Bluegrass Undercover (Bluegrass Brothers)

boys, behave.” Paige gave her brothers a stern look before opening the door.
    Cade had to push his brothers away so he could walk down the steps and meet Annie at the car. This must be her worst nightmare, and having everyone staring at her probably didn’t help.
    He hurried down the stairs to her car and smiled as he watched her frantically brushing her hair. Her nervousness was so cute. Cade walked around to open her door and froze when she looked up at him. Cade yanked open the car door to get a better look at what he thought he saw.
    Yup, he was right. She had a huge bruise on her forehead . Her hands and arms were covered in blood and she was missing her jacket. And something was wrong with her hair.
    “Are you all right?” He gently placed his fingers on her face to move it so he could get a better look at the bump on her head. He then ran his hands over her arms and found the source of the blood.
    “I’m fine now. Sorry I’ m late.”
    “Screw being late. I’ m taking you to the hospital.”
    “No! Really, I’ m fine. The blood is dried and I don’t want to cause a scene.”
    “Sparky, no matter what, you are going to cause a scene. Now tell me what happened, and quickly, before they get impatient.” He directed his eyes to his family who were all staring at them intently.
    “I got locked in my office. The electricity was cut and a cell phone jammer was placed outside the door. I broke the window and crawled out, hence the blood and missing hair. I went down the hall to try the light switch when I heard a noise behind me. Before I could turn around, I got smashed over the head and fell headfirst into the lockers. I saw a figure in the distance but not enough to have any kind of description. I gave chase and found an empty parking lot, and that is why I was late to dinner.”
    Cade’s heart didn’t slow down after her explanation. Who would do this to her? “Do you think your cover is blown?”
    “No. I don’t know what this was about, but it didn’t feel like it had to do with the case. The agency is checking it out for clues now.”
    “Are you all coming in?” he heard his mother ask.
    “Sorry, Ma, but Annie had a little accident.” That excused everything, and the family rushed down the steps, his mother leading the way.
    “Oh, bless your heart! Are you hurt? What happened?” his mother questioned as she hurried toward a wide-eyed Annie.
    “I was carrying too much stuff and tripped on some loose gravel in the parking lot. I’m afraid I went head first into my car.”
    Cade tried to hide his smile at her explanation. It was a good one, and it had his mother and Paige ushering her inside to get fixed up. All awkward greeting was now pushed aside. His mother was in her zone. Having six kids, she became something of an unflappable nurse.
     
    Annie’s head was spinning, and not because of the whole being bashed over the head thing. It was spinning at the conversation going around the table. She had learned the whole family history and even some about the black sheep of the family, Cy, who apparently only showed up every now and then.
    She had been fussed over, bandaged up, and then plied with homemade food by Mrs. Davies, who insisted on being called Marcy, or in a not so subtle hint, Mom. Pierce was trying his hardest to interrogate her but was failing miserably. Cole was trying to run interference. Marshall and Miles were trying to intimidate, and Mr. Davies sat by quietly eating his food, watching everything.
    Every now and then she would swear Cade was cursing and planning the downfall of his brothers. She found it all very strange, very chaotic, and very comfortable. So, this was what it was like to have a family. She liked it very much and was quite envious.
    “So, dear, are you going to be spending Thanksgiving with your family?” Marcy asked from the head of the table.
    “Thanksgiving?” Annie repeated. She never celebrated Thanksgiving. She couldn’t cook and was always alone, so it never seemed important.
    “You know, the holiday that’s on Thursday where you traditionally eat turkey and stuffing and lots of dessert and watch football,” Pierce joked.
    “Pierce,” his mother whispered harshly. “Ignore him. Now tell us about your family. Are they are in Florida?”
    “Um, I really don’t have much of a family. My mother died when I was ten, and I was raised in a series of foster homes,” Annie stated matter-of-factly. People often got upset when she told her