AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Of all the guys in the world, why did I have to fall for Brett’s best friend?
“Morning, beautiful.”
That familiar gravelly voice startles me, and I turn to look as Lincoln walks into the living room. He’s wearing nothing but a pair of boxer shorts, showing off his thick chest and tattooed arms. His hair is mussed, and he runs a hand through it as he smiles sleepily at me. How does he always look so damn good?
“Good morning.”
Lincoln joins me on the couch, wrapping an arm around me, but his smile falters when he sees my face. “You okay, Daisy?”
I sigh, resting my head against his shoulder. “I’m just thinking about what happens now.”
“What do you mean?”
I meet his gaze. “Well, you’re Brett’s best friend, so…I guess that means this was just a one-off?”
Lincoln raises his eyebrows. “A one-off?” He shakes his head, his eyes intense as he looks at me. “No, Daisy. You don’t get it.” I suck in a breath as he tucks a loose strand of hair behind my ear. “You’re mine now. There’s no way in hell I’m letting you go. There’s no one-offs here, baby. Not for me.” His expression drops into a frown. “Why? Is that what you wanted? Just one night?”
“No!” I say, the word coming out louder than I intended. “Not at all, Lincoln…you’re the only guy I’ve ever wanted. I’m just worried about ruining your friendship with Brett. I don’t want to mess everything up.”
Lincoln considers me for a moment. “Your brother’s a good guy. He’s been a good friend to me, my best friend, besides my brother. But I’m not going to let anything come between you and me, Daisy. Not even Brett. The moment I walked into that cake shop and saw you, I knew I needed you to be mine. When I saw you with that other guy, it just made me more determined.”
My heart rate has been climbing with every word, but when he mentions another guy, I’m thrown.
“Other guy?”
Something dark crosses Lincoln’s face. “Yeah. The young guy you work with. I know you said you don’t like him, but I figured that even if you weren’t dating, he’d probably already made a pass at you—”
I laugh in disbelief. I can’t help it. “Jake? Trust me, Jake has definitely not made a pass at me. Kind of the opposite, actually.”
Lincoln frowns. “What do you mean ‘the opposite’?”
Thinking about what Jake said makes my throat tighten up, but it doesn’t hurt as much as it did yesterday. “You know how I said I wanted a walk in the woods?”
Lincoln nods.
“Well, that wasn’t exactly true.”
Lincoln cocks his head, raising an eyebrow as if to say “No shit.”
With a sigh, I tell Lincoln everything that happened yesterday. The things I overheard Jake saying about me on the phone. His forty-dollar bet. Me running off to the woods because I was upset. Deciding to take a walk near the cabin. All the way up to being caught in that trap.
When I’m finished talking, I start to worry that I’ve made a mistake. Lincoln’s fists are clenched and his face is reddening. He looks murderous, like he could happily bury Jake right now, and my heart jolts as he stands up, reaching for his keys.
“I’m gonna find this guy,” he mutters angrily, his voice dangerously low. “I’m gonna beat his ass. I’ll make him spit his fucking teeth out.”
I jump up from the couch and hurry to stand between Lincoln and the door. “Linc, don’t. Please. I can handle it. I regret running away from the situation; I should have stayed and told him what I thought of him. But when I go back to work on Monday, I promise I’ll deal with it. I need to do this myself.”
Lincoln still looks like he’s ready to strangle Jake with his bare hands, but his gaze softens when he looks at me. “Fine. But if you change your mind, tell me, okay? I’d be more than happy to teach that disgusting motherfucker a lesson, believe me.”
“I believe you.”
Gingerly, I lead him away from the door and back to the couch.
“I can’t believe he said that shit to you,” Lincoln says through gritted teeth. “That asshole doesn’t deserve to breathe the same air as you.” He looks at me. “You’re fucking beautiful, Daisy. That curvy little body drives me crazy. If some teenage jackass can’t see how perfect you are then fuck him.”
My heart swells at the fierce emotion in Lincoln’s voice. Even when I was a kid, he was already my biggest defender, and I know he’ll always be in my corner. It means the world to me. Lincoln might not be able to fix all the years I’ve spent hating my body, but he makes me feel beautiful and sexy. He makes me feel like loving my curves is possible, no matter what assholes like Jake say about me.
“Thank you, Lincoln,” I tell him, leaning in to kiss him.
