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I run my hands down my shirt—the shirt Lily was eager to turn into shreds—and take my sweet time turning to face my brother’s furious expression. Luca’s in his element, with bulging eyes, a tree-trunk-sized vein in his neck, and a scowl that could shatter glass. No use in being frightened; I would fight off a whole squad of Luca clones to experience that kiss again.
Tense silence simmers between us like a volcano on the brink of erupting. I throw on my calmest expression and flash him a smile. “Having a good night?” I ask.
He glares at me, sucks in a deep calming breath, and faces Lily. “From him, I’d have expected this, but from you, Lily? This is disappoin—”
She doesn’t let him finish. “Sorry,Dad.”
A cocktail of anger and irritation brews inside me.
“Lily, I’m sorry. I wasn’t trying to sound harsh, but—” Luca attempts an apology.
I shove away the sour feelings. I’m a pacifist at heart, so lightening the mood is the best course of action.
“I promise there wasn’t a single disappointing thing about that.” I smile at Lily, but she rolls her eyes and picks up her bag.
“I’m going inside.” She leaves us to our duel.
“Hey,” I yell after her. “One o’clock tomorrow.”
Then I turn and blink at my older brother, who could easily have steam spilling from his ears.
Let the scolding begin.
Chapter4
Lily
Another roundof auditory abuse pulsates from my phone. I hit snooze again and notice the time.
This can’t be right.
A groan sprints out of my throat. I should’ve been awake an hour ago. If I’m not on the road in ten minutes, I’ll miss my flight back to New York.
I strip the covers off my sweat-drenched skin and swing my legs off the bed. An aching throb blooms in my forehead. This is exactly what everyone warned me about as I got older. My body can’t handle alcohol the same way it did back in the day.
I scramble to shove my toiletries and clothes into my overflowing suitcase.
Why did I overpack?
I mean, really, four bikinis? My combat boots? Two different sets of lingerie?
Yeah, like I was going to make use of them both.
I throw on a pair of lounge shorts, a sports bra, and Avery’s old Rams sweatshirt from back when we met in North Carolina. The top usually brings up nausea-inducing memories of a certain asshole I never want to remember, but it’s a decade old and too comfortable to not travel in.
The night comes back to me in pieces.
A glass of champagne to toast Avery and Luca, another while we danced, a few shots of tequila with Molly and…
Nico.
No. Fuck. Fuckity fuck.
I chug a glass of water, brush my teeth, and shove my laptop into my tote bag. I should’ve packed last night. Instead, I alternated between panicking about kissing the one man who was off-limits and giving the creators of my vibrator a run for their money.
I kissed Nico Navarro.
I kissed my best friend’s new brother. That was her word.Brother.
