Taylor

I touched my slightly swollen lips as I stood alone in the janitor's closest. Sin hadn't said one word to me the entire time. I knew we had an arrangement in place, but I couldn't help feeling taken aback by his behavior. Was this really how this type of arrangement was supposed to work?

The sex had been awesome, but I'd felt the lack of connection between the two of us. It was a good thing my classes were finished for the day because after that I was still feeling a little dazed.

On my way back to my dorm room, I saw my brother leaning against a car with his arms crossed over his chest. Normally he dressed in a suit and tie, but this time he was dressed casually in jeans and button-up blue shirt. His hair was the same color as mine but his eyes were green. My mom had been the one with the blond hair and blue eyes. The green eyes he'd inherited from our dad.

What the hell is he doing here?

I was annoyed. I loved my brother, but sometimes his protectiveness over me was stifling. There was no way I believed he was here on business. He was here to check on me and I resented it. I walked closer. He saw me and smiled. He pushed off the car and walked to meet me as I came to a stop in front of the doors to the dorm.

"Hi," he greeted as he pulled me into a hug. I hugged him back.

"What are you doing here?" was the first question I asked as he released me from the hug.

"A brother can't just drop in to visit his sister?" he asked.

"Visit, yes; check up on, no," I told him, eyeing him suspiciously.

"Isn't it the same thing?" he asked in a teasing tone.

"No, it isn't," I informed him. He glanced down at his super-expensive watch.

"Are you hungry?" he asked.

"Yes," I answered.

"Come on, let's go get something to eat," he suggested. I didn't want to go off campus to eat so I suggested a small coffee shop close to where we were.

"Sounds good," he said as we walked side by side. There were several moments of silence.

"Why don't you see if your roommate is available to join us?" he suggested. I turned to glare at him. I knew exactly what he was up to and I wasn't having it.

"That's what this is about?"

I was fuming.

"You wanted to check my roommate out," I said. I was really angry now. He didn't answer.

"I love you, but I won't tolerate you meddling in my life," I told him.

"Is it so bad that I want to protect you and keep you safe?" he argued back. He was using that parental tone with me and I hated it. He wasn't my parent; he was my brother.

Our parents had died when I was nine and Connor had been eighteen. Overnight he'd been thrust into the role of my guardian and it had been a lot of responsibility for a young adult. My parents had left us some money, but Connor had wanted me to have the best. It had been the driving force behind his success. But it didn't mean he could dictate my life when he felt like it. I understood why he acted the way he did, but he needed to let go of me so I could make my own decisions and live my own life.

"You've probably already done a background check on her. What more would you need to know?" I informed him, crossing my arms over my chest defensively.

He didn't reply so I knew I was right. He pressed his lips together as he held my gaze.

"She is nice and I like her. That's all that counts," I told him. I wasn't trying to be difficult, but my brother was a force to be reckoned with and if he put his mind to something he usually got his way. But this wasn't something I was prepared to give up.

Connor would have a fit if he knew about all the weird stuff that was happening lately. Then I thought about Sin. If my brother knew what I was doing with the bad-boy, he'd have a stroke. I couldn't stop the secret smile that tipped my mouth at what we'd just done in the janitor's closet.

"I just don't want anything to happen to you," he told me in a soft voice. It tugged at my heart. I reached out, taking his hand into mine and I gave it a gentle squeeze.

It wasn't like our parents had just died and all we had to deal with was the grief of their loss. It had been so much more. He'd nearly lost me before and I knew that drove him to be so protective of me.

"Come, let's go and get something to eat," I said as I pulled him gently by the hand.

As I turned to walk to the coffee shop I'd suggested to my brother, I saw Sin standing across the road. The moment my eyes met his, I felt the butterflies flutter in my stomach.

His gaze dropped from my eyes to my hand holding my brother's. I didn't realize what was going through his mind until he shook his head, turned and walked away. Had he got the wrong idea?

"Who was that?" my brother asked, pulling me out of my own little bubble I'd been in. There was no way I wanted my brother to know about Sin.

"No one," I lied easily.

I wanted to go after Sin and explain that he'd gotten the wrong idea, but I couldn't do that with my brother watching so instead I continued walking to the coffee shop with my brother walking beside me, preoccupied. We got some coffees and sandwiches at the coffee shop. I tried to keep the conversation light and talked mainly about my classes. I didn't mention anything about what I did after classes.

"I've got a couple of things I need to do," my brother said as I walked him back to his car. "I'll be back later to say goodbye."

He was getting a flight out again that night.

"Sure," I said as I leaned in to give him a kiss on the cheek. "I'll see you later."

He gave me a brief hug before he got into his car and drove off. I sighed with relief. Being under his scrutinizing gaze had been mentally exhausting.

Sin.

I reached for my phone and searched for his number. He'd put his number into my phone simply under the name Sin. I took a deep, nervous breath as I called him. It rang and finally went to voicemail. I hung up. I tried to keep myself busy so I wouldn't just sit there on the bed with my phone in my hand, wishing Sin would call me.

My brother called at seven that evening to tell me he was outside my dorm. I was starting to feel despondent because I hadn't heard anything from Sin. In my mind I came up with different excuses as to why he hadn't called me back yet, but they had all seemed weak. I walked out of the building to see my brother standing beside his car. My eyes narrowed at the thick brown folder he held in his hand.

"Hi," I said cautiously as I looked at the offending folder in his hand.

"Hi," he said, sounding resigned. He stood up and handed me the folder. "This is for you."

"What is it?" I asked, but I already knew it was a background check.

"It's a background check on Sin Carter," he answered, watching me for a response. I felt my temper spark to life. I didn't even have to ask how my brother had gotten his name. There weren't too many guys on campus who looked like Sin and if he asked around, someone would have given him a name. I knew my brother hadn't believed me when I'd told him I didn't know Sin. Lying had been a waste of time.

"I don't want it," I insisted, shaking my head as I struggled to contain my anger and the blatant invasion into my life.

"You need to read this," he insisted. "He is a bad guy and he isn't someone you should be around."

I remained tight-lipped and silent.

"I know you're old enough to make your own decisions. But make sure you know all the facts before you do," he argued.

I couldn't wait to get rid of my meddling brother so after he handed me the folder and got into his car, I felt relieved. I was determined not to read it. I'd just taken it to get my brother off my back. Back in my room, Jordan arched a questioning eyebrow as I shoved the offending folder in the drawer of my small desk.