Page 21 of I'd Never Date my Brother's Best Friend

“I have to help her,” I murmur to nobody, nodding at my brilliant idea. Jessica has proved that she’s quite incapable of finding a man on her own, so I must step in and help her.

That’s a wonderful idea!

Tomorrow, I will talk to her about letting me coach her into getting a relationship. I have more experience, so she should jump at this chance. But knowing Jessica, she will probably prove stubborn at first. I lay back down on the bed and hold my pillow firmly beneath my head, a smile on my face. I’ll do everything I can to make sure she accepts my help.

Chapter 10

Jessica

Marlon stays hidden behind the door, his Glock held firmly in his hands, his fingers poised over the trigger. His heartbeat is as loud as a drum, and he’s aware that there’ll be a death tonight—either him or Farloe. One of them must die. He—

A knock sounds at the door, breaking my word flow. Groaning, I slump against the table, slightly banging my forehead on the wood. “Ow!” After battling with writer’s block for months, I finally started writing last night, and it’s been such a breeze. I got up around two a.m. and continued till five, after which I went back to sleep only to wake up again at seven to write some more. It’s nine now, and I’m on my fourth chapter.

I hear the knock again and glare at the door, wondering who it could be. No one comes here except my family or Evelyn, and they always call before stopping by. I slip down the stool and march toward the door, struggling to maintain my composure and not snap at whoever I find at the other end.

Just as I reach the door, the knock comes again, and I grab the knob and yank it open.

“Oh, for goodness sake, relax. Who the—” I pause, finding Sean on my doorstep. He looks cute in a pair of jeans and a white t-shirt, holding two cups of coffee.

“Good morning to you, too, precious.”

“Precious?” I gag. “What are you doing here? I don’t have time for this, Sean.”

Sean ignores me and pushes into my house, stopping a stone’s throw from the door. “Thanks for letting me in.”

“I didn’t!” I slam the door shut and fold my arms. Fortunately, I’ve showered, and my hair looks nice, but I still feel a little self conscious about Sean seeing me in my space where I always feel vulnerable.

“How are you?” He asks warmly. “I came to see if you were over last night. I’m sorry if you feel weird about what happened.”

“What happened?” I ask.

“About your mom telling everyone your—”

“That’s enough.” I raise my hand to stop him because I don’t want to be reminded of how my mother embarrassed me by spilling details about my love life in public. “It’s fine. I’m over it.”

“Wonderful.” He takes a sip from one of the coffee cups and stretches the other out to me. “This is for you.”

I want to take it but I’ll feel better refusing Sean and booting him out of my house. When I don’t immediately accept the cup, he narrows his eyes at me.

“It’s rude to reject gifts from a visitor. I’m sure you know that.”

Squinting my eyes at him, I walk toward him and take the cup. It’s still warm and I take a sip. Sean smiles.

“Do you like it?”

I savor the taste of the coffee before swallowing. “It’s good,” I say, taking another sip. “Thank you.”

Sean nods and looks around my space. “Your house is much bigger than I thought,” he says.

“Why were you thinking about my house?”

He shrugs and ignores my question. “You could have done a lot better with the curtains.” He narrows his eyes at my silver-hemmed frill curtains. “They hardly fit the aesthetics of your space.”

I gape at him. “You’re unbelievable, Sean. First, you barge into my home. Second, you’re judging my curtains?”

“Are we even friends if I can’t judge your curtains?” He arches his brows, and I almost laugh at his childishness.

“Get out, Sean.” I take another sip from the coffee. He sighs heavily and walks toward the island, where my laptop is sitting. He starts to read the open page, and I dash toward him, snapping the lid shut. Our gazes meet, and I suck in a breath. He’s so close, and his eyes are the bluest of blues, it’ll take nothing for me to lean in and…

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