Page 50 of Light My Fire

Brooke has been upstairs in Wyatt’s room forhours.

They’re either talking extensively or having very drawn out sex, or hell, maybe even both.

All I know is they’re up there, most likely naked, and I’m fucking down here crawling out of my skin with blue balls and I can’t even go to bed because I refuse to walk past Wyatt’s room and hear any kind of moaning.

Do I think this is the right move for Brooke, losing her virginity to Wyatt? Yes. Absolutely.

Do I want to hear it happening in real time? No fucking way.

“Brooke is more than good if I had to guess,” I say wryly.

Jackson keeps yawning but he’s not going to bed either.

“Maybe I should sleep down here by Henley and the puppies,” he says now.

“They got moved to the laundry room. You’re going to sleep on the laundry room floor?”

“I can bring the box back in here.”

That damn fire Wyatt keeps feeding is blazing away, romantic and warm, and I’m stuck here with Jackson. Who I normally enjoy spending time with but we’re both off-balance and preoccupied. I need a distraction, but he doesn’t even want to play cards.

I yank open the back door and stick my head out for a blast of cold air. “It’s hotter than hell in here.”

“I think the real heat is upstairs.”

I close the door and eye him. “It doesn’t bother you?”

“Oh, it’s bothering me. I want to be up there. But Wyatt is Mr. Romance. I want Brooke’s first time to be special, like we talked about.”

Crossing my arms over my chest, I try not to visualize Wyatt murmuring sweet words in Brooke’s ear while he moves inside her, but I fail miserably. “You don’t think you’re romantic?”

“I’m flirty and fun. I can be romantic but I have also been accused in the past of not being serious enough. You know this about me… I get easily distracted.”

He does. Jackson goes all in on something, burns himself out, then moves on to the next thing. I would say he does that with women sometimes as well. He likes the idea phase more than the day in, day out of relationships. And he clearly cares about Brooke, just like I do. He wants what’s best for her, just like me, but damn, this is harder than I expected.

“A puppy is a big commitment, you know.” Jackson made it clear he intends to keep Nugget, at the very least. “You can’t get distracted when you have a pet.”

Jackson snorts. “Yes, I understand that. Guess I’m starting there. Maybe I’m ready to finally settle down a little bit.”

He pulls his phone out of his pocket and holds it up over his head while he’s still lying on his back.

If he drops it on his face, I’m going to laugh.

“It’s almost two in the fucking morning,” he says, after checking his phone. “They’re spending the night together, aren’t they?”

“Looks that way.” I didn’t really consider that. I just thought they would have sex and come back downstairs, but that’s a me move, not a Wyatt move. “It’s a good thing you two are here. If I were here alone with Brooke, I would have fucked this up so bad.”

The very thought makes me shudder. Nothing romantic about me and that girl deserves better than I could ever give her.

Jackson turns his head. “Nah. Give yourself a little credit. You’re good under pressure.”

I grunt. “Thanks. For a five alarm fire or an overdose call, sure. But women? That’s a whole different story.”

Jackson doesn’t press me and I’m grateful for that.

“Should we watch a movie?” he asks. “Something where shit gets blown up and asshole characters die?”

“I can get behind that.”

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