Page 50 of I'd Never Date my Brother's Best Friend

“No goodnight kiss?”

“What?” I frown. “Why would you even ask that?”

“Won’t you kiss Rick? Since it’s a date simulation, surely you two should have kissed goodnight at the door.”

“No. There was no good night kiss.”

“That’s such a bummer,” Evelyn answers, making me roll my eyes. “You know what, Evie? Just say whatever you're insinuating outright. Okay? Stop beating around the bush.”

“Well,” she drawls. “I just think you and Sean should go on an actual date and see what’s in store for you both.”

“What?” I’ve never shouted a louder “What” in my life.

“Relax,” Evelyn laughs. “It’s not that big of a deal. Really.”

“Are you listening to yourself?”

“You and Sean have always had chemistry and are always at each other’s throats,” she says, ignoring me. “But maybe it’s not actually a hate thing between the two of you. What if it’s something else all together?”

“Ewww.” I scrunch my face up as much as possible, hoping it’s convincing enough. While Evelyn’s words just feed into my fantasy, I mustn’t show her that I’ve been thinking about it, too. “I want to throw up in my mouth.”

“Why?”

“What do you mean why? That’s your brother, Evie.”

“And?” Evelyn stares at me with her wide eyes. “He’s my brother. It’s not like he’s related to you or something. What’s the big deal? And you know Sean. You know he won’t be like the other guys. To be honest, all I see are the pros. We could even be sisters,” she adds with a wink

I sigh, now wishing I could disappear. Evie is planting ideas in my head. I’m pretty sure Sean is not interested in me and never will be. I mean he doesn’t like me. I’m not even remotely close to his type. Forget about the fact that he’s happy all the time, and I’m a total grump.

“Sean and I don’t mix,” I tell Evelyn. “Honestly.”

“Why do you say that?”

“He’s…uhm…into things that I don’t like.”

“Like what?” Evelyn presses.

“Like romance movies, for instance. Look at the movies he does. All the sappy nonsense, the groveling, the loving, it’s unrealistic. If we were together, he'd expect me to watch those with him.” It doesn’t matter that I watch them on my own just to see him anyway. I’d die before I’d tell him or Evie that.

Evelyn rolls her eyes, dismissing my logic with a wave. “That’s a silly excuse,” she says. “The beauty of love is when two different people come together and find a balance. You’ll watch his sappy romance movies, and he’ll watch your gory thrillers. He already reads all your books despite the fact that he’s not a fan of the genre.”

She’s right, but I don’t dwell on it. “Nah, we don’t work.” I take the last bite of my sandwich and chug down the rest of the coffee. “And never mention this again, please.”

Evelyn shakes her head. “So, your date with Rick, do you think you’re ready?”

I shrug. “I guess. It’s happening next week.”

“You don’t sound too excited about it,” Evelyn says.

“I was, but not anymore. I only have energy for one date per month apparently, and Sean has sapped all of it.”

“Is that the only thing Sean sapped?” Evelyn wiggles her brows at me, and I frown at her.

“You’re so corny,” I say. “And terribly unrealistic. All those romance stories have burned your brain and fried it to a crisp.”

“And you’re such an unrepentant pessimist,” she fires back. “It’s all that thriller you write and watch, I’m sure.”

“I need to buy a dress for my date with Rick next week. Maybe new shoes, too.”

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