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tantrum of the day. After seeing how he dismissed that slutty whore in the cardio room, I wondered if Dante had any regards for another human at all, even his own flesh and blood. 
    As I moved out of sight, I heard him retort, “I’m well aware of that, brother .”
    I leaned my back against the wall, just on the other side of where they were arguing.  Thankfully, both of the bimbos that had been behind the counter earlier were now standing in Vince’s office door, talking to him and Christina, but I couldn’t hear what they were saying.
    “Leave her alone.”  That was the second time I’d heard Holden’s gruff voice today. “And why the hell would you give her one of those fucking memberships in the first place, huh? Just to have her come in here and treat her like a leper? She’s not yours, and you know damn well how I feel about her.”
    I gulped at that. Feelings? For me?
    “I’m sorry, I can’t do that,” Dante ground out. “Things have already been set in motion, and you have no idea who she is.”
    “Neither do you.” Holden spat.
    “That’s where you’re wrong. I know everything I need to about her. Trust me on this one.”
    Oh shit. What does he know?   And why did he mention the background check as if he knew I was hiding something?  
    I pushed away from the wall and rushed toward the exit, noticing a heated conversation going on in Vince’s office between him, the receptionist, and Christina. I’d just made it to the door when I felt Holden run up behind me.
    “Hey, where are you going?  I thought we were grabbing lunch.” I knew he could see it, the pain and embarrassment all over my face. “Don’t let that jackass scare you off. This is about him, not you.”
    I didn’t want to talk about it. “No, it’s not that. I completely forgot I was supposed to help stock the bar today.”
    He gave me a doubtful look. “But you have to eat.”
    Vince called over to him from his office door, “Hey, Holden, we need you in here.”
    Crap, I hope that’s not all about me.
    Holden looked conflicted when I said, “Don’t worry about me, I’ll eat something at the bar.” He didn’t need to know that I was lying. And before he could convince me further, I turned and jogged away, yelling over my shoulder, “See you later!”
    He didn’t try to catch up, but I heard him curse under his breath.
    I decided then that my dependence on these brothers was definitely unhealthy. I’d need to figure out how to keep my distance, especially if Dante somehow knew the truth about my past.
     

 
    I didn’t get to the church early enough for lunch, so I ended up eating french fries and a junior burger from some fast food joint. The greasy food sat at the bottom of my stomach like a lead weight. Better than the hunger pains, I guess.
    Throughout the day, dark clouds weighed heavy in the sky, threatening to open up and pour rain.  My thin t-shirt did little to protect me from the chilly air. I needed to find a place to hang out indoors, but I wasn’t up to hitting the laundromat yet.  Glancing at a nearby clock, I decided to go to the library since it was the one place I could find solitude, and after all that shit happened this morning, I really needed the retreat.
    Holden looked a bit sad when I’d let it slip a few days ago that our town library was the only place I had ever felt at home and the one thing I could count on. I almost kicked myself for saying anything until he began to trace my knuckles with his finger and asked if he could join me sometime.
    Between his touch and the thought of him sitting next to me on one of the big comfy couches, so close that I could feel his breath on my neck, had sent an embarrassing shiver down my spine.  He’d noticed my tremble and playfully laughed it off, thank God.
    I wouldn’t object to him going with me, but I couldn’t imagine he’d ever understand how magical libraries were to me. I’d never been a big reader, but the moment I walked through