Page 12 of Step Brother Bear

His expression shifts. “I’m not your bro.”

I feel shitty. He was just trying to have a lighthearted conversation, and I made it uncomfortable. A thick silence follows, and I’m tempted to run back up to my room and lock the door, but Derek clears his throat and passes the jar of peanut butter to me. “I want to apologize for last night.”

“Which part?” I lick off a spoonful.

“All of it.”

“Right.”

We hold each other’s stare, the space gooey between us. He parts his lips. “But mostly the end.”

I nod, something heavy in my throat. “Right. Well, let’s just pretend it didn’t happen. All of it.”

He nods, and the stillness of the house sounds around us. He stands and heads toward the fridge, opening it and taking out a beer. “Want one?”

I shrug. “Sure.”

He grabs another, holding them both in one hand as he opens a drawer and pulls out the bottle opener. “I thought you didn’t like beer.”

“When I was seventeen, it wasn’t my favorite.”

“Now?” He opens them, sliding one over to me.

I take a long sip and shrug. “They’re okay. Lewis hated them, so I didn’t drink them often, but sometimes on a hot day in the city, I craved the simplicity.”

“He’s an idiot.”

“Plenty of people don’t like the taste of beer.”

“No, not because of that.”

“You never met the guy.”

He shrugs and takes a long sip of his drink, his Adam’s apple hypnotizing me. “I still know he’s an idiot.”

“He is actually annoyingly smart.”

“You can be smart on paper and still an idiot.”

“I guess so.”

“I know so.” He winks at me, and my whole body lights. I chug down half the bottle, the alcohol quickly taking hold of my bloodstream.

Derek shrugs. “Besides, idiots were always your type.”

“They were not!”

“Oh, please! You liked them dumb and hot.”

“I did not!”

“One hundred percent, yes, you did.”

“Okay, what about you?”

“Ouch. I may be hot, but I’m no idiot.”

I spurt into laughter, spitting out beer as I climb onto the counter and make myself comfortable, pulling my knees to my chest. “No, I mean you loved them dumb!”