Page 80 of Alpha Jax

“Whoa, whoa, whoa,” I interject, holding up my hands. I can’t keep quiet anymore, not when Theo has this whole thing twisted. “Back up. First of all, I’m not a victim here, Theo. He didn’t take advantage of me, I was a willing participant.”

Theo grimaces, but I ignore it and continue on. “And second, he’s not the only one who lied. So if you’re gonna be mad at him for lying to you, then you should be mad at me, too.”

Theo makes a ‘hmph’ sound, rolling his eyes.

“And lastly… when did he promise you that? Was it before or after he realized who I was? Because this thing started weeks before I came to the complex. We randomly met in Stillwater, and…”

“What?!” Theo chokes, eyes flying wide as he turns to glance at me over his shoulder.

“Eyes on the road!” Brooke scolds, swatting his arm.

Theo looks forward again, his knuckles turning white as he grips the steering wheel. “You?” he grinds out. “Youwere the girl in Stillwater that Jax kept going on about?”

I suck in a deep breath and blow it out.

That’s all the answer he needs. Even from back here, I see Theo pale. “Goddamn, I think I’m gonna be sick,” he mutters.

I pull my knees into my chest, staring out the window. “I didn’t know who he was, he didn’t know who I was. We didn’t do it to hurt you, Theo,” I say quietly, watching the blur of the trees as they go by. The leaves are changing- it’s the prettiest time of year in the forest. If only there wasn’t so much ugliness between me and my brother right now.

Brooke reaches over for Theo’s hand, taking it and lacing her fingers with his. She brings it up to her lips, dropping a kiss on his knuckles. “You’ve gotta stop thinking of Quinn as a little kid, babe. We’re the same age, and you had no problem getting physical with me. It’s part of life.”

Theo still looks nauseated. “Brooke, he fuckingtoldme about hooking up with her, indetail…”

“I’m sure was no worse than how you’ve talked about your past hookups,” Brooke interrupts, still holding Theo’s hand up by her face and looking over the top of it at him sternly. “C’mon, doesn’t this remind you of our situation just a little bit? You didn’t run and tell Quinn when we started seeing one another…”

“That was different. We were mates.”

“So?” Brooke challenges, ticking her head in my direction. “They could be, too, for all we know. And we definitely didn’t know that when you first started pursuing me. Or have you forgotten already?”

She presses another kiss to his knuckles and Theo glances over at Brooke, his lips curving into a smile at the memory. If I wasn’t so irritated by this whole situation, I’d smile too, because they really are cute together. The calming effect that Brooke has on Theo is pretty nifty, too.

“So you think you can be a little nicer to your sister?” Brooke asks with a smirk.

Theo grunts.

“Can you guys stop talking about me like I’m not here?” I ask, looking between them and arching a brow.

Brooke cranes her neck to look over her shoulder at me, whispering “sorry!” while Theo just makes another ‘hmph’ sound.

“Dude, you’ve gotta lay off already!” I sigh in exasperation. “I didn’t give you shit once for dating my friend, I was just happy you were happy and that you were with someone so great. Why can’t you do the same for me?”

Theo shoots me yet another glare through the rearview mirror. “Well first of all, I never lied to your face for weeks about it,” he grumbles, eyes focused on the road ahead as he starts gripping the steering wheel tighter again. “And sure, I’d try to be happy if you were happy, but you’ve been fucking miserable for the past two days, Q. Which now I know is because ofhim.”

I blow out a breath, staring out the window at the blur of the trees again. “That’s because I thought we were finished,” I say quietly. “We tried to do the whole casual hookup thing, but I couldn’t anymore. Because I…”

I can’t get the words past the lump in my throat. I take a couple of breaths, gathering myself before I continue, looking at Theo even though his eyes are focused ahead on the road.

“Look, I’m sorry that we lied to you, Theo, I really am. In the beginning, we agreed that you’d never have to find out. But then it all got screwed up somehow, and I didn’t mean for things to happen like this. I didn’t mean to fall for him.”

Theo stiffens, glancing back at me in the rearview mirror. He isn’t the only one caught off guard- this is the first time that I’ve admitted it out loud, that I have real feelings for Jax. That I’ve fallen for Jax.

Brooke drops Theo’s hand, turning her body to look back at me excitedly. “Well, what’d he say last night when he came over? Before your brother attacked him, I mean.” She gives Theo a little nudge.

“He… he basically said that he wants to be with me, too.” It’s like the realization is finally dawning on me that Jax and I could really happen- I get full body chills, sinking my teeth into my bottom lip as I stare at Brooke.

She squeals, grinning from ear to ear. “Oh my gosh, I love it! Jax is the best. I think you guys would be great together.” Brooke turns to Theo, setting a hand on his shoulder. “And your brother will come around,” she says, more to him than to me.

“I still don’t like it,” he grumbles.

---