Page 59 of My Brother's Best Friend

Just hearing her name, I dropped my hands and searched his eyes for any sort of deceit. He was a known liar, a known cheater, a known asshole to Redwood that I had fallen for a couple of years ago. Now, he was back and successfully messing with my head.

“Get out of here,” I snarled. “Now!”

“Come on, M?—”

“Maddie …” Alec called from the front door. “You home? The door’s wide open.”

When I heard his voice, I froze and glanced over Spencer’s shoulder at Alec Wolfe standing in the open doorway with his eyes wide and his lips turned into a frown. He stepped into the house, and Spencer didn’t even fucking move.

“What the fuck is going on?” Alec asked.

“What does it look like, Wolfe?” Spencer said, finally pulling away from me and looking over his shoulder. “I’m taking back what’s mine.”

CHAPTER36

MADDIE

“Get the fuck out of here.” Alec seized Spencer by his shirt and threw him out the front door. “You’ll never get Maddie Weber again, you fucking asshole. Next time you come back and harass her, I’ll kick your fucking ass.”

“Is that right, Wolfe?” Spencer taunted. “Just like youkickedOliver’s ass this morning?”

I clenched my jaw and grabbed Alec’s hand to pull him back into the house before Spencer could tease and taunt him anymore. This was exactly what Spencer did all the time, even when we were together. He would either spin things around or bully people relentlessly.

“Don’t listen to him, Alec,” I said. “He’s trying to make you angry.”

Alec growled lowly, jaw clenched hard and his heated gaze on Spencer. “I said to get the fuck out of here.”

“Alec, come on,” I pleaded.

If I didn’t settle him down now, then things would surely get out of hand. Spencer was too good at shit like this and even better than Alec at fighting. Sure, he had gotten beaten up by Oliver last year. But deep down, I knew that he had let Oliver kick his ass. Spencer knew how much Oliver meant to me and hadn’t wanted to fuck him up.

After stepping between Alec and Spencer, I swallowed hard and placed my hand on each of their chests, glancing toward Spencer. He might’ve still had a thing for me—even if that thing was wanting to control me again—but I had grown these past few weeks.

He wouldn’t run all over me again. If I didn’t stand up to him now, he would keep pushing me. But … maybe he would do that to me anyway.

“Leave,” I said, making sure that I left no sympathy or softness in my voice. “Now.”

Spencer tried to step closer to me, but I shoved him back.

“I mean it, Spencer. We’re over.”

A couple of moments passed, and his smirk turned into a full scowl. He showed me his pearly-white teeth that his daddy must’ve paid for and turned quickly on his heel, pulling himself away from me and storming down the sidewalk to his car parked down the street.

Once he drove off in a fury, I turned toward Alec and wrapped my arms around his shoulders, pulling him down into a tight hug. The whole weight of what had happened today at Redwood Academy laid on my shoulders, and I didn’t know how to handle it.

“Thank you for coming,” I whispered into the crook of his neck, tears piling in my eyes.

Alec tensed for a moment, his arms slowly coming around my waist. “You didn’t invite him over, right, Maddie?” he asked, voice actually sounding a bit … vulnerable.

I had never heard him sound so soft and scared.

Alec Wolfe never showed his soft side.

“No,” I said, shaking my head and pulling back to look him in the eyes. “I wouldneverdo that. I don’t even like him anymore. He hurt me so much in the past. You saw it firsthand, the hell that he put me through.”

Swallowing hard, Alec glanced down between us and nodded. “I know.”

I grasped his face to force him to look at me and frowned. “You don’t believe me.”

---