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“Well then don’t talk to me like that,” I told him.
He paused for a moment, then nodded once. “I love Rush like he’s my own family, but I don’t think he’s boyfriend material. Especially after everything you’ve been through… that’s all there is to it. Just protect yourself. Okay?”
I shrugged his hand away from my shoulder. “I know you’ve always given me advice about everything, but this is one time I really don’t want it.”
“Heard,” he said, holding up a hand. “Loud and clear. I trust both of you, I just really, really want you both to be happy. I love you, Shawn.”
My heart felt like it was lodged somewhere in the bottom of my throat now. “I love you too,” I told him. But as he made his way back over to the trench, I leaned against the side of the house, my head swimming with a billion questions.
I knew, deep down, that my brother did always have my best interests at heart. I also knew he was wise, thoughtful, and I usually did agree with his opinions.
So why did his little warning lecture strike up a fire in my veins? Why was I so purely angry that he’d even think about questioning my relationship with Rush?
I just wanted to ignore all of the warning signs. I didn’t want to think about the worst-case scenario. I was falling for someone I’d always wanted, and it felt like walking on a cloud. I was pretty sure that what bothered me about Nathan’s words was that I wondered if he was actually right.
That this was going to crash and burn.
That Rush would slowly get bored and tired of me. Of Jade River. Of everything we’d been doing over the past couple of months that had been the ultimate teenage crush wish fulfillment fantasy for me.
And I didn’t want to think about that possibility at all.
A few days later, my eyes were lingering on Rush’s ass as he shoved off a different pair of pants for what felt like the tenth time in a row.
“What was wrong with those?” I asked. “Other than the fact that they were hiding your perfect ass, of course.”
Rush let out a frustrated sigh, scrubbing his face with his palms. “They’re just not right. They’d be fine for a night out at a club, but not a night with your parents. And certainly not at the Spring Festival.”
I’d been watching Rush try on different clothes for fifteen minutes now as I sat back on his bed. We were going to meet up with my whole family at the Spring Festival soon, and my thoughts still floated back toward my tense conversation with Nathan the other day. His words hadn’t made me hesitate about Rush at all—in fact, every single time I met up with Rush, I seemed to like him even more than before.
But I still thought about what Nathan had said. I didn’t know how in hell I was going to get everyone else to trust Rush as much as I did in my heart.
And now we were just minutes away from heading over to introduce Rush as my boyfriend to the whole family. I’d decided that I didn’t want to give a fuck anymore. I was going in confident, proud, and unapologetic.
I leaned over on my elbow in bed, lying down on my side. “I know you’re aware that my parents are not going to be looking at your clothes. They’re going to be eating funnel cake and drinking beer and I promise you, they will be very focused on the trivia prizes.”
“You’re right,” Rush said, throwing his hands up in the air. “I’m just reaching down and picking the first pair I grab.” He pulled on a pair of jeans and then looked back at me, giving me a thumbs up.
Christ. Even when he was being cheesy, he was irresistible.
“Gorgeous. Just like the last ten pairs.”
Rush puffed out a laugh. “I swear ever since I became a capital-B, official, card-carrying, boyfriend it’s like worms infected my brain. I’m second-guessing everything.”
“I sure as shit don’t know why.”
He glanced down at me again, pausing just for a moment. “Because I want to be the best you’ve ever had,” he said. “I’ve never had a boyfriend before, but you have. And you deserve the world.”
Tingles. He gave me feel-good tingles, all over. I could never get sick of this man.
“If I didn’t know better, I’d swear you were trying to get in my pants,” I joked.
“Always.”
I reached out my arm and once he put his hand in mine, I tugged him forward toward the bed. He leaned down and kissed me, both of us taking our time in the moment. “You don’t seem to realize that you already were the best, in my mind.”
He hummed against my lips, kissing me again. “I’ll never get over picturing you having a crush on me as a teenager. God, I wish I had known at the time.”
