Page 60 of Declan

Her expression drops. Eyes wide. She takes a step toward me, then thinks better of it as she turns off the music. “He told you?”

I nod, watching her carefully. “Yep.”

“I’m sorry, Lee. It was a drunken mistake on both our parts. It didn’t mean anything.”

“That doesn’t make me feel better,” I reply, voice quieter than I mean for it to be.

She takes another step, confusion settling on her face. “Wait, are you mad?”

“Yes! You’re my best friend. He’s my brother. That’s a line, Jeanne.”

She lets out a short, incredulous laugh. “You can’t be serious.”

“Oh, I’m dead serious,” I snap, moving to sit on the couch like I need the cushions to absorb some of the tension in my body.

She plants herself in front of me, arms crossed, eyebrows furrowed. “Wesley and I don’t have feelings for each other. We were drunk, horny, and it happened. That’s it. We talked about it. We’re cool. No strings, no regrets.”

“Gross.”

“You’re being ridiculous,” she says, sitting on the coffee table in front of me, meeting me eye to eye. “How many one-night stands have you had? How many of them were with guys you called a friend the next day?”

I flinch, and she doesn’t stop there.

“And you’re pissed about me and Wesley, but what about you and Declan? You expect Wesley to just accept that you’re not only hooking up with his best friend, but that it’s serious? You’ve been keeping it hidden. At least Wesley was honest with you.”

The words hit like a slap. I blink, tears blurring my vision. I stand and follow her into her bedroom, not ready to let her be right without saying something.

“You’re right,” I say, the words catching in my throat. “You’re right about everything.”

She looks up at me, and when she sees the tears, her face softens.

“I’m sorry,” I whisper. “I just, I don’t want to have to choose between my best friend and my brother. Ever.”

“You won’t have to. I promise.” She reaches for my hand and squeezes it. “And I mean it, whatever happened with Wesley, it was one time. Never happening again.”

I nod. “Thanks.”

She smirks. “Although, for the record, your brother is extremely demanding in bed.”

“Okay, gross. I really didn’t want to know that,” I groan, laughing through my tears.

Jeanne laughs with me and wipes a tear from under my eye. “You and Declan, though, are you really hiding it?”

I hesitate before answering. “Not hiding. Just being cautious. Declan doesn’t want to blindside Wesley. He wants us to be sure before we tell anyone.”

“And are you?” she asks, tilting her head.

“I’m spending the weekend at his place.”

She smiles knowingly. “So that’s a yes.”

“It is. I’d walk through fire to be with him. And I think this weekend is his way of figuring out if he feels the same.”

“You’ll figure it out. You two always circle back to each other.”

I drop down onto her bed with a sigh. “Well, for now, the sex is insane. Like, life-changing. I could stay hidden forever for more of that.”

She drops down beside me and bumps my shoulder. “Jealous. Spill everything and let me live through you.”

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