Page 137 of I Choose You

I chuckled, capturing her hand and kissing her fingertips. “You’re really excited to try to talk me into getting ink, aren’t you?”

“Maybe.” She kissed me. “Sort of.”

I dragged my hand down her back until I rested it on her ass again.

“You are such an ass man.”

I growled, squeezing both cheeks. “How about just your man?”

“So you’ll get it then. Classic sailor’s heart with cupid’s arrow. A curly, fancy B.”

“Maybe I’ll get a balloon dog puppet somewhere instead,” I teased.

“Funny.” She kissed me and nipped my lower lip. “But really, haven’t you ever thought about getting a tattoo? Something to make you different from your brother.”

I froze for a second. “I am different from Kody.”

“I know that.” She rolled her eyes. “But I can just imagine it. When you two were toddlers running around with crazy boy energy and driving your parents insane. If your mom ever got you matching clothes.”

“Every Christmas.” I chuckled at the memory. “This family portrait thing.”

And Kody and I had loved tricking people back then. Mom and Dad always knew who was who, of course. The appeal died out for me in second grade. I’d forgotten to turn in a project, too busy playing video games. When the teacher handed out the marked papers, I lied and said I was Kody, hoping I could cross out his name to show our parents he’d slacked and I hadn’t. The idiot got a D on it, so I was screwed anyway. My eight-year-old mind understood the implications of tricking people on our identities then, and I never tried to do it again.

Until I pretended to be Kody and tell Brooke she didn’t have a date to prom after all. To spare her from being stood up.

“Are you afraid of needles?” she asked, jarring me out of the memory.

“Nah.” I sighed, grateful to leave the past where it belonged.

I need to tell her.

I took the easy out, pulling her thighs up higher on me. She peppered my face with quick, soft kisses, and I rubbed my hands over her delectable ass.

“Maybe one of these days,” I told her.

“I’ll hold you to that,” she said.

“Right now, I’d rather you hold on to me.” I gripped her hips and rubbed her over my dick as it started to harden.

She bit her lip then lowered to kiss me. “Me too.”

46

BROOKE

I’d invited Kaden to dinner at my mother’s house on impulse. Talking about weddings had led me to think about what else would be left for Kaden to invite me to for his dad’s.

He’d already mentioned the rehearsal dinner being a no-go because his dad didn’t want the fuss so close to the wedding. Mr. Wagner was lax with this wedding, and I thought it was kind of sweet. He was secure in his relationship with Margaux and he didn’t need to fret about the little stuff a first-time bride or groom might.

Secure in his relationship unlike I was with Kaden. If we had a relationship.

He’d asked for a reset. We sure as hell reset the sex. But I’d come to feel more for him. When it seemed like he was sticking with the plan of the fake date, I worried I’d misread him.

Hope was restored when he mentioned wanting to get away with me.

For sex, though? Or something more?

Asking him to my mom’s for dinner was the best I could think of. I didn’t want to ask him over to my place because it was so small. I didn’t want to go out in public, like getting drinks or a movie. I wanted to be selfish with him for a while.