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FOUR
Trent looked up from his phone when I stepped downstairs. He had showered and was now sitting in a pair of basketball shorts with no shirt on. His eyes ran over my jeans and long-sleeve shirt, my purse on my shoulder.
“Where are you headed to?” he asked me.
“I have a date tonight,” I told him.
He frowned, running his eyes over me again. Finally, he sighed. “Your location is on, right?”
Guilt tugged at my chest. My location had always been on for my brother, but never before had he ever asked me if it was. And I knew he was asking now because he was worried I would end my life.
I nodded. “It’s on,” I assured him, my voice a bit quieter now.
He got up from the couch and hugged me, pressing a kiss to the top of my head as he did so. “Be careful, yeah?”
I nodded. “I will,” I promised.
Reluctantly, he let me go, and his eyes didn’t leave me until I shut the front door of the house behind me.
* * *
Brayden was waiting outsidefor me when I got there. He smiled and walked down the porch to open the car door for me. “Hey; I wasn’t sure if you were going to make it,” he admitted.
Truth was, I’d thought about bailing, especially since there wasn’t much chemistry between us, but I’d refrained. I’d told him I would come, and I was determined to keep my word, even if I wasn’t all that interested in him.
He was the only person that didn’t look at me like I was on the verge of shattering completely, and it was nice. Everyone else—my brother included—were treading on eggshells around me. It was just as tiring as it was pretending to be mostly okay.
I stepped out of my car. Brayden pressed a quick kiss to my lips, surprising me, before he grabbed my hand in his and led me up the porch to his house. It was small—three-bedroom house at the most—but it was probably all he needed, especially if he lived by himself.
I was just shocked to see he was in a house instead of an apartment or a college dorm. Kudos to him for having his life mostly together already.
We walked into his living room. The TV was already on with what looked to be an action movie. Another downer for him was assuming I wanted to watch an action movie. And while I didn’t particularly want to watch some romance movie either, a cartoon movie would have been great.
Something—anything—to remind me of a better time of my life.
“I’ve got some popcorn, chips, cookies, and soda,” Brayden told me. “Feel free to eat whatever you’d like,” he said as we sat down on the couch directly across from the TV.
I just nodded. He curled his arm around my shoulders and tugged me against his side before pressing play on the remote, allowing the movie to play.
I closed my eyes, allowing his warmth to wrap around me, and I fell asleep. I didn’t give a damn about the movie playing, and I certainly didn’t care about the food.
Suddenly, I was just so sleepy.
* * *
“What the fuck?!”someone exploded, jerking me from my slumber.
I abruptly sat up, my wide eyes snapping up to a pissed Seth. He was furious. He was glaring at Brayden, fury glittering in his gorgeous blue eyes. “Why the fuck are you and my ex fucking cuddling?!” Seth shouted.
I swallowed thickly. They knew each other?
“Bro, I didn’t know she was your ex,” Brayden said to Seth, standing up from the couch as he did so.
“How many fucking Baileys do you know of?!” Seth shouted at him. “Goddammit, Brayden, she was the only one I said was off fucking limits!”
He told Brayden I was off-limits?
Brayden looked down at me. I quickly stood up from the couch, almost stumbling over my feet. Seth quickly grabbed my upper arms. “Easy,” he said softly, his eyes trained on mine.
