Page 160 of Naughty & Nice

“But this is your chance, your time with her. You should be keeping me as far away from her as possible right now.”

“And what would that achieve?” I ask.

I’ve already considered all the outcomes if I were to do that, and I don’t like any of them.

Ultimately, I’d end up losing either one of them, or both.

I can’t do that.

I need them.

“You’re my brother. I love you,” I say, achingly aware that I don’t tell him enough. “And she’s my girl. I love her too. In a different kind of way,” I add when he screws his face up like he’s about to mock me.

His shoulders relax and he lets out a long breath.

“I think I do too,” he whispers.

I can’t help but smile.

“Good,” I state.

“W-what?”

“Good. I’m glad you do. It means you might just stand a chance of treating her right.”

He glares at me.

“She’s not like the others.”

“Too fucking right, she’s not. She’s worth a million of all the girls you’ve previously hooked up with.”

A bitter laugh spills from his lips.

“You don’t need to tell me that,” he says confidently. “I knew it from the very first time I touched her.”

“But you didn’t know it was her,” I point out.

“No, but I knew she was different. It made all kind of sense when I discovered who she was.”

“You know, there might always be a small part of me that hates you for what you did that night.”

“Then you’re in good company. I never should ha?—”

“I know,” I assure him.

“I also wouldn’t be here right now if I had any doubts about my feelings, about what I want. The last thing I want to do is hurt either of you. But… I’m also a selfish prick, and I need to be here too. I need to be a part of this. I need more of last week.”

“So does she,” I confess.

“And you?” Wilder asks, forcing me to focus on what I want for once. “If we do this…” He waves his arm around, silently gesturing to each of us. “This relationship, then people are going to talk. Without sounding like an arrogant dick, people know who I am. They’ll soon discover what we’re doing and?—”

“Does that bother you?” I ask, aware that he’s the one who’ll be truly under the spotlight with this.

Sure, the media who follow the Titans around will be interested in me, but their focus will be Wilder and Noelle.

My stomach knots for her. She’ll hate it.

Noelle and I have been there through every win and loss of Wilder’s football career so far, but we’ve always done it from a distance.

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