I grumbled. “Fine. But if it’s anyone else, make them go away.”
The last thing I wanted was to make casual conversation right now. I wanted to wallow in silence. Xander could stay if he wanted. He knew when to push and when to leave me be.
Just like Dom.
I held my breath as I waited for Xander to return.Please let Dom be with him.
There was a burst of loud words followed by a scuffling noise. I shot to my feet, but before I could take more than three steps, Xander was back. He was too slow to hide his scowl. “All sorted.”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “What happened?”
“Nothing,” he said, far too cheerfully. “Mind if I drink this?”
I circled him slowly as he drained the whisky he’d poured in a single gulp. Xander liked to think he had his shit locked down, but I was better at reading him than he realised.
His lips twitched as he lowered the glass. “What?”
I stopped in front of him and sighed. “Who’d you punch?”
Xander stared at me unblinkingly. “I didn’t punch anyone.”
I tapped his reddened knuckles, drawing a hiss from him. “Try again.”
“I whacked it against the wall earlier. You know how clumsy I am.”
“I do,” I said slowly. “Which is not at all.”
He didn’t say anything, just reached for the bottle and poured another two fingers of whisky. What was making him so cagey? Or rather…who?
The answer came to me and I groaned. “Oh, for fuck’s sake. You punched Max again.”
“Don’t know what you mean.”
Muttering under my breath, I stormed for the door and threw it open. The hall was empty, my twin long gone. I stared for a second at Dom’s closed door. No. I couldn’t deal with that yet. Instead, I turned my fury on another convenient target.
I went back inside and glared at Xander. “You can’t go around smacking the shit out of everyone who annoys you.”
“Says who?”
“The law?” I yanked at my hair in exasperation. “If Max goes to the police, you’ll be charged with assault.”
“He won’t do that.”
I didn’t think he would either, but I wasn’t letting Xander off the hook that easily. “What if he does?”
He shrugged. “Then I’ll show them the bruise I’ll probably have from where he thumped me in the ribs. Claim self-defence.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose. What the fuck was wrong with these two? “I’m willing to bet every pound in my bank account that you hit him first.”
Xander winked. “Yeah, but it’d be my word against his.”
“Why’d you hit him this time?”
“Because I told him to leave and he refused,” Xander said. “When he didn’t listen to what my words were saying, I decided to use my fists instead.”
I threw myself down on the sofa in defeat. “You can’t be hitting him again, Xander. I mean it.”
“I’m not promising that. Besides, you should be grateful. I got rid of him.”