move. With no warning, Damon reached out and snagged my wrist, tugging me so I had no choice but to sit down on the couch beside him. As soon as I was seated he wasted no time in grabbing my chin and turning me to face him

So much for not being in trouble, my inner voice snarked, but he didn't scold me like I expected him to. Instead, he looked at me kindly and spoke softly. And, as soon as I was looking at him, he let go of his grip on me.

"How do you feel about what Logan said?" Damon asked.

I shrugged. How was I supposed to answer that? Was I meant to pretend his words hadn't hurt? Because they had.

Did Damon want me to say that it didn't matter that Logan found me annoying? Because it did.

Or did he want me to say I understood and wasn't grumpy anymore? That, too, would be a lie. Because I didn't, and I was.

"I think it's probably best if you give him some space for a bit," Damon told me gently. "And that's not a suggestion - it's an order. Stay out of his way. Leave him alone when he has friends over."

I nodded, because I wasn't game enough to argue with Damon. That never ended well for me.

"Having you back in our lives has been a big adjustment for all of us, Logan too-"

"Oh so now I'm a burden?" I snapped, interrupting Damon.

"Do not interrupt me," he growled fiercely. "And don't twist my words. That wasn't what I said at all. But Logan has been the youngest for a long time. He's not used to having someone to watch out for and protect, and he's not used to having someone hanging around his friends. He wasn't trying to hurt you."

I didn't answer, and Damon didn't push me for a response. His words didn't make me feel any better, though. Logan should have kept his feelings to himself. After all, it seemed like I was expected to.

"You owe him an apology, you know."

I looked at Damon, aghast.

"What for?" I asked, horrified. "I'm not apologizing to him, you can't make me," I declared.

Damon chuckled. "You and I both know that's not true," he said. "But I'm not going to force you to apologize because that would be meaningless. But I will not tolerate any rudeness towards him, all right? And certainly no more violence. If you attack him again, for any reason, that spanking you got with your hairbrush will be a quarter of what you will get next time."

I sucked in a breath and nodded quickly.

Damon looked at me hard before continuing.

"What's your earliest memory?" he asked me.