Page 24 of An Unexpected Encounter

When we found out she was going to be there, we knew this was our shot. We were going to pull her to the side and let her know she only heard part of our conversation. But then she opens the door and has someone with her, a man, her boyfriend.

I almost choked, swallowing my water wrong when he said that. We’d been prying Julia for information on Selena, but she doesn’t know anything about her. How do you not know details about your daughter’s life? Not to mention she steered every conversation to talk about herself.

“Julia’s a real bitch. How does Dad see anything in her?” Eli cuts the silence as we pull into the driveway of our house.

“I don’t know. Fuck, she’s got a boyfriend,” Jay whispers, his voice pained. He had high hopes of being with her even though she’s our stepsister, he didn’t care what Dad thought about it.

Jay opens the door as soon as Eli puts the truck in park and rushes up the sidewalk to the front door.

He fought with us for days once we got back from the wedding, to just show up at her house, but we felt it would be too creepy. We needed to bide our time and wait for the perfect moment.

We waited too long. Not only does she have a boyfriend, but with us not seeking her out, it just made that bit of the conversation seem more real.

“He still had hope of having a chance with her. Tonight changed that for him,” Eli tells me as he opens his door, sliding a leg out of it.

Taking hold of his arm, I stop him. “Eli, can you admit you would’ve been okay with that? You were just as hung up on your mystery girl as I was. There’s no way it wouldn’t cause a rift if one of us was with her.”

He just sits there with his head down, his eyes locked on the ground. I knew it. He’s still hung up on Selena too.

“It doesn’t matter. She’s our step-sister, and she has a boyfriend. It's a moot point now.” He sighs and slides on out, making his way inside the house.

I bang my fist on the dash before getting out of the truck myself.

Raking my hand through my hair, I follow them inside. Both of my brothers are sitting on the couch with a beer in hand, their feet resting on the coffee table.

“I don’t give a shit what either of you has to say. I can’t stop thinking about Selena. I’ve never been this attracted to a woman before and I don’t want to let it go without giving it a chance.” Jay pulls his feet down, leaning forward, his brows furrowed.

“Dad—” I begin, but don’t get to finish.

“No, this is my life, not Dad’s. We’re not related by blood and I met her before I even knew who she was, so there’s not a damn reason I couldn’t or shouldn’t pursue her. It’s not incest.” Jay slams the beer bottle on the table, causing some to splatter out of it.

“I get that. Believe me, I do. But Dad would be furious, not to mention what his new wife would think,” Eli interjects.

“She’s a fucking cunt. Did you hear the way she talked to Selena? And Dad just sat back and let her. He would’ve never done that before. I don’t know what she’s done to him, but he’s been different since meeting her. And can each of you tell me honestly that you’re not still interested in her?”

Eli and I lock eyes. Yes! We do want her.

“That doesn’t even matter. There’s three of us and one of her. How was that ever going to work?” I question him, sitting on the chair across from them as I reach over to the coffee table and take Jay’s beer.

“That’s a bullshit answer. Haven’t you heard of polyamory?” he asks with a smirk.

“What the hell is that?” Eli questions, pulling his feet down from the table and leaning forward, fully enraptured by what Jay’s saying.

“It’s multiple people in a loving, committed relationship. One woman with multiple men, ‘cause there’s no way I’ll be with either of you two.”

My eyes go wide. Is this like a legit thing? I’ve seen a couple of episodes of that show with the one guy and all the wives and kids, but never thought much of it.

“We all want her, so what’s the problem? I don’t mind sharing her with my brothers. It makes it easier. At least I know and like the two of you.” He laughs before standing and heading to the kitchen.

Eli looks at me, his teeth clenched, and I know he’s thinking about what Jay said.

“What do you think?” he finally asks.

“I don’t know. Even if I was okay with the idea, it doesn’t matter since she’s seeing someone,” I remind him again of the obstacle in our path.

“Who says they’ll last?” Jay’s loud voice echoes from the kitchen, just before he reappears with three beer bottles.

“Do you have super hearing or some shit?” Eli jokes as he reaches out and takes a beer from him.

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