“Don’t you guys do that kind of thing?”
“Lemmy is invited. Separately. Can you hop off that idea, Fork? It’s fucking weird.”
“So, you’ve never slept with her?” he asks, his stupid sparkly eyes burning into mine to try and catch a lie.
“My god, will you drop it?” I groan, shaking my head. Let it die, buddy. You’re never going to know the answer to that question.
That we have. Many times. Only when we needed it. Scattered, rare moments, but we’rejustfriends. I’d jump in front of a bullet for her, and she’d bury anyone who fucked with me. The sex was inevitable. Put two broken humans together, and they’re going to try to start fixing each other at some point. Sometimes, the both of us get lonely. Lonely people understand lonely people.
“Fine, you fucking weirdo. I tellyouwhen I sleep with people.” He glares at me, looking hurt.
“That’s a ‘you’ problem, you disrespectful, walking red flag.”
He smirks, though he tries not to. “So, Lemmy isn’t your plus one?”
How many more times can he ask that question before I’m allowed to smack him?
“No.”
“Great!” he says, clapping his hands together. He leans forward, smiling like I fell into some kind of trap. “Then I have a favour to ask.”
I know it’s going to be a bad idea. I am completely aware of that before he even opens his mouth. I can tell by the way he’s looking at me right now.
So, I answer before he even asks. “No.”
His smile falls. “Come on.”
I shake my head, yanking the towel off my bench. “I don’t even want to know.”
“At least let me ask,” he begs.
“Not interested,” I say, sliding back onto the bench to return to my sets.
“Can you put Ari down as your plus one?”
I shoot back up so quickly that I almost send the barbell down onto my neck. Readjusting it, I straighten, looking at him in disbelief. Did he really—there is no fucking way that he just asked me to bring his little sister as mydateto Lowesy’s wedding. His baby sister? The one that he has gotten arrested for multiple times?
“I don’t trust leaving her here alone. She hasn’t been acting like herself. I can’t go to Canada for a whole week and enjoy myself if she’s out of my sight. I don’t know what’s going on with her and I can’t be sure who she’ll bring in and out of my place, nor will I get a moment of peace if I don’t know what she’s doing.”
I think of Jared. Of that guy, Paul. I think about the scene at the restaurant, how the cracks in her facade were starting to show, and how Forker told us that she’s been stumbling home in the middle of the night after dates withthosekinds of guys.
I stare at him. This feels like a trick. “You want me to bring your sister as my date to Lowesy’s wedding?”
“No, just give her your plus one spot. You’re a groomsman. She’ll be at a separate table. I just don’t want to ask Lowesy to invite her this late in the game. It’s not my day and Arden said that it would be rude. I’m trying not to be weird about this.”
“It’s weird that you’re hiring me to be her date,” I point out.
“Woah! Let me be clear, I willnotbe paying you for this favour. No money will be exchanging hands. And again, not her date. Her plus one. Just give her your extra ticket.”
“It’s not a concert, Fork.”
“You know what I mean,” he groans with an exasperated breath. “Look, I can’t ask any of the other guys because they’ll take it and run with it, and I don’t want them getting any ideas. She’s still my little sister. You’re my brother. I know you’ll be a gentleman. I don’t have to worry about you.”
I feel a prick of guilt about the thoughts I’ve been having about this little sister in question. How Iwanther to continue to flirt with me. How she asks me the most aggressive questions, bluntly as all hell, and it thrills the hell out of me. He trusts me. As his brother. If this isn’t enough of a warning to stay in my lane, I don’t know what is.
“Yeah, that’s fine. I’ll see if I can change my invite with Lowesy.”
I’ll behave.
