Page 48 of Someone Like You

“Probably fifty fifty. But keep in mind I haven’t even looked outside yet.” My eyes were busy raking over Brody’s tall form, soaking up the long, lean lines of his body in those black sweats and black shirt.

“What good are you? Make yourself useful and pray to the gods that we get the whole week off, will you? Oh how’s Brody? Is he taking good care of you? Like I told him to if he wanted to keep his dick attached to his body?”

I met Brody’s gaze, a slow smile curling my lips. “Yeah. He’s been a perfect gentleman,” I said. Brody’s lips twisted in a wry smile, his gray eyes glinting.

“Good. Good, good, good. Okay, love, I’ve got an online test that’s due by midnight and I’ve barely even studied. Call me later?”

“I will. Bye, Jordan.”

Brody pushed off the doorway and came toward me, bare toes sinking into plush carpet. “Good nap?”

I huffed, still reeling from what Jordan had told me. Brody was a good distraction, though. And then the thought that that’s all he would ever be for me popped into my head, and a wave of anxiety tried to sweep me away. “I guess. Where’d you go?”

He sat down next to me and took my hand in his, lacing our fingers together. The action was so intimate and sweet and natural that my heart flipped in my chest. “Just went to put a load of laundry in upstairs. Are you hungry?”

“Eh…maybe later?” I stared down at our joined hands, loving the way our skin tones contrasted. My stark white against his deep tan, more olive than golden. I wondered if he had Italian or Greek ancestors. Maybe Spanish. The shape of his nose made me think Italian or Greek, though. “So Jordan just told me something.”

“Did he now? That’s so unlike him.”

“I know, right? But, on a more serious note…” I trailed off, swallowing thickly.

At my change in tone, Brody squeezed my hand and said quietly, “What did he tell you?”

My nose prickled, my throat felt tight, and my next inhale was a shuddery thing. “Um. That—Sam, you know Sam? The new guy? Who’s the brother of—of?—”

“Yes,” he said softly. “I know Sam.”

“Okay well, turns out, Sam caught his brother, uh—” Fuck me, I’d been able to discuss it with Jordan without losing my shit. Why was I breaking downnow? Because I knew that Brody would pick up every last piece and put me back together? Because it hadn’t really sunk in until just now since I tended to process heavy emotional crap on a delay? I took a deep breath and tried to get my shit together. “He caught him sexually assaulting someone and he reported him to the police and now Ethan is on trial and will probably go to prison for a long time,” I rushed out, and a harsh breath followed.

“Holy shit,” Brody said.

“Yeah. Holy shit.”

It was silent in the room for a moment, and then Brody squeezed my hand and said forcefully, “Good. Good on Sam. I hope his brother fucking rots in there.”

Startled by how vehemently he’d spoken, I turned to look at Brody with wide eyes. “Whoa,” I said.

He glanced at me sidelong. “What? Now I don’t have to go to prison for murdering him.”

“Whoa,” I said a little louder. “Shouldn’t you be hoping he has a change of heart and realizes how shitty of a person he is?” I’d never say it out loud, but I was with Brody on this one. I hoped karma found his predatory ass, pun intended. Even though it felt so wrong to wish harm on another person. Except Ethan wasn’t human. He was a monster through and through.

“No. Not for him. Besides, people like that don’t ever change. He deserves everything bad that’s coming to him.” Brody was looking me dead in the eyes now, and a muscle in his jaw ticked when he was done speaking. And let’s just completely ignore the fact that my dick twitched when he said that. Apparently my morals were going gray and heading into black, and apparently I liked that in another person too.

“Well I’d never let youmurdersomeone for me, Brody! No matter how much they deserved it. Your life is worth so much more than his, and I’d never let you throw it all away for someone like that. You’re too good to lose.”

A slow smile grew on his face. “Oh yeah? You think I’m good?”

“I know you’re good. No one has ever been this good to me in my entire life.” And maybe I didn’t have much of my own experience with being treated right to base his actions off of, but it’s not like I lived a sheltered life. I knew good when I saw it, and Brody was fuckinggreat.Phenomenal. A goddamn saint compared to the people I’d been exposed to in the past.

“You liked how good I was to you this morning, didn’t you?” His eyes took on a devilish glow, and the question was entirely rhetorical because heknewI’d liked—no,loved—everything he’d done to me this morning. But I couldn’t let him distract me with his irresistible temptations because I seriously needed to get my course work done.

I nodded emphatically and said, “Yes. Yes, I did, Brody. A lot. More than anything, really. But please don’t distract me right now because I’m so behind on school, and if you say any more words to me in that delicious tone of voice, then I’m going to become someone that future me will despise. So please put some baggier clothes on—do you own any large sacks?—and let’s go in the other room. Please.”

That devilish glint didn’t disappear, and he brought our joined hands to his mouth, nipped at the inside of my wrist while holding eye contact—fuck me—and said, “Whatever you want, Isaac.”

“Yes. I want this. That. What I said earlier, not what you’re promising to do to me with your eyes right now.”

Brody laughed, licked my wrist, then hauled me to my feet and started dragging me to the door. “Wait! I have to grab my books and stuff,” I said. He let go of me so I could get everything I needed, and then we moved out to the couch.

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