Justice Inked (Cowboy Justice Association 7) by Olivia Jaymes Page B

conversation casual. “Has your brother said anything about the break-in of my shop and the man that was killed?”
    Dare hadn’t said a word to Rayne and honestly, she’d been put out by his behavior. Since she was the victim of the crime she’d expected to be kept in the loop, but apparently that wasn’t the procedure.
    Or maybe Dare was being a prick and not telling her anything on purpose.
    Sophie shrugged. “Nope, but that’s not unusual. He only talks about work with me when he’s using it as a moral lesson of some sort. Like don’t drink and drive or don’t take drugs. Stuff like that. I’m pretty sure he knows I’m not going to break into a tattoo shop and shoot someone. God love him, he’s trying so hard to be a role model for me. Were your parents overprotective like this?”
    “Hardly,” Rayne snorted. “My parents felt that my sister and I should be free to express our individuality and to explore our boundaries. We didn’t have too many rules when I was growing up except that we should explore our feelings.”
    Though her parents had taken the whole “free love” idea a little too far, Rayne appreciated that she’d been given enough latitude to make her own decisions. And her own mistakes.
    Sophie’s eyes bugged out and her mouth fell open. “You didn’t have a curfew or anything? Even now Dare tries to tell me when to come home although I just ignore him.”
    “I didn’t have a curfew, but do you want to know a secret?” Rayne leaned forward as if to whisper it in Sophie’s ear. “If you’re the only one without a curfew there’s no one to hang out with after midnight. Everybody has to go home so you might as well have a curfew too.”
    “That blows. I would have loved not to have a curfew in high school.”
    Rayne smiled, remembering her school years. She hadn’t been super popular, but she’d had close friends and that time held mostly pleasant memories.
    “As I said, all that freedom is overrated. Be glad that you have someone that cares if you come home. All I have is a cat named Spartacus.”
    Sophie licked her lips nervously and drummed her fingers on the table between them. “Can I tell you a secret? You won’t tell Dare, will you?”
    Rayne wasn’t sure she wanted to get in the middle of Sophie and her brother.
    “Maybe you shouldn’t tell me if it’s a secret.”
    The young girl was practically vibrating she was so excited. “It’s only a secret from Dare. I mean, I’ll tell him eventually. I just need to find the right time, that’s all. I’ll tell him when he’s in a good mood.”
    They’d all be putting on parkas and ice skates in hell when that happened.
    “Still…if it’s a secret…”
    “Tim and I are planning to move to Denver together.” The words burst from Sophie’s smiling lips. “I’ve been accepted to an art school there and Tim’s going to get a job. I can’t wait. Freedom from this stuffy little town.”
    No wonder Sophie hadn’t told Dare yet. He was going to freak, and not in a good way.
    “Have you lived here all your life?”
    “Every long, tedious day.” More sighing and eye rolling. “I’ve wanted to leave since…well…forever, really. Now that I’ve graduated there’s nothing here holding me back.”
    Except one six-foot-three, two hundred plus pound big brother with a protective streak a mile wide.
    “You might want Dare to have a drink or two before you tell him. I don’t think he’s going to be a happy camper.”
    Rayne wasn’t sure what he would be more pissed off about – his little sister leaving town or the fact that she’d be living with a guy.
    “I’ll make him his favorite dinner of fried chicken and mashed potatoes along with a big chocolate cake. He has a major sweet tooth. Then I’ll make sure he has a couple of whiskeys before giving him the news.” Sophie’s chin lifted. “He can’t stop me. I’m eighteen.”
    To be that young again.
    Everything seemed possible. Blue skies and clear