Page 51 of Undeniable

“What do you mean you’re not going to dignify my question with an answer? I want to know what the hell my little sister is doing getting in my best friend’s truck.”

I rolled my eyes so hard they nearly got stuck in the back of my head. Forrest wasminutesolder than me. Not enough to call him older, yet it was a card he always tried to play when he got on a protective kick. Whether it was the school bully or a boy I liked, he pretended like he was my “big brother.” Like it held more weight that way.

“I’m not dignifying a stupid question with a response. It’s none of your damn business, Forrest.”

We were locked in a stare-down and a battle of wills to see who would cave first. And it sure as hell wasn’t going to be me.

“You know, I didn’t want to be right about this,” he finally said.

“How did you even find out?”

He shook his head. “I’m your brother,” he explained and then glanced at James quickly out of the corner of his eye. “I’m yourtwin,and he’s my best friend. If I didn’t know, I’d be a fucking idiot. The two of you are alwaysunavailableat the same time. And when I thought there might be more going on, it wasn’t that hard to tell by just watching the two of you be in the same room together. You’re not as stealthy as you think you are.”

My attempt to pry Forrest’s hand off the handle was futile. James noted my struggle and quickly whipped open his door. He was out and on our side of the truck in a second flat, the gravel crunching softly under his boots.

“Let go of my truck,” he warned Forrest.

Forrest released the handle but said to James, “We need to talk.”

There wasn’t much room for argument in Forrest’s tone. The three guys shared a look and James and Forrest walked several feet away before my brother started speaking. They were too far away for me to hear anything, although I tried before Brendon cleared his throat and stepped forward.

“Is this… is this why you brushed me off at prom?”

I knew that if Brendon ever found out about the two of us, he’d think it was the sole reason why I told him we couldn’t be more than friends at prom. But that was far from the truth, and the fact that he thought so for some reason only ratcheted up my annoyance. I tried not to let that reflect in my words, though. I didn’t want to hurt him more than I could tell he already was.

“No, I really just want to be friends. I just… didn’t see there being anything more between us. But this”—I motioned between me and where James stood—“is none of y’all’s business.” I noted the hurt in Brendon’s features, but I couldn’t lie to him. I couldn’t fake attraction or any of the other emotions I felt with James.

“I understand. I’m glad you told me the truth.”

I turned back in time to see Forrest and James walking back toward us, both of them worse for wear. I was going to kill my brother if he ruined the little time James and I had left.

“Forrest, you’ve never cared before if one of your friends liked me or showed any interest in me. Why does it matter so much that James does? What’s the difference?”

Forrest shook his head, and he didn’t even have to answer for me to know what his reasoning likely was. James’s reputation. His history with girls was too much for my brother. Forrest didn’t trust James because he’d witnessed firsthand how he’d treated so many others.

But James had never intentionally hurt them. He didn’t do committed relationships, and that was a well-known fact. Forrest didn’t have an issue with it until his sister was the object of James’s attention.

It was on the tip of my tongue to lash out at my brother, but James sighed. And the look that passed between the two of them made me think it could have been something more. Something I obviously wasn’t privy to.

James rolled his shoulders back and glanced between Brendon and Forrest until his eyes settled on me. Under his gaze, I felt our connection like it was a physical thing living between the two of us.

James’s eyes never wavered from mine when he said to Forrest, “You have nothing to worry about. The last thing I would ever want to do is hurt her.”

The truth in his words rang through me, and my brother must have either believed him too or just given up the fight when he finally shook his head and stepped back. Before anything more was said, I quickly pried open the door and hopped in.

The guys stood there for a second longer before they nodded to one another. James hopped back into the truck and pulled away while Forrest and Brendon watched us disappear down the dark street. James flipped the headlights back on, let out a deep breath, and leaned back farther into the seat.

I tried to ignore the firm set of his jaw and the tension I could feel radiating off him, but it was pointless. We were a few minutes down the road, yet he hadn’t pulled me closer as he usually would have. By that time, he would’ve grabbed me by the thigh and tugged me across the seat until our legs touched and he could tuck me into his side. Then he’d instruct me to buckle or do it for me.

But he hadn’t made a move. Instead, he was gripping the steering wheel with white-knuckle force, staring straight ahead to the deserted road. The warm summer air whipped through the cabin and I finally couldn’t take it anymore.

“Are you okay?” I asked because I had no idea what else to do. James was never anything less than joyful and happy. It was unsettling to see him so… unsettled.

“Yes,” he answered quickly, shifting his eyes from the road to me for only a split second.

We turned down Kirby Street, where the empty field we frequented sat, and I had to ask the burning question. I wasn’t going to get through the rest of the night unless I knew.

“What did my brother say to you?”

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