Page 120 of Reluctantly You

“Same,” Max agrees.

“Does Magnus know?” Matt asks a moment later.

“Yeah. He’s the first one I told.” When I see their confused looks, I shrug. “He already hates me. I didn’t…I figured, if he knew, it wouldn’t change anything. But with you two…fuck, I didn’t want to give you another reason to leave.”

Their eyes slam into each other’s, and I stiffen in my seat.

“We aren’t leaving you, Mitch. You’re ourbrother.”

“Half-brother.”

“Brother,” they say in unison.

I glance away and press my palms into my eyes. “Yeah, okay.”

“I know that we…well, we haven’t been around much…”

“You don’t need to explain. I get it. I get why. But I’m trying to be better. I’m seeing a therapist and shit…”

“Yeah?” Max asks, and I nod, feeling like a pussy for admitting this, but doing it anyways. They should know that I’m trying. Someone should fucking know.

“Yeah, a few times a week. Have a lot of shit to sort out.”

“I’m glad you are. Coop thinks I should get into therapy as well.”

“Yeah, me too,” Max says and then huffs a laugh. “Seems we’re all fucked.”

“And yet we still have someone who loves us,” Matt says, making my throat click. They do.Theyhave someone, someone who loves them, but not me. He must realize what he’s said because he apologizes profusely after. “Shit. I didn’t mean it like that.”

“It’s fine.”

“No, I didn’t mean it like that…I just, fuck. I meant we’re just lucky.”

“Probably time to stop while you’re ahead,” Coop chimes in as he walks outside, Beau and Gideon in tow.

“Where’s Doggo?” Max asks, craning his neck to look for him.

“Inside with Little Pants. She’s riding him around still.”

“That little shit,” I murmur as Gideon glances at me, worry in his gaze. Little Pants is forgotten, my eyes locked on him instead.

Well, my brothers may have found someone to love them, but I at least have someone who wants to fuck me. And is slightly worried over me.

That has to count for something, right?

“They don’t hate me,” I whisper to him, and he nods, handing me a plate, not that I can eat. I’m nauseous and still slightly buzzed from earlier.

“We don’t hate you. Of course we don’t. Just pissed at Mom,” Matt reiterates, my whisper not as quiet as I wanted it to be. “And Dad for being a cunt.”

Max chuckles and nods along. “Yeah. Cunt is a nice word for both of them.”

“It is,” Gideon says and then takes a bite of his food. I watch his mouth move, watch the way he swallows, and get inappropriately turned on by it.

It’s the wrong time and absolutely the wrong place, but fuck, I’m all mixed up. I should still be anxious, but my brothers’ reassurance has helped mitigate some of that underlying fear. And now I’m just…horny.

For him.

Fuck, get your mind out of the gutter.I don’t need to be thinking about this right now. I should be thinking about my brothers, about how we move forward, past all of this.

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