Chapter 6 Animal House

Sienna's POV

As soon as I stepped inside my modest Oak Park townhome and shut the door behind me, I kicked off my heels with a groan of relief. Peace. Quiet. Solitude. At least, that’s what I thought I was walking into.

Instead...

“Hey Stink, why are there so many damn shoes by the front door?” I called out, my tone already tired.

“Hey, Sis!” Stephen’s deep voice came from the family room, followed by the obnoxious background noise of machine guns and explosions. “Braxton, Carlos, and them here. We are working on our project.”

Mmm, hmm. A “project” that required Call of Duty and a twelve-pack of Mountain Dew. I sighed, already knowing tonight’s dreams of a quiet dinner and a glass of wine had officially flatlined.

This was the downside of living with my 22-year-old baby brother, who also happened to be tall, dark, and devastatingly handsome, and his equally attractive, equally chaotic fraternity brothers.

“Hey Stink,” I muttered, using the childhood nickname Sabrina gave him back when he played middle school football and smelled like old socks and Gatorade. “Did you cook?”

“No, Ceecee. We ordered pizza. There are a few slices left in the kitchen if you want 'em.”

Classic. I waved at the group of them as I passed by the family room, dodging a stray controller that almost hit my ankle. “Y’all are too grown to be this loud. Hey, get your feet off my couch, Pat.”

“Love you too, sis!” Steven shouted without looking away from the screen.

I went upstairs to strip the day off me like it was a second skin. Shower on. Water hot. Steam everywhere. I stayed under the spray a little longer than necessary, letting the chaos of the office, Knox’s arrogant ass, and this frat house masquerading as my home melt off of me.

When I was done, I wrapped my hair up in my silk bonnet, did my skincare routine like a religious ritual, and slid into my comfort clothes, biker shorts, a fitted undershirt, and an oversized tee that hung off one shoulder like it had seen some things.

Downstairs, the family room was still a war zone. I headed to the kitchen to grab that leftover pizza, only to hear footsteps behind me.

Jake.

Fraternity, pretty boy. The kind of fine that got people in trouble. Sharp jawline, gym body, a full sleeve of tattoos he definitely used to reel in unsuspecting women like it was a sport. And he played that sport well.

“Hey, Ceecee.”

“Hey, Jake. What’s up?”

“Nothing but this dic... ”

I cut him off with a raised brow before he finished that sentence. “Umm, no thanks. I’ll take a hard pass. Plus, I wanna remain herpes free, if you don't mind.”

I slid the cold pizza onto a plate and shoved it in the microwave.

“You’re still single, huh?” he asked, leaning against the counter like he was God’s gift to women.

“Yep.”

“We should go out sometime.”

“Nope.”

I grabbed my Stella Rosa Black and poured a glass. Sip. Peace. Jake left and went back into the other room. I guess he finally took the hint.

As I walked away, I heard him mumble to Steven, “Yo, your sister’s a little stuck up. She looks like she needs a good hard fuck, then maybe she can relax.”

I paused mid-step, well damn. Resisting the urge to double back and cuss him out. I mean I am not gonna lie, I could use a good dicking but fuck community dick Jake. Before I had to say anything, my brother shut it down.

“Man, shut the fuck up and leave her alone, or you can get the fuck outta my house, ok."

Thank you, little brother.

I slipped into the office, shut the door, and cracked open my laptop. Time to work on the Mayor’s case. Just as I was settling in, my phone buzzed.

Mya: Hey Ceecee, we’re going shopping this weekend.

Me: Hello to you too. Why?

Mya: Because I need new clothes, and so do you. I’m tired of you looking like you’re 65 instead of going on 25. I mean, you're neat and clean, but that's it.

Me: Do I really dress that badly?

Mya: Yes, Mom, you do.

Me: Are we taking my goddaughter?

Mya: Yes. She needs clothes too. Plus, I sold 3 new pieces today. So, shopping spree!

Me: [laughing emoji] Okay, Premium Outlets it is. We gotta leave by 8 a.m. to get a good parking spot.

Mya: Okay! See you then!

I took another bite of pizza and leaned back in my chair, wine glass in hand, half-focused on the case file.

Knox is probably already balls deep in his date right now, and it ain’t even 9 p.m.

I imagined him with all that height, muscle, and smug confidence, whispering things in someone else’s ear, sliding into her like it was his job. He looked like he was good in bed. Cocky men usually were. It's not like I have had a bunch of experience, but based on what my friends tell me, he seems like the type.

But he was also an arrogant son of a bitch. He and Kole both. Their parents? Cool and a beautiful couple. Kira? A damn sweetheart.

I don’t know what happened to the Y chromosome in that gene pool, but it must’ve skipped a generation.

I sipped my wine again and smirked to myself.

Yeah, I need to get laid. But not by any of these overgrown boys running around my house.

And why in the hell am I thinking about my boss in that way? And why do I really care about who Knox is knocking down tonight? It ain't me, so why should I care right.