Page 20 of Twins For My Bestie's Brother

Fucking Will Scortello.

Lily’s face pales. I look up at Will, instinctively tucking her further under my arm. “No problem, man. What’s up?”

Will’s mouth is small and tight. God, he’s mad. It’s funny to see. “I’d like to talk with Lily for a moment, if that’s alright with you.”

If it were up to me, it would not be alright. Not at all. “You should ask Lily. I’m not her keeper.”

Will lifts his hands up in surrender. “Just trying to be respectful, man.”

Respectful would be speaking toher. No, actually, respectful would be leaving her the fuck alone.

“Just a minute, Lil,” Will pleads. “Okay?”

Lily’s grip on me loosens, and I already know I’m not going to like her answer. “Okay. Just a minute.”

I glance at her to make sure she’s okay, but she avoids my gaze. Fuck, I’m not just feeling protective but possessive. I want to tell him to back off. She’s mine. But that’s not true. Not even for one night is that true. It’s all . . . make-believe.

Lily starts to stand, but as she does, I grab her hand. “You don’t have to if you don’t want to,” I murmur.

She attempts to smile. “I know. I’ll only be a minute.”

I don’t let go, hoping that she’ll give me something else, something to make me feel better.

Lily squeezes my hand. Which I guess is better than nothing, but . . . I want more.

I let her go. Because I’mnother keeper. Even if she were ‘mine,’ she is her own person.

I watch them go side by side toward the entryway of the gym to find some quiet in the hallway.

Tia sighs, calling my attention back to her. “I’m so glad he agreed to come.”

“Why is that?” I ask, giving her a cool expression.

Tia is taken off-guard for just a moment. I’m a bit unfair in the way I remember her. It wasn’t all bad. We had fun. The parties, the road trips, the late-night conversations gathered around the bonfire. But the good memories all involve other people. Because when we were alone, Tia didn’t know herself. Not at all. Without a fleet of people feeding her ego, she had no idea who she was.

She’s the opposite of Lily in so many ways. Lily always knew who she was and what she wanted. Uncompromising in how she’d get it.

“I just wanted as much of the class here as possible,” Tia says innocently.

“She nagged him for months,” Melissa mutters.

Tia shoots a glare at Melissa. “Mel!”

“What? You did!”

I bite down on the inside of my cheek. I’m starting to get the feeling that Tia wanted this to be a setup. Like a real-lifeCarrieexcept the blood is an ex-boyfriend. “How’d you find the time to nag him out of five hundred people?”

“I take my committee jobs seriously,” Tia says. “How was I to know that you and Lily would be debuting your new relationship tonight?”

“You insisted we come,” I retort.

Tia’s face is cold and unaffected. “I just want as much of the class here as possible.”

We watch each other for a long minute. “So what started as a way to fuck with Lily turned into a way to fuck with me too, huh?”

“You’re giving me too much credit, Jackson. I’m notthatsmart.” Tia picks up her wine glass which is currently unguarded by her husband because he’s at a loss, listening to her unwinding her plan. “Now, Charlie, come on, let’s dance.”

Tia drags her husband up from the table and pulls him toward the dance floor, disappearing into the throng.

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