Page 34 of My Ex's Brothers

“Breathe, Mamma Mia. You got this,” I tell her with a wide grin.

“Tripp…”

“How about…” I pull her softly away from the stairs, leading her through the lobby. “You text me when you’re done, and we’ll…grab lunch or something.”

She sighs, but she follows me without question.

“Don’t you have better things to do?” she says as I arrive near the admin wing, just out of sight of the secretaries.

“Better things to do than what? You?” I tease as I pull her close. I wrap my arm around her waist and lean in close, my lips ghosting hers as she gently pushes me away, but the smile on her face tells me she’s not mad or offended one bit.

“Tripp…”

“I like how you keep saying my name,” I whisper, tugging her close against me.

She lets me, settling her hand on my chest and gazing up at me with wistful eyes.

“It’s a very nice name,” she whispers.

“Guess I’m just going to have to find more ways to make you say it,” I tell her as I kiss her. It’s quick, but she doesn’t pull away. She relaxes in my arms, and the bell rings, signaling the start of the next class. “Fuck, I gotta get to practice,” I sigh, and she pushes away from me. I hate the emptiness that follows without her against me.

“And I have an interview,” she says, as if reminding herself of the reason she came here in the first place.

“Knock ’em dead, sweetheart,” I tell her with a wink, relishing in the blush on her cheeks once more. “Catch you later.”

Nearly an hour later, I get a text from Amelia that her interview is over. Honestly, I wasn’t sure shewouldtext me, but I’m glad she did. Excusing myself is easy since practice is wrapping up, and my next class is starting in two hours. I don’t think I’ve ever dressed myself so fast.

“Hey,” I say, my entire face lighting up when I look at her. She looks up from her phone, and I can’t even describe the feeling of seeing that smile. She waited for me. She didn’t have to, and I know that, but she did, and something about that feels damn near monumental.

“Hey,” she says with a smile as I approach her.

“You want to grab something to eat from the café, or?—”

She shakes her head. “I really should be going home. I’ve already been gone a couple hours and?—”

I nod. Of course, I’m sure she misses her baby girl, and given everything that’s happened…

“Can I uh…walk you to your car then?” I ask sheepishly, running a hand through my hair.

Amelia’s gaze softens as it dips to my mouth, then to my eyes.

“I’d like that, yes,” she says, and I grin.

I grab her by the hand and she doesn’t fight me. Her fingers intertwine with mine and it feels good. Comfortable.

I’m not sure what this means, really, because we haven’t had the time to talk about what happened—our kiss—or this feeling between us, and I’m not going to push her. She’s been through enough, and I don’t want to add to her stress or anything. Right now, this is enough, I think.

I know Amelia enough to know that if she doesn’t want to do something, she won’t. If she thinks I’m coming on too strong, I trust she’ll tell me. She doesn’t strike me as meek in any sense of the word.

When we get to her car, parked in the front of the campus, she sighs, her entire body tensing. “Well, I guess this is it…” She twists her lips, but she doesn’t let go for a moment.

“A little birdy told me you’re going to the Badgers game next week,” I tell her.

“What?” She lets go of me as she digs in her pocket for her keys.

“The Badgers game against the Pandas. Dane said he invited you and?—”

“Oh, right. Yes, the home game…” She nods. “I didn’t say yes, I said I’dthink about it.”

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