Page 111 of Love Not Qualified

A bob passed his throat as he swallowed, and then he pointed at the path in front of us and we started walking again. The silence was comfortable and I thought it was because we were both buried in our own minds.

I knew I liked Tristan, but I wasn’t sure if I could get over what he did. If things between us had started differently, maybe I wouldn’t have thought twice before kissing him tonight.

Maybe Tristan was just a passing person in my life. Or he could be the love of my life. I didn’t know the answer to that yet. The only thing I knew was that I liked him so much and in a matter of weeks he hurt me more than Josh ever did.

No, he didn’t cheat on me—we didn’t even have a relationship—and he didn’t disrespect me, but he lied to me the whole time I was catching feelings.

So I had no idea what to do about us. I knew I wanted to see him again after tonight, but I wasn’t sure if I should.

His phone rang in his pocket and he took it out, frowning at it. He raised it to his ear. “Yes. What? Why didn’t you call me then?” Tristan’s voice thickened with anger.“I know I said I don’t want to be disturbed, George, but when my brother comes home covered in bruises, I expect you to call me right away.” He hangs up the phone, driving a hand through his hair. “Fucking idiot.”

My insides twisted as I watched him turn in his place, looking from one corner of the street to the other. “I’ll call you an Uber,” he said, not looking at me.

I shook my head. “I’m fine. Go take care of your brother.”

“No. I’ll wait for you to get inside the car first. I won’t leave you alone at night,” he muttered and started tapping on his phone.

“Why don’t you ride with me?” I asked. “That way you can get home quicker.”

“I live one street from here,” he said, eyes pointed at the screen lighting his face in the dark.

I didn’t think twice before speaking. “Then what are you waiting for? Let’s go.”

Tristan looked up at me, but the glance was enough to not argue. He put his brother first instead of fighting with me about tagging along. We didn’t have time to wait for an Uber so he could walk home. The situation was an emergency and I wasn’t going to stand in his way.

He grabbed my hand and we started rushing on the streets, my heels clicking on the pavement in a hurry. I wasn’t sure if his house was that close or if we ran there, but before I knew it, I was walking inside a large garden where two big gates opened with his fingerprint.

I wanted to stop there and admire the flowers that stole my eyes with each step we took, but I was focused on getting through the goddamn door that seemed three miles away.

We eventually got inside and Tristan slammed the door after us. I almost jumped in my place at the powerful sound before taking in the white interior combined with wood.

As soon as we stopped in our tracks, screams reached our ears. They weren’t the kind of screams when someone died, more like when someone reached an orgasm. Two voices echoed in moans.

“Is he…?” I whispered.

Tristan’s eyes doubled in size and his fists clenched around his body. “Ryker!” He roared, marching forward to the staircase. He looked back at me for a second. “Wait here.”

And with those last two words, he ran on the stairs while I stood there, listening to some girls getting off.

FORTY-TWO

TRISTAN

I was fuming and I didn’t know who to direct my anger at. George for not calling right away to inform me about Ryker? Or Ryker for acting like he’s the fucking king of the world?

Since Ryker moved in with me, I never established ground rules or shit like that. I knew he deserved freedom after the life he had and I wasn’t going to act like a father around him since I knew for a fact that was exactly why he wanted to leave New York.

Yet instead of appreciating me for offering him a life I wished I had when I was as young as he was, he kept causing problems I didn’t know how to fix.

I left New York because I wanted to be alone and take my life into my own hands. When he decided to tag along, I didn’t protest. I took him without complaining about it.

All he did was cause problems. Over and over. And I didn’t fucking sign up for this kind of shit. I didn’t want to raise a kid, I didn’t want to worry about anyone, and I didn’t want this kind of responsibility on my shoulders.

Still, I raised a one. I worried about him and the responsibility on my shoulders grew heavier and heavier.

I was fucking tired.

I lifted my wrist and knocked powerfully onto his door. The moans and groans went quiet, but soon after the girls giggled.

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