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“What the fuck? You’re acting like her best friend. I asked you to look out for her, not become best buddies.”
“She’s clearly hurting,” Connor interjected. “You asked us to let her stay here, to look out for her, and we have. You can’t be mad at us for caring about her. She’s your sister, bro. Family.”
“I know. Fuck, I know, okay.” He jammed his fingers into his hair, violently tugging the ends. “It’s just having her here dredges up some stuff I haven’t dealt with.”
“Well, deal with it. Because she’s one of us now,” Connor said. “And if she needs a place to stay, she has one.”
I was grateful that he was standing up for her, but it should have been me.
I should have been the one to set Austin straight.
It was a line I couldn’t cross, not until Aurora was ready.
I could try and make her believe in herself, show her how beautiful she was, try my hardest to make her believe it, but I couldn’t push her, not about this.
Not when the fallout could be detrimental for us both.
CHAPTER 29
AURORA
“Aurora, meet Jordan. Jordan, this is the girl I’ve been telling you about.”
“Oh my God, you are gorgeous,” Ella’s friend smirked, her heavy-lined eyes sweeping down my body in a slow perusal.
“See, I told you,” Ella winked at me.
“Oh yeah, you would have been so my type if I wasn’t already madly in love with this one.” She grabbed another girl’s hand and tugged her into our small circle.
“Aurora, this is my girlfriend, Noelle.”
“Hi, Aurora, it’s nice to meet you.”
“Hi.” I lifted my hand in a small wave. “I love your dress. It’s so unique.”
“I make most of my own clothes.” Pride glittered in her eyes as she ran a hand down her Alice in Wonderland print skirt. “Fashion and design major.”
“Wow, that’s so cool.”
“Ella tells us you’re an English major,” Jordan said.
“Yep. Fellow bookworm.”
“I hate to say it, but I’m less of a bookworm and more of an is-there-a-movie-adaptation-I-can-watch person.”
“Hi.” Dayna appeared breathless and flushed. “Sorry, I’m late. Aiden and I were—”
“Not sure we need to hear any more Dayna and Aiden sex stories,” Jordan chuckled.
“Oh no, we weren’t having sex. We went to view some apartments.”
“I can’t believe you’re going to move in with Aiden Dumfries. It’s almost as bad as this one planning her white picket fence future with Morgan.” Jordan smirked at Ella, and Ella stuck her tongue out in return. “Don’t tell me you’re hoping to snag a hockey player, too, Aurora. Because I’m not sure my anti-Lakers brain can handle it.”
“Oh hush, babe.” Noelle nuzzled her girlfriend’s neck. “We all know you’re a closet Lakers fan.”
“Never,” she protested. “And that is a hill I will happily die on.”
The girls all laughed, and I smiled along, not really following. Too busy scanning the bar. A quirky place on the edge of town, Ella had reassured me it wouldn’t be full of hockey players or the puck bunnies who followed them around.
