Page 47 of Roses in Summer

Lincoln and Gemma.

It’s a mess; at least in my sleep I was able to dream of a world where Lincoln Simmons and his stunning bombshell girlfriend didn’t except as a very real, very perfect couple. I close my eyes against the mental images that assault me and shake my head. “I’ll be ready in twenty minutes, Bianca. Now, get out of my room.”

I pop open my eyes and take in B’s scowl. She lifts a hand, pointing it toward my chest. “Fine, but all you get is twenty minutes. We’re not repeating last night, where you made us rush out of this apartment.” With a final look, she turns on her heels and walks out of my bedroom, softly shutting the door behind her.

“Annoying sisters are going to be the death of me,” I speak into the empty room, walking to my closet to grab everything I need to get ready for an interrogation over coffee and eggs.

—

It took me fifteen minutes to get ready, a fact Bianca will never know because I lingered in the bathroom for an extra ten minutes just to annoy her. Eventually, the frequent knocks on the door became too annoying, and I gave in, allowing B to usher me out of our apartment without so much as a goodbye to Olivia, who seemed to still be holed up in her bedroom.

Lucky, lucky girl.

Though I’m typically a morning person, my sleep was restless last night, even after I came with thoughts of Lincoln on my mind. Honestly, it’s probably because I came with thoughts of Lincoln on my mind that I spent the night tossing and turning.

“Okay, Sera, tell us what’s going on,” Ava says from across the kitchen island, leaning against the granite as she pushes a plate of scrambled eggs and bacon toward me. I accept the plate, looking to my right to find that Bianca has an identical plate in front of her.

“Thanks,” I mumble, looking back to Ava. I bite down on my lip, debating what to say. If I tell my sisters that I ran away because Lincoln and his girlfriend were there, I’ll look pathetic. Yet, if I say anything else, I’m a liar. I sigh and pick up my fork, shoveling a bite of eggs into my mouth to buy me more time to respond.

Chewing slowly, I weigh my words and decide the truth is probably the best option. “I shouldn’t have left the way I did last night, but I panicked when Lincoln’s girlfriend came. I don’t know why, to be honest with you. I feel like an idiot for it, especially when there was no reason for me to feel the way I did. She seemed nice enough.” Except for when she thought I was Ava.

“Please, Gemma sucks,” Ava waves her hand, dismissing my last statement. “Why do you think you panicked?”

Because I will always have an unfathomable level of attraction for Lincoln Simmons, internally rolling my eyes at my inner monologue.

“I don’t know,” I offer, shoving bacon into my mouth as soon as the words leave.

“Liar,” Bianca scoffs, swirling her coffee cup against the countertop. “It’s because Lincoln is hot as fuck, and you wanted to climb that man until you realized he had a girlfriend.”

“That’s not—”

A throat clearing behind us has my heart dropping to the pit of my stomach. My eyes find Ava’s face and grimace at the look of disbelief stamped there.

“So, this is awkward,” Dante’s voice breaks the silence.

“D, shut up,” Grey grunts in response. Part of me hopes that it’s just Dante and Greyson behind us, that only the man I consider a second brother and CeCe’s giant of a boyfriend are the only two men in the kitchen with us.

“God, this is just too good,” Bianca snorts, giving the other part of me- the part that knew my life was a lesson on Murphy’s Law- confirmation that Dante and Grey are not the only ones in this room.

“Hey D, Linc. When did you guys get here? Are you hungry?” Ava casts me a worried look that communicates this is as much of a surprise for her as it is for us.

“Fuck yeah, I’m hungry. Do you have any French toast or—” Dante’s voice cuts off abruptly, followed by a grunt. “What the fuck, Grey?”

“You’re here to help move the old furniture out of the primary so we can put the new set in. Work first, eat later. Vixen, what time is your client’s party today?”

“Shit, I forgot about the furniture.” Ava winces, looking over at me with an apology in her eyes. “I thought you guys were coming next week. And I have to be at Daphne’s house for four today. I’ll start my prep as soon as Ser and B head out, though, so if you need me, I’m going to be busy for a few hours.”

“Come upstairs for a minute then? I need to make sure you’re good with where we will put the bed and dresser.”

Ava looks to me and Bianca holding up a single finger as she responds. “Okay, give me a minute to make sure they don’t put my bed on the roof.”

I nod, words stuck in my throat as she rounds the corner, the sound of footsteps retreating echoing in the kitchen. I refuse to turn around to see if anyone is still with me and Bianca.

It’s rude and horrible manners, but if I make myself as quiet as possible, my existence may go unnoticed.

Bianca clears her throat and I look over at my sister. “I need to make a call; I’ll be right back.” Bianca slides off her stool and moves toward the sliding glass door right off the kitchen.

“What? No. B, come back here,” I hiss, watching as my sister slips outside, smiling as she closes the door behind her.

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