Free A Natural Act (Contradictions) by R. J. Sable

Oh,” I frown, blushing slightly. “Surely, if that were true, I would have known what sesquipedalian was.”
    “ That’s called irony.”
    I ignore him and return to the original question. “Your workout, Dr Carter.”
    He chuckles. “My brother kicked my ass.”
    “ Are you okay?” My eyes widen slightly.
    “ Not like that,” he grins. “Just mean he didn’t cut me any slack because I was late.”
    “ Sounds harsh,” I frown.
    “ You worried about me, lady?” He grins.
    I nod, nibbling on my lip.
    “Don’t need to be. It’s just training. He never cuts me any slack anyway. He’s all business all the time,” he shrugs.
    “ Are you close?” I ask curiously.
    He shrugs. “In some regards.”
    “ Who do you get on with best?”
    “ It depends,” he grins.
    “ On?”
    “ The situation.”
    “ Can you answer me with more than three words, please?”
    He just grins. “No.”
    I pout.
    “I get on best with my little sister, I guess,” he relents. “But mostly because she never argues with me.”
    “ That might change soon though,” he continues after a few minutes of focussing on the gentle notes from the strings of his instrument.
    “ How so?”
    “ She started seeing a guy,” he frowns.
    “ You don’t like him?”
    “ I like him just fine,” Craig shrugs. “But I don’t like him touching my sister.”
    “ Didn’t you say she was eighteen?” I ask in confusion.
    He nods. “She’s my little sister.”
    That’s not really an answer. “So you’re protective of her?”
    “ We all are,” he shrugs. “But this guy, Jason, might be alright. He’s done right by her so far. I’m withholding judgment.”
    “ What do your other brothers think?” I ask, curious to understand his family. I’ve already established that they are immensely important to him. I want to know more.
    “ They were going to chop him up and destroy the evidence,” he chuckles humourlessly.
    I look at him, waiting for more explanation and he laughs at the expression on my face.
    “ But he proved himself so we let him off.”
    “ What did he do?”
    He grimaces and for a second, it looks like he wants to smash his guitar. “Somebody tried to rape her.”
    I feel the blood drain from my face. “That’s awful.”
    He nods grimly. “Fucker was friends with my kid brother too.”
    I can hear the intense sense of betrayal in his voice and his anger fills the air around him. I can hardly blame him. Being raped is not something you ever forget and you never forgive.
    “ I’m so sorry.”
    He nods. “Jason was there for her. He’s helping her learn to feel safe again.”
    “ Sounds like he’s a good boyfriend,” I smile.
    He shrugs. “Remains to be seen if he’s good enough.”
    “ Let me guess,” I grin. “Nobody is good enough for your baby sister?”
    “ Nope,” he agrees with a determined shake of his head. “She’s perfect. You met her, you’d agree.”
    “ I’d like to,” I smile. It’s obvious he cares about her a great deal. “Is she okay now?”
    “ She’s getting there,” he nods. “I’ll be seeing her soon for my little brother’s twenty-first birthday.”
    I smile and snuggle closer into the duvet, closing my eyes and listening to the dulcet tones of his music and the low rumble of his voice as he hums along to the tune.
    “Sleepy, lady?” He whispers as he switches to a new tune.
    I nod and stifle a yawn. “But I don’t want to go back to sleep.” In case the nightmares return. It goes unspoken but I know he understands.
    He reaches under the duvet and gently squeezes my ankle, silently letting me know he’s there.
    “I hate him,” I whisper.
    “ Know that, lady,” Craig sighs, putting the guitar down against the wall.
    He lies down on the bed next to me without getting under the covers and pulls me close.
    “It’s okay to hate him for what he did to you, Bella. It’s okay to be scared too but soon enough you’ll realise you don’t need to be scared any more.