Total pages in book: 32
Estimated words: 30980 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 155(@200wpm)___ 124(@250wpm)___ 103(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 30980 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 155(@200wpm)___ 124(@250wpm)___ 103(@300wpm)
“It’s not like we planned this,” I tell him. “It just happened.”
He shakes his head, and I can tell there’s something more he wants to say. Something he’s not letting himself say. He’s holding something back. As I search his face, I get the feeling I know what it is, and it sends a dark lance straight through my heart.
“You don’t think I’m good enough for her,” I say.
“I didn’t say that.”
“You didn’t have to. It’s written all over your face.”
Derek doesn’t say anything more, which confirms what I was thinking. I’m not a guy who cares much what other people think of me. Never have been. And I’m a guy who doesn’t let people get very close to me. Derek is different. He’s family, and his opinion of me has always mattered. It’s always something I’ve valued. So, learning now that for all these years, he hasn’t thought I’m good enough to be with his sister hurts. It cuts deeper than I thought anything ever could.
“Wow. I’m … wow. I guess it’s just good to know what you really think of me deep down,” I say, grimacing at the pain I hear in my voice.
“That’s not what I’m saying.”
“Isn’t it?”
“Dude, it’s not that. It’s just—”
“You need to walk out of here right now before I say or do something we’re both going to regret,” I tell him, my voice low and flat.
“Slater, she’s my sister—”
“I said, get the fuck out of my place. Now.”
“Really? You’re the one fucking my sister behind my back, and you’re going to play the offended party card? Is that how it is?”
“You need to get the fuck out of here,” I growl. “Now, Derek.”
He looks like he will continue arguing with me, but his face hardens, and he nods. “All right then. Cool.”
Without another word, Derek turns and walks out of my room. A couple of moments later, my front door slams hard enough to rattle the windows as he goes. Left alone, a cyclone of emotions tears through me as I realize my lifelong friendship with the only person I’ve been close with is over. The brotherhood we shared has been broken. And as if all of that isn’t enough, he’s left me with one unsettling question spinning through my mind. A question that I perhaps should have asked myself earlier but never did because I already knew the answer to it and simply didn’t want to face it.
In this whirlwind romance I’ve had with Sierra, I’ve never stopped to consider that maybe Derek is right. Maybe I’m not good enough for her.
14
SIERRA
“What in the hell are you doing here, Derek?” I seethe as he comes through the door.
“I live here. And since I have a two-week break and thought I’d come home for a bit,” he replies angrily. “The better question is, what in the hell are you doing?”
He tries to slam the door behind him. It bounces open again, having been broken by Stu last night. It seems to frustrate him. With a growl, he closes it again as much as it can be, then rounds on me, a sneer on his lips. He doesn’t look bruised or battered, which I’m sure he would have been had he tried to physically fight Slater, so a small breath of relief escapes me and makes me feel all right about laying into him. Not that I wouldn’t have lit him up for what he did, anyway. But I’m glad he didn’t do something exceedingly stupid by picking a fight with somebody who would have smashed him.
“I didn’t know I had to get your approval to see somebody,” I counter. “You’re my brother. You’re not my parent.”
“Maybe if you didn’t act like such a child, I wouldn’t have to act like your parent. What do you think you’re doing, Sierra? Slater? Really?” he shouts back. “You really thought it was a good idea to fuck my best friend? A man you’ve known since you were a fucking infant?”
“Infant? Stop being so dramatic. You sound like a hysterical old lady.”
He folds his arms over his chest and glares at me. Slater warned me this would be complicated, especially when Derek found out. And yeah, there’s some small part of me that feels bad about sleeping with my brother’s best friend. I can’t even begin to imagine how awkward that makes things between them. But it’s only a small part of me since my relationship with Slater shouldn’t have any real impact on his relationship with him. We’re all adults. Or at least, we’re supposed to be adults.
“Did it really have to be my best friend, Sierra?”
“It’s not like we planned it,” I argue. “It just happened.”
“Is that supposed to make me feel better?”
“This isn’t about you, Derek,” I cry. “This has absolutely nothing to do with you!”