Page 45 of I'd Never Date my Best Friend's Brother

“I’ve known you forever. I know how you are. Jess and I would joke about you and the women you would date.”

“What?” His eyebrows shoot up to his hairline.

“C’mon! You act like you weren’t the biggest player.” I push our still-entwined hands toward him. “It was easy to see how unavailable you’ve always been. Work just seemed to come first, and if anyone could understand that it was me.”

He squeezes my hand, and for the first time today, I see an openness in his eyes, but at my next words, sadness tinges his expression.

“When you left like you did, I felt foolish and that I had misread everything. I couldn’t help but question my perception of what was happening. And then you never even sent a text…”

“Evie.” The tone of his voice tugs at my heart. “I was just being downright dumb. For someone as smart as I am, I’m really stupid when it comes to feelings. Plus, I wasn’t sure you would respond.”

“I probably wouldn’t have,” I laugh. “I was really upset.”

“If how angry you were at Jess’ ugly sweater party is any indication, it’s probably better that I didn’t reach out.”

“I’m not so sure about that…you didn’t have to deal with me on a daily basis for the last six months.” I squeeze his hand again to let him know that although I’m being serious, I’m not holding a grudge. “I think everyone would’ve preferred it ifyou had begged for my forgiveness.”

“You really are cute when you’re angry.” I scoff at him. He snickers at the idea of me giving everyone a hard time and lifts my hand to his lips for a kiss. “I love learning all the different aspects of you, but I much prefer the version that is a ray of sunshine.”

I narrow my eyes at him in warning. “Well then, just don’t do stupid things, and you won’t see that grumpy side often.”

The warmth in his expression as he looks at me makes my body fill with warmth, but then my stomach suddenly falls to the floor. “Wait, what about your job?”

Chapter 22

Jamie

Every muscle in my body tightens at her question. Ugh. I forgot I didn’t tell her this part. I take a deep breath and blow it out.

I look away sheepishly and say quietly. “Actually, me being away was training to see if they wanted to keep me on in a more permanent capacity. If they decided to hire me, where I ended up working from was my decision.”

I can feel her eyes burning a hole in my face, and her hand entwined with mine loosens. I grip tighter, afraid that she’s going to completely pull away. Not just her hand but from us. From me. I can’t lose her after I just got her.

“Evie.” Her name falls from my lips with a bit of desperation, and I gaze into her eyes, begging her to understand. “I wasn’t thinking straight when I left.”

I can see doubt cloud her expression, and my stomach clenches. “So you knew that you could be back in Willow Falls when the six months were over?”

My mouth is suddenly dry, and I have trouble swallowing. “I knew it was a possibility. But at that point in time, I wasn’t sure I would be coming back since I did have the option to work anywhere in the world.”

She looks away from me, her lips pressed together.

“Evie—” She puts up a hand to stop me from saying anything else.

“Just give me a second to process this.” She turns her gaze back to mine, and I feel my body relax as I see the rational expression in her eyes. “Okay?”

I blow out a big breath and nod, giving her the silence she’s asked for. I can see her brain ticking as she connects all the dots.

Luckily for me, the O’Connells are rational people. They always look at both sides of a story and try to understand the full picture.

Unlike my family, where we can all be hot-headed and not think something through until after the fact.

Case in point—me leaving and ending things only to realize how ridiculous I was being. Once I ended things, it became obvious to me that I was in love with Evie. But after I acted so stupidly, I wasn’t sure how to fix the biggest mistake of my life.

Plus, what if I just did what I always do and ruin things? I couldn’t take that chance with Evie. To be honest, I was surprised that neither Sean or Jess questioned me about what happened. I waited for them to grill me the entire time I was away but it never came.

Their silence was probably the biggest game changer since I didn’t need to defend what I had done. Normally, everyone is butting in when it comes to my love life. This time, no one said anything.

I lift my gaze to the woman in front of me, and my eyes slowly take in every inch of her face. My heart expands with the love I feel for her, and it clicks. No one said anything because it’s Evie.

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