Page 84 of Let’s Be Real

We got as far as the lobby before Adrian stopped putting up with my stumbling, muttered excuses that didn’t make a lick of sense. He took my bag and my arm, pulled me back into the elevator, and hit the button for his floor. The whole way up, he stared at me like he was trying to solve a puzzle. By the time he shoved me into his condo, his jaw was tight, and his back was against the door, blocking any way I had of escaping.

I flopped on his couch in defeat.

“Did you come from Nate’s place?” he asked, pacing in front of me.

“Yes.”

He stopped, his hands on his hips. “Are you going to elaborate?”

I shrugged. “It’s what you think—well, not exactly what you think. We didn’t hook up last night.”

“So you slept over with my brother without hooking up?” This seemed to disturb him more. “Are you in a relationship with Nate?”

“No.” I shook my head adamantly. “Absolutely not.”

He pinned me with a hard stare. “Has this been going on since the wedding?”

I nodded, guilty. “Basically, yes. When I told you about the first time, I really didn’t think it would happen again, but…it did.”

“But you’re not in a relationship.”

“No. And the sex part is finished now too.”

His head jerked back in surprise. “Why?”

I narrowed my eyes. “Which part?”

“Both, I guess. Why is it ending? Why did you keep it secret all this time? Why no relationship?”

“That’s a lot of questions.” I patted the cushion beside me. “Please sit. Looking up at you is giving me a crick in my neck.”

“I’m not sure I want to sit beside you right now, Sammie. I’m kinda pissed at you.” His eyes rolled to the ceiling. “And that dick—I’m really pissed at him. You, at least, had the decency to tell me about the first time. He hasn’t said a single word.”

“Don’t blame Nate for any of this.”

Adrian ignored me, pacing the floor a few more times before sitting on the armchair diagonal from the couch. That he wouldn’t sit beside me made my heart pinch, but I couldn’t say I didn’t deserve it.

He braced his elbows on his knees and pressed his palms together. “All right. Why’d you keep this a secret? I didn’t think we were like that.”

“We’re not like that.” I rolled my lips over my teeth, trying to choose my words carefully. “This is one of those times I really wish I hadn’t chosen a boy as my best friend for life. I could have used a girlfriend to brag about how stellar my sex life has been the past couple months—”

Adrian’s wince proved my point. “I don’t need details.”

“And that’s why I didn’t tell you.”

He leveled me with a hard stare. “You could have told me it was happening without giving me details, dammit. I feel like a fool. Nate wanting to tag along to California? Did I charter a jet so you two could have a hotel fuckfest?”

I shot my middle finger at him. “Shut up, Andrea. I had no idea he was going to be on the plane. We weren’t trying to play you for a fool. You know me better than that, and I really hope you know Nate isn’t like that.”

“I don’t know jack about Nate. He breezes in and out of the family without telling us what he’s up to. Hell, you probably know more about him than his brothers do.”

“I know what he likes in bed.”

Once the statement left my mouth, I realized it wasn’t true at all. I had learned a lot about Nate over the past couple months. So much more than what he liked in bed. I felt awful all over for even saying that.

I was the only one who knew he was visiting Louise regularly. He’d told me how Rosalie had left him feeling like he wasn’t good enough to be in another relationship. He didn’t sleep well, but he didn’t want anyone to worry, so he hid it. His medication left him numb sometimes, but he was scared to change anything. What he sounded like laughing with pure joy…

Maybe Adrian was right to be mad. Nate had revealed a whole hell of a lot about himself to me, and I hadn’t even known how lucky I’d been to be given all of it.